MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — After having to wait a couple of weeks due to rain canceling their first meet, the Ave Maria Cross Country kicked off their 2025 season with a big showing at the St. Thomas Bobcat Invitational. The men's team took first place in the field of eight teams that included both NAIA and NCAA Division II schools. The women finished second in field of seven teams that also consisted of NAIA and NCAA Division II schools.

David Giles and Donavan Mattson led the way for the Gyrenes, finishing first and second in the 8k race, respectively. Giles, a freshman from Reading, Pennsylvania, finished with a time of 26:29, averaging 5:19.6 per mile. Mattson, who is also new to the team but as a graduate transfer from Michigan Tech, was just nine-tenths of a second behind Giles. Both runners were almost half a minute faster than the next runner from Nova Southeastern.

As a team, Ave Maria had a total time of 2:16:24, finishing two and a half minutes faster than second place Nova Southeastern. The Gyrenes won the race with 34 points due to their top five runners placing in the top 12. Rounding out the scoring for the Gyrenes were Sebastian Shea finishing in eighth place, Connor Coyle finishing in 11^th and Samuel Paga finishing in 12^th.

On the women's side, Ave Maria's top five runners also finished in the top 12, taking second place. Esther Shipley, a freshman from Potomac Falls, Virginia, led the way for the Gyrenes, taking home fourth place in the 5k with a time of 23:34.2.

Following her was Anabella Descalzo in the seventh, Madison Thomas in ninth, Isabelle Meyer in 10^th and Maria Gutierrez in 12^th. With their five placements, the Gyrenes finished with 38 points, 68 points ahead of third place Barry. As a team, the Gyrenes finished with a total time of 2:00:36, almost a full nine minutes ahead of Barry.

"[It was] an awesome first race," said head coach Alan Webb following the invitational. "[The] men won, and [the] women [took] a close second against a very strong Nova Southeastern."

The Gyrenes are back in action on September 26, taking a trip to Florida's capital to participate in the Florida State Seminole Invite. The men will race in an 8k at 7:40 a.m., followed by the women in a 6k at 8:20 a.m.