Mantz after a disappointing Utah State showing when he fell in the final meters and did not repeat as Utah 4A State Champ.
Conner Mantz of Sky View, along with Lucy Biles, was another returning champion looking to repeat his title. The US #3 ranked runner discovered a potential stress reaction of his femur after his regional meet and since then had been cross training with hopes of giving it a go in his final state cross country meet. Unfortunately for Mantz, his body failed him as Josh Collins passed him in the last straightaway. Mantz stumbled to the ground and smacked the track with his left shoulder as his body collapsed. The Foot Locker All-American was able to get back up and struggle in for a second place finishing time of 15:18 in the 4A race as Josh Collins of Wasatch continued his blistering kick to upset Mantz and win his first XC Utah State title in 15:06, just a tick off the fastest time of day by the 5A winner Zac Jacklin of American Fork. Collins did not come from nowhere though. He was 4th in that epic Bob Firman race last month with Mantz, Tanner Anderson, and Elijah Armstrong in a 4th place 5K PR run of 15:17 and was a state runner-up in the 1600 last spring to Mantz with a 4:14 personal best performance.
Josh Collins after a smart race keeping Mantz in his sights and unleashing a monsterous kick for the win
The big question now for Mantz, who had to warm up on a bike prior to the start of his state meet race, is if his injury is too serious to heal and allow him to train and race at Foot Locker Nationals, which he had been on a short list of top contenders this fall behind defending champion Grant Fisher. That would be a crushing blow for one of the nation's top distance runners and hope that he is able to recover for a Foot Locker national berth and strong final appearance in San Diego.