GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.- The Ave Maria University cross country teams finished their final preparations for the Sun Conference Championships on Saturday, competing in one of the marquee events on the yearly NAIA Cross Country calendar, the NAIA Great Lakes Challenge. The field on both the men's and women's sides featured some of the best NAIA programs in the nation, as 40 NAIA institutions representing ten conferences were in attendance at Riverside Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Samuel Paga had a standout effort for the Gyrenes in Grand Rapids, running the fourth fastest 8k time in school history at 26:26.20. Two more Gyrenes broke the 27-minute mark in Christopher Hermann (26:55.70) and Adam Paga (26:59.10), while Michael Long was just off that pace with a time of 27:00.70. Ave Maria's team score in the competitive event was rounded out by Joseph Perreault, who clocked in at 27:25.90.

In a field with 15 schools among the nation's top 25, national championship favorite Indiana Wesleyan placed five runners in the top 20 to earn the team title in the Maroon Division, where both Ave Maria teams competed. The individual champion, however, came from Rocky Mountain College, as the Battling Bears'  Jackson Wilson crossed the finish line at 24:37.20, almost nine seconds faster than his nearest competitor.

As has been the case for much of the season, Lily Burke led the way for the Gyrenes. The Ave Maria native clocked in at 19:38.00, good for a top 50 overall finish. Felicity Foxhoven was next at 20:01.30, while Sofia Torres finished third among Gyrenes with a time of 20:27.90. Ave Maria's team score was concluded by two runners finishing almost simultaneously, as Madison Thomas and Carol Long finished with times of 20:31.50 and 20:31.70, respectively.

The women's field included twelve schools that had national recognition coming into the race, with No. 15 St. Francis winning the team title over No. 10 Cumberlands, No. 11 Indiana Wesleyan, and No. 13 Carroll. St. Francis was led by five of the top 25 finishers, logging 76 points to easily outpace the 112 points of runner-up Goshen. Cumberlands provided the individual champion, as Alina Boshchuk won with a time of 18:07.40.

Saturday's race concludes the regular season for the Gyrenes, who will now focus their attention on the 2023 Sun Conference Championships, held on the first Saturday in November at North Park in Ave Maria. The Gyrenes will look to once again qualify runners for the NAIA National Championships, which are scheduled for November 17 in Vancouver, Washington.