VALDOSTA — The field was bigger, the weather was hotter, but the result was the same: John Seppala dominated the Baytree 8K.

For the second straight year, Seppala blew away the field in the annual Baytree 8K road race. He finished the race in 28:41, more than a minute faster than anyone else.

“It feels good to win it,” Seppala said. “I had a pretty good race. It’s a good feeling when you win a race, and I’ve been blessed to win my fair share.”

Seppala is a math professor at Valdosta State and the co-sponsor of the Tri-Blazers triathlon club at VSU. He ran collegiately at Shorter College. He won the 2007 Baytree 8K in a course-record 28:15.

Seppala won the race with his two young sons, Luke and Mark, cheering him on to victory.

Seppala was the first of 193 runners to cross the finish line Friday, the biggest turnout the annual July 4 five-mile race has experienced in its three years.

“I think the community is getting the hang of this,” race organizer Todd Smoot said. “We had more runners and more walkers than we’ve ever had.”

Valdosta State runners Steve Cary (29:47) and Alan McGough (30:21) finished second and third, respectively. Chris Gaither, last year’s runner-up, took fourth (30:38) and Chad Novack was fifth (30:56).

Kelly Fleming was the first woman to cross the finish line, running the race in 33:14. She shattered the female course record by over two minutes.

“It was a good race,” Fleming said. “I hadn’t run in a while, and it felt good to run today and win.”

Fleming, whose husband is stationed at Moody Air Force Base, was proud to be able to win a race on Independence Day.

“It’s good to be able to win this race and to support our country today,” Fleming said.

Fleming was one of three women to break the course record of 35:28, which had been set by Susan Fischer in 2006. Ashley McGee won the 25-29 age group and finished second among the women in 33:18. Jordanne Helton, a Valdosta State runner, was right behind her, crossing the finish line in 33:20.

Neeli Fortson, a 12-year old from Rebecca, ran the race in 36:41, winning her age group. That was the fifth-fastest time ever for a 12-year old in the state of Georgia. It also enabled her to take fourth place among the women on Friday.

Sara King broke the state record for 60-year old women when she ran the race in 46:01. That was 13 seconds better than the old record, which had been set in 1998.