GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.- The Ave Maria University cross country teams completed their preparations for the postseason on Saturday, running with some of the nation's top teams at the NAIA Great Lakes Challenge, hosted by Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Gyrenes, led by a historic effort from David Giles, finished in 14th in both genders. The NAIA Great Lakes Challenge featured more than a dozen ranked and receiving votes programs, with several national championship contenders in attendance.
On the men's side, sophomore David Giles led the way with a historic performance. The Pennsylvania native broke his own school record, set last year on the same course, finishing the 8k course in 24:50.6. It was just the second sub-25 minute time in school history, both set by Giles on the Grand Rapids course. Giles finished 24th of the 191 runners that competed in the Maroon Division race.
Donavan Mattson finished second among Gyrenes with a time of 25:25.3, with Utah Gusa placing third among AMU runners at 25:34.3. Ave Maria's final two scoring runners were separated by less than a second, with John Murphy crossing the finish line at 26:01.90, and Michael Donahue rounding out AMU's top five with a time of 26:02.6.
The Ave Maria women were led by Catalina Schwab, whose debut in Grand Rapids saw her place in the top 60. The freshman clocked in at 18:48.2, a top 12 time in school history. Second among Ave Maria runners came less than 15 seconds later, with Lily Hynds clocking in at 19:01.0.
Miriam Murrell was the third Gyrene among the Maroon Division's top 100, clocking in at 19:17.3. Anabella Descalzo placed fourth among Ave Maria runners with a time of 19:26.7, with Regina Baird rounded out the five scoring runners with a time of 19:45.5.
With AMU's four regular season meets in the rearview mirror, the Gyrenes now turn their attention to The Sun Conference Championships on their home course on November 7. The SUN Championships were last held in Ave Maria in 2023, when both sets of Gyrenes finished second. The men will be looking to defend their 2025 conference title, while the women have finished in the top three in the conference in each of the past seven years.
