A native of Alexandria Bay, New York, Mance was persuaded by Coach John Welborn to join the wrestling team his senior year of high school. He then wrestled for Appalachian State University from 1966-69 under Coach Steve Gabriel. Mance was a four-year letter winner at Appalachian State, leading the Mountaineers to a 37-2-2 dual record in that span. Mance completed his undergraduate degree in 1969 and earned a Master’s degree from Appalachian State in 1971. His first head coaching position was at Herkimer County Community College (New York) where his teams compiled a four-year mark of 39-16, including a 32-6 record in his final two seasons. In 1976, Mance assumed the head coaching position at Appalachian State and would remain the head coach until 2010. Over 33 seasons, Mance compiled a dual meet record of 355-236 -10, making him the winningest wrestling coach in Appalachian State history. Mance led Appalachian State to 13 Southern Conference championships, coached 79 individual conference champions, five Southern Conference Wrestlers of the Year, and two Division I All-Americans.