Mantz, Clinger named to WCC All-Academic First Team

SAN MATEO, Calif. – Conner Mantz and Casey Clinger were named to the 2022 West Coast Conference Men’s Cross Country All-Academic First Team when the league announced the honors on Thursday.

The award is given yearly to WCC student-athletes who demonstrated high marks in both the classroom and on the course. For eligibility, a student-athlete needs to at least be a sophomore, maintain a minimum 3.20 cumulative grade point average and be a significant contributor to his team.

Two-time individual national champion Conner Mantz was named to the WCC All-Academic First Team for the third consecutive year. Mantz is fresh off being named a 2022 CoSIDA Academic All-American on June 22.

This past season, Mantz became the only Cougar to win three all-time individual conference titles, while leading the Cougars to their eighth consecutive team title. This punctuated a prolific year for the decorated collegiate career of the senior, who became the first BYU men’s cross country athlete to win a second individual NCAA Division I Championship, claiming the program’s fourth individual title overall. A native of Smithfield, Utah, Mantz graduated from BYU in April 2022 with a degree in mechanical engineering and achieved a 3.76 GPA during his prolific BYU career.

Joining Mantz on the WCC Men’s Cross Country All-Academic First Team is fellow All-American Casey Clinger. A business management major with a 3.82 cumulative GPA, Clinger is now a three-time All-American. He posted a top-10 finish in all five of his meets during the 2021 season. Clinger will return for the 2022 season this fall.