Taylor saves best for last, in a way

One of the most rousing moments of the season for track and field star Bo Taylor came a day too early.

The Newport Harbor High senior, competing in the CIF State Track and Field championships for the last time, was simply looking to qualify for the final in the discus throw during the June 2 preliminaries at Cerritos College. Instead, he set a state meet record.

Taylor is unique among athletes in throwing events in that he normally doesn’t get outwardly emotional. But during the discus throw at the state preliminaries, Taylor was visibly upset after getting called for a foul, because he knew he had thrown a distance of more than 200 feet.

“Yeah, it fired me up,” Taylor said after the meet. “I was upset because I knew I’d thrown it over 200 [feet]. I really wanted to do it again.”

Taylor had one throw left and a bit of displeasure built up. His ensuing throw of 213 feet, 7 inches was not only a personal best, it was a meet record, just four inches off the all-time state mark of 213-11 set by Huntington Beach High’s Scott Moser in 1997.

Taylor’s mark shattered the previous meet record of 206-5 set by Daniel Schaerer of The Bishop’s School in 2004. It also obliterated his previous personal best of 208-5 1/2 .

“That was huge,” Newport Harbor boys’ track and field coach Nowell Kay said. “He has been working toward that all year. It all came together for him on that one throw.”

Taylor did a fist pump and held up one finger after the throw, which is as animated as he gets during competition.

“He has a quiet way of showing emotion,” Kay said. “Bo’s good at not getting too high or too low and doing what he needs to do to improve. Most of the other athletes show more emotion. Bo is more consistent with his emotion and demeanor.”

Taylor had another stellar day in the state meet finals Saturday, but this time he stood out more in the shot put.

Taylor qualified third in the shot put preliminaries with a distance of 59-0.

In the final, he was second with a personal-best of 63-11 1/4 . Favorite Darius Savage of Morse High had to pop a 66-3 1/4 on his last throw to beat Taylor.

Taylor’s second-place finish was his best in the state meet. He was seventh as a junior.

Taylor’s previous best in the shot put was 61-10, recorded at the CIF Southern Section Division II preliminaries at Moorpark High.

“I wanted to win the shot put title, but I’m happy with how I did,” Taylor said.

In the discus final, Taylor couldn’t match his exploits in the preliminaries, but still finished second behind Savage with a mark of 201-5.

“I had a decent day, but I should have done [Saturday] what I did [June 2],” Taylor said.

Kay, who credits Newport Harbor shot put and discus coach Tony Ciarelli with improving Taylor’s technique, said the 6-foot-4, 240-pound, UCLA-bound Taylor has a bright future in both of his events.

“He has long arms,” Kay said. “His wingspan is greater than the usual wingspan. He has a lot of upside because he’s not as big as most of those guys.”

THE BO TAYLOR FILE

Hometown: Newport Beach

Height: 6-foot-4

Weight: 240

Sport: Track and field

Position: Shot put, discus

Coach: Nowell Kay

Favorite food: Meat

Favorite movie: “Gladiator”

Favorite athletic moment: “Hitting the 213-7 in the discus [during the preliminaries of the CIF State Track and Field Championships on June 2]. It was a state meet record.”

Week in review: Taylor recorded a distance of 213 feet, 7 inches in the preliminaries in the discus throw to set a new CIF State Track and Field Championship meet record at Cerritos College. Taylor also recorded a personal-best distance in the shot put at 63-11 1/4 , good for second place in Saturday’s state final.dpt-tayloraow09.IMGGraphicInfoIG1RQ6O320060609IG1RQ6O3No Captiondpt.04-track-5-BPhotoInfoJM1RQ6G420060609j0bev8ncMARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT(LA)