Damien’s Herrera ready for Arcadia Invite


By Steve Ramirez
It’s funny how things work out sometimes.
Take the case of Damien High School’s Taylor Herrera, considered one of the top sprinters in the CIF-Southern Section, if not the state.
But there was a time when the senior, who also plays football and soccer for the Spartans, considered track and field as an afterthought.
“I’m a track guy who plays football,” said Herrera, who is one of the featured entries in the 100- and 200-meter runs for Saturday’s invitational portion of the Arcadia Invitational at Arcadia High School. “The funny thing is that my freshman year I played football, then soccer, and when spring came, I decided not to run track, because I felt I needed a timeout.
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“But my mom questioned me about it and she kept pushing me to track. I went out, and now four years later it’s track that gets my school paid (with an athletic scholarship to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo), and its the sport I fell in love with.”

It’s easy to see why. Herrera has become the elite sprinter in the area, finishing second and third, respectively in the 100 and 200 in Division II at the CIF-SS championships last May, fifth in the 100 at CIF-SS Masters and a solid 15th in the 100 at the CIF State championships.

But all that has Herrera wanting more.

“Last year, I peaked at CIF finals, made it to state, but peaked too early,” said Herrera, who ran a blistering 10.63 seconds at CIF-SS finals before slowing to a 10.93 two weeks later at the state meet.

“If you look at the times at the state, second place was a 10.63. Well, if I run what I ran at CIF finals at state, I would have finished second.

“It definitely bummed me out, but it’s also motivated me this year to peak later. I’m definitely looking at winning (a CIF-SS title). It’s my goal to win CIF, but at the same time, I think, for my division, I can still win CIF and still peak at state.”

His performances last year didn’t go unnoticed and guided him to accept a scholarship offer to attend Cal Poly SLO.

“I was heavily committed to Northern Arizona,” Herrera said. “I liked the coaches, the facilities, the town. Then I went to San Luis Obispo.

“I just fell in love with the program, the coaches, the area and what it offered me. I’m happy with my decision.”

Now he can concentrate on an outstanding finish to his high school career, and so far he is off to a solid start, running some of the quickest times in the state in the 100 and 200.

Herrera ran the 100 in 10.78 and the 200 in 21.81 at the Pasadena Games two weeks ago. Both marks are the sixth-quickest in the state this season.

Those numbers are slightly off last season’s bests of 10.62 in 100 and 21.66 in the 200, but Herrera said he is right on schedule.

“They’re are not as fast as I was at the end of last year,” Herrera said.

“But when you compare those times to what I was running at this time last year, I’m running a lot faster.”

He views Saturday’s invitational as a stepping stone for what he hopes to accomplish in late May and early June.

“It’s a really good test,” said Herrera, who didn’t run in the invitational last year.

“It’s one more early-season test. I’m excited to run fast against (the best).”

steve.ramirez@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2296

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