It was an improbable finish for Leilehua senior Bryce Jenkins — or probable — for those who know him.

Behind a gritty work ethic and a strong race, Jenkins returned from a stress fracture in his left leg that sidelined him at the beginning of the season to win his third straight state title at Friday's Honolulu Marathon/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association state cross country championships at Hawai'i Preparatory Academy on the Big Island.

"For coming back, I honestly had no idea what was going to happen," Jenkins said Friday after winning the boys 3-mile race in 17 minutes, 13 seconds. "I made sure to train my hardest. Whoever had the most guts was going to win."

The only other runner to win three straight state titles was Hawai'i Baptist's Matt Stevens from 1994 to 1996.

The stress fracture prevented Jenkins from running at the beginning of the season, so he spent hours doing cardio workouts on a bike, elliptical machine and at the swimming pool. Coach Shawn Nakata thought having to watch his teammates run lit a fire under Jenkins.

Jenkins returned to win the final three races of the season by an average of 22 seconds — the O'ahu Interscholastic Association Western Division championship, OIA championship and state championship. In all three races, he helped Leilehua win the team titles. It was also the third straight time he has won those three races.

"He's much more mature, a lot more hungry, being there's only one other person that has won the state championship three times," Nakata said. "To win it twice and not win the third in his senior year, that really drove him."

Jenkins got an early look at the state course when Leilehua competed at a Hawai'i Prep meet in September. He walked the entire course and finished last in 222nd place, calling the finish "an extremely humbling experience." By finishing the race though, it made him eligible to compete in postseason races.

"I pretty much made sure I had the course down, keep a good look at each turn, evaluate the course" Jenkins said. "It kind of threw me off, they made the course (for states) a bit different. It wasn't that bad, walking it helped."

Each of Jenkins' three state titles has come with an interesting side story. As a sophomore, his father, Bruce, saw him run because he was on emergency leave from Iraq because of the ailing health of his father-in-law. Last year, Leilehua became the first public school to win a state cross country title since 1982.

Aside from Jenkins' status this season, the Mules had a relatively new squad and faced stiffer competition for the state title. But Leilehua retained its state crown, winning with a meet-low 75 points after four of its runners placed in the top 21.

"Overall it's the coach," Jenkins said. "Mr. Nakata, he's just an amazing coach. He knows what he's talking about. He coached a new team, pretty much a new team in training."