Leanda Cave is at the top of her game and keeps winning.

After her recent first-place finish in the Kona Ironman Championship just weeks ago, Cave returned to Miami and successfully defended her title for the third consecutive year at the Miami Ironman 70.3 at Bayfront Park.

During the run portion of the race, Cave, 34, of Tucson, Ariz., gained a two-minute lead about 10 miles out.

“After Kona this is just fun,” Cave said. “I ran really well. Early in the morning it was calm but the winds picked up. I love this city. I will be coming back.”

She swam 1.2 miles through swift currents in Biscayne Bay in 23:51. She quickly transitioned to the bike for a 56-mile ride across Miami and back in 2:15:45. Lastly, Cave pushed herself the last 13.1-mile run to the finish line in an overall time of 1:24:46.

In the men’s division, Terenzo Bozzone, 27 from New Zealand, completed the swim in 22:44, the bike in 2:04:47, and finished the run in 1:12:05 to finish first overall. Bozzone was behind through the start of the race.

“I was in second in the bike and swim,” Bozzone said.

The Ironman Series — known for delivering heart-pounding triathlons — is one of the toughest events in Miami. There were 2,175 participants that started the third annual race early Sunday morning.

Results

Top 10 males: [Place, Name, time (Swim, Bike, Run)]: 1. Terenzo Bozzone 22:44 2:04:47 1:12:05; 2. Jan Van Berkel 23:09 2:04:13 1:13:48; 3. Horst Reichel 23:37 2:03:55 1:13:46; 4. James Cunnama 25:25 2:05:28 1:11:31; 5. Nils Frommhold 22:43, 2:04:55, 1:15:56; 6 Massimo Cigana 26:44, 2:03:56, 1:13:27; 7. Christian Ritter 22:42 2:08:19 1:14:44; 8. Andres Castillo Lat 30 M Bogota COL 22:42 2:08:19 1:16:18; 9. Alberto Casadei 22:40 2:08:32 1:18:24, 10. Felipe Van De Wynga 22:45 2:09:54 1:17:37.

Top 10 females: [Place, Name, time (Swim, Bike, Run)]: 1. Leanda Cave 23:51, 2:15:45, 1:24:46; 2. Lisa Huetthaler 26:39, 2:14:51, 1:24:14; 3. Margaret Shapiro 25:23, 2:17:04, 1:24:31;4; Lisa Mensink 25:22, 2:17:09, 1:26:39; 5. Corinne Abraham 29:42, 2:20:51, 1:20:08; 6. Jessie Donavan 32:09, 2:19:55, 1:24:30; 7. Amy Kloner 32:03, 2:23:38, 1:23:57; 8. Regula Rohrbach 26:52, 2:22:55, 1:30:35; 9 . Jenny Schulz 29:20, 2:29:01, 1:24:13; 10. Miranda Tomenson 25:56, 2:26:32, 1:31:23.

Volleyball

•  Middle Tennessee def. FIU 25-20, 25-20, 25-22: The Blue Raiders (9-20, 6-6 Sun Belt Conference) swept the host Golden Panthers (7-17, 4-8). Freshman Lucia Castro led FIU with nine kills, while senior Marija Prsa added eight. Redshirt senior Renele Forde posted a team-high 14 assists. Junior Brittany Spencer had a team-leading eight blocks for FIU, including one solo stop.

Golf

The Nova Southeastern women’s golf team finished third out of 13 teams at the Lady Paladin Invitational in Greenville, S.C. The Sharks recorded a three-round score of 908 (44-over-par) on the par-72 Furman University Golf Course. Daniela Ortiz led the Sharks from start to finish, carding a three-round, 5-over 221.