GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Caitlyn O'Brien became the second Gyrene ever to win a national championship, winning the Long Jump in the NAIA Indoor Track and Field National Championship. The junior leaped 5.93 meters on her second jump to take home the gold.

"[O'Brien] had a really good day in the pentathlon on Thursday, but the long jump portion wasn't as good as she wanted," said head coach Alan Webb. "She was taking off behind the board. She made some adjustments with Coach Bill [Mier] and nailed it on her second jump. She hit the board perfectly."

O'Brien beat the second place finisher, Abia Kante from the Cumberlands, by two centimeters. Kante hit 5.91 meters on her first jump meaning O'Brien knew what she had to beat on the second jump.
O'Brien is the first female athlete at Ave Maria to win a national championship. She is the second Gyrene overall to win a national championship.

Michael Long came close to repeating as a national champion but fell short by 0.22 seconds in the final 800 meter race. Long ran a personal best on an indoor track at 1:49.66, but Luis Peralta from Milligan finished with a time of 1:49.44. Long finished as the National Runner Up, beating third place by over half a second.

Across the rest of the weekend, O'Brien placed 12^th in the pentathlon, two spots higher than what she was seeded going into the meet. In her third and final event in the meet, O'Brien placed 14^th in the 60 meter hurdles.

Alexis Mendlik placed 15^th in the 400 meter preliminaries, which was four spots higher than what she was seeded going into the meet.

Maria Talafuse was the final Gyrene to compete in the national championships, racing in the 3000 meter racewalk.

The indoor season is now officially over and the Gyrenes shift their attention outside to the outdoor season. The first meet for Ave Maria is the St. Thomas Invitational March 7 in Miami Gardens, Florida.