By Catherine Garrett | [email protected]

Juan Diego Catholic High School senior Katrina Price, who has been among the top throwers in Region 11 for the past three seasons, recently signed to compete at Concordia University Irvine (CUI) in the fall. She becomes the first female Soaring Eagle thrower to earn a scholarship. 

“I feel very excited and blessed for this opportunity,” Price said. 

“I think Katrina will be a fantastic college thrower,” JDCHS track coach Chase Kallas said. “I think the year-round training and weightlifting will help her flourish in college.” 

“Katrina’s willingness to travel to California for our senior day showed that she really wanted to be here,” CUI assistant track coach Isaiah Simmons said. “It was a no-brainer that she would fit in after speaking with her on multiple occasions. She wants to learn and get better and I’m excited to have her join us this fall.” 

The daughter of Ivan and Yolanda Price of Sandy was deciding between two schools when she visited the CUI campus in Irvine, California. “It felt like home there and they made me feel a part of the team already,” Katrina Price said, noting that the team gathered in their daily prayer before practice and included the recruits in their prayer. “They mentioned us and it just made me feel so much a part of them,” Katrina Price said. 

The senior made her commitment official with her letter-of-intent signing April 11. “It felt really great to have my friends and family there and it was so awesome to see your hard work finally show and pay off,” she said. 

“We are excited to add Katrina to our team as she can grown and develop into one of the top throwers in the conference,” Simmons said. “She will help fill out much-needed depth in the throwing events on the women’s side.” 

“I think Katrina will develop very nicely into our program,” CUI track coach Danny Bowman said. “Coach Simmons is a very knowledgeable coach and will be able to develop upon her strengths and skills to be a successful thrower for us.” 

Katrina Price has been an athlete all her life, playing volleyball, basketball and soccer before choosing the throwing events in track and field, following her friend Alison Stroud — who was a year older at JDCHS — onto the track squad. “It was so laid back, but competitive, and I was still a part of the team without relying on the team,” Katrina Price said. “It was a different feeling competing just as an individual.” 

As a freshman, Katrina Price had an admittedly “bad season,” before settling into the shot put and discus events and eyeing a college scholarship early on. “I looked up small schools and what distances their throwers put up and I felt like I could at least walk on and was doing pretty okay for someone who just started,” Katrina Price said.

The 18-year-old finished ninth in region during her sophomore and junior seasons before suffering a left elbow injury that required ligament reconstruction surgery this past September. Following a months-long recovery, she got herself back to lifting and throwing, but the right-hander still wears a brace on her left arm. This past track season, she placed 10th at the Region 11 championships. 

“Katrina has been a rock for the program,” Kallas said. “She is one of the hardest-working individuals I know. She works hard on the field and in the classroom.”

Katrina Price set out to beat her personal records all season. “I had a teammate ask me why I cared since I had already signed, and I told her that I can’t commit and then just start slacking off,” she said. She beat her personal record in the discus by about four feet, while she was two feet off her best mark in the shot put. 

“Track has taught me that I can push myself past more limits than I thought,” she said. “It’s helped me realize there are no limits if I just believe in myself.” 

At Concordia, she may venture into two more throwing events — the hammer and weight throw — and she said she’s keen for more learning and growing in and out of the track’s circle. 

Katrina Price credits Coach Kallas and Juan Diego’s athletic director Chris Long for helping her get to the next level, and for Coach Simmons for the opportunity to compete for his program. 

“It’s been an honor to coach Katrina,” Kallas said. “When you have student athletes like Katrina who are dedicated and have a passion for track, it makes coaching so fun.” 

Beyond the track, Katrina Price plans to major in business administration and sports management with aspirations to be an entertainment lawyer.