GULF SHORES, Ala. – Sabrina DeSantiago became St. Gregory's ninth women's track All-American after finishing seventh in the marathon Saturday at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships.

DeSantiago, a sophomore from Lubbock, Texas, was competing in her first-ever 26.2-mile jaunt after qualifying for nationals on a half-marathon course. She posted a time of 3:23:35.

"My longest distance was 15 miles, so I didn't really know what to expect coming in," said DeSantiago, who qualified with a time of 1:29:51 in the Prairie Fire Half Marathon earlier this season. "My goal initially was just to finish."

DeSantiago started out with a group of 15-20 runners through five miles. At the 10-mile mark, she had moved up to approximately 10th place. At mile 16, she encountered a hip cramp but kept the pace. Runners began to drop off at that point, and DeSantiago started to hit a wall around the 21st mile.

"That's the area when you're running right next to the beach," she said. "I could see everyone walking around over there, and it seemed like my body wanted to shut down then."

But shortly after that point, she found out some surprising and inspiring news.

"I had no idea where I was in relation to everyone else," DeSantiago said. "When Coach told me, I almost started to cry. I knew I had to finish strong."

DeSantiago is the program's second athlete to earn AA status via the marathon. Monika Kalicinska won the event in 2013.

"Sabrina totally exceeded our expectations today," said SGU coach Alice Ross. "She's got such a big range on what she can do – from the 600 to the marathon – and she's only a sophomore. We're so proud of her, and we're looking forward to seeing what she can do going forward.

"Her finishing in the top eight not only lifts her as an individual, but it also gives our program momentum as a whole. We are excited about the future."

Two other Cavaliers – Blake Crouch and Alexis Gee – also competed in Saturday's marathon.

Crouch posted a time of 3:18:33, which was good for 43rd overall. Gee finished in 3:50:08 – 20th among her competitors.

The marathon capped a three-day event for the SGU, which had five national qualifiers in total.

Quintin Powell, who qualified in both the 200- and 400-meter dash, had identical finishes in both events. He came in at 21.91 in the 200, placing sixth in his preliminary heat and 17th overall. His 49.32 in the 400 was also good for sixth in his heat and 17th among competitors in the trial. Powell's times did not make the final-round cut.

Anthony Watkins also fell short of the finals after false starting in the 110 hurdles. He qualified for the event after posting a school-record time of 14.68 earlier this season.

The nationals appearance completes a solid season for both SGU track squads. The teams broke several school records in additional to setting numerous personal bests. The women's team recently was honored with the school's first-ever Five Star Champions of Character Award.