As dominating of a performance Bower had in the girl's race, Mason Norman nearly duplicated it.
The defending state champ stated his intentions early - this would be no stroll, regardless of the rising temperatures.
Norman was off the front from the gun and never looked back. The Classical Academy senior cruised through the opening mile just under five minutes, while the race for second hovered just over 50 meters back with over a dozen in the field.
It appeared Norman's only challenger on this day would be the heat, which soared into the mid to upper 60s through the race.
Despite the elements, Norman held on for a dominating, 37-second victory, running 15:50.
Behind him, that third mile proved to separate the once-massive chase pack, which dwindled down to three by two-miles.
Owen Nolan, Josh Medina, and Alex Baca remained, though Nolan went to work in the final mile, as he ran away from Medina and Baca to take the runner-up spot in 16:27. Medina held on for third in 16:36, while Elco Garcia stormed late to finish fourth in 16:48. Likewise, Jacob Crookston kicked late to finish fifth in 16:51, just ahead of Baca's 16:55.
While Norman made no question of the individual race, the team race was very close...