PREP TRACK AND FIELD: MARIA'S RUN MAKES CANYON GO WILD HIS WIN IN 100 ALTERS LEAGUE LANDSCAPE.

Byline: Matthew Kredell Staff Writer

Billy Maria crossed the finish line first. It seems simple, but it was so much more than that.

When Maria beat Valencia's Charles Burnley in the 100 meters, it marked the turning point of the meet, the passage of the Foothill League track title from Valencia to Canyon, and Maria's arrival.

``Sprints were (Valencia's) thing,'' Canyon coach Dave DeLong said. ``That was what they knew they could dominate over other teams in the league. When Billy won the 100, you could just see their whole team deflating.''

The Canyon team recognized the significance and all but dog-piled on Maria.

``We knew we would win in the distance races,'' distance runner Luke Llamas said. ``When Billy broke through in the sprints, it was huge. He's been getting better and better.''

Maria wasn't through yet; he went on to win the 200, pairing with Richard Ratcliff to give Canyon the top two finishers. His 100 (10.74) and 200 (22.43) times were the third best in school history.

Now Maria is the favorite in the 100 and 200 at the Foothill League finals Thursday at 2 p.m. at College of the Canyons.

He's come a long way from the guy who thought 100 meters was a long way to run.

Maria, a junior, was spotted by Canyon track coaches at a football practice. The wide receiver and defensive back agreed to give track a try but didn't know what to expect.

``I had pretty good quickness but 100 meters, that was kind of far,'' Maria said. ``In football, we usually run 40 yards.''

In his first race of the season, Maria finished the 100 in 11.9, placing third. He didn't know what was a good time but figured finishing in the top three wasn't bad.

A couple weeks later, Maria was down to 11.1. He was shooting for his first sub-11 time when he ran the 10.74 against Valencia.

``When he ran 11.1, I was like wow, that's a pretty legit time,'' DeLong said. ``Then after he ran the 10.7, everyone was asking me about the kid. One of the things about track is it's not a sport that takes years to develop. If you're fast, you're fast.''

Maria considers football his main sport - beating Valencia was especially sweet to him because the Vikings beat the Cowboys in football last season. But track quickly is catching his fancy. He plans to continue running next year and hopes to bring some of his football teammates with him. There aren't any other football players on the Canyon track team, which is unusual at the prep level.

``I'll try to convince some to come out next year,'' Maria said. ``They'll see how it has helped me.''

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Canyon sprinter Billy Maria will be the favorite in the 100 and 200 meters at the Foothill League finals.

John McCoy/Associated Press