WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Ave Maria Cross Country team opened their 2026 season Friday evening on the east side of the state and put on a very good showing at the Keiser Invite. The men finished in second place of nine teams and the women finished in third place of eight teams. Both sets of Gyrenes beat NCAA DII schools.

The men raced first and stacked the top of the leaderboard to finish in second place. Four Gyrenes finished in the Top 11, the most of any school at the meet. Donavan Mattson led the way finishing in fourth place of the 104 runners at the event. Mattson posted a time of 15:31.13 in the 5000 meter race.

David Giles was the next Gyrene to finish, taking eighth place with a time of 15:54.33. Right behind him in ninth place was Sebastian Shea with a time of 15:54.33. Rounding out the Top 11 was freshman John Murphy with a time of 15:56.84.

Of the first 11 affiliated runners to finish, Ave Maria had the most with four runners. NCAA Division II schools Palm Beach Atlantic and Nova Southeastern each had three runners in the Top 11, and host Keiser had one.

Michael Donahue was the last Gyrene to add points to Ave Maria's score, finishing 19^th among the affiliated runners with a time of 16:17.39.

Palm Beach Atlantic won the meet with a score of 47, but the Gyrenes were right behind them with 51. Nova Southeastern finished third with a score of 59. Two other Sun Conference members raced in the meet. St. Thomas placed fourth with a score of 101 and Keiser finished seventh at 187.

The Gyrenes had similar success in the women's 5000 meters, placing third place behind Palm Beach Atlantic and Nova Southeastern.

Ave Maria had two runners place in the top 10. Anabella Descalzo was first across the finish line for the Gyrenes in seventh place with a time of 18:59.88. Just a few spots behind her was Lily Hynds in 10^th place with a time of 19:02.96.

The other runners to score for the Gyrenes were Miriam Murell adding 17 points with a time of 19:26.15, Maria Gutierrez right behind her scoring 18 points with a time of 19:29.55, and Esther Shipley scoring 21 points with a time of 19:53.79.

Ave Maria finished with a total 73 points. They were just 17 points behind second place Nova Southeastern and 51 points ahead of fourth place and Eckerd, another NCAA Division II school. St. Thomas and Keiser were also in the women's race and placed seventh and eighth place, respectively.

The high placements for both teams against tough competition have got the Gyrenes in good spirits as the 2026 season gets underway.

Ave Maria is back in action Friday, September 18, in Tallahassee, Florida, in the FSU Invite. This premiere event will feature teams across all divisions and associations. The Gyrenes competed in the race last season and are excited to get back.