It was 2021 in New York City when Matt Herhal and his wife realized they wanted to switch things up.
The couple had jobs that they realized could be completed remotely. Herhal was then the associate director of sport performance at Columbia University.
The Herhal’s had a think about where they wanted to raise their kid and retire, and they landed on Park City. They had been coming to town for around 15 years to ski and visit friends.
Herhal took a job in town with Intermountain Health, who supplies Park City High with their athletic trainer Chris Antinori. Intermountain and the high school recently expanded their relationship, and Herhal became the school’s strength coach.
Herhal is now tasked with minimizing potential injuries for the school’s athletes of all sports, and making sure they leave the school healthier and more well-rounded.
“I’ve been loving it thus far,” said Herhal. “It was something that I have been missing since I’ve moved out here,” said Herhal. “Working one-on-one with clients in personal training and individual sessions has been great and fulfilling, but I missed working in the team environment and helping large groups of individuals.”
Herhal has also seen plenty of athletes enter the college ranks unprepared physically. He wants to change that for Park City High School athletes and use his two-decades-plus experience as an exercise physiologist and strength and conditioning coach. Herhal knows he’s catching these athletes at an impressionable age, when they can start building healthy, lifelong habits.
Herhal hopes his athletes come in with positive mindsets and an understanding of his processes. He said the response has been great thus far, despite some of his tough workouts.
“I’m there to help everybody, whoever wants to come in, that’s who I’m going to work with,” Herhal added. “We do have some open hours through the summer that kids have been utilizing and coming in with our array of student athletes from from different teams.”
Herhal worked with the women’s lacrosse team, a state powerhouse, throughout the winter before he moved into his official role. This summer, he’s worked with the football team, who has a rigorous summer workout program to ready for their fall season, which begins in August. He worked with 36 different teams at Columbia, experience he knows will translate well to Park City High School.
Herhal would categorize movement quality as his specialty. He loved working primarily with baseball at Columbia.
“I think the goal of everybody there is to win, right?” said Herhal of his PCHS teams. “Playing sports and participating in sports is good for learning teamwork, camaraderie, building friendships, learning how to work, but at the end of the day we’re in to win, right?”
Herhal thinks he and Antinori can create a dream team, with athletes kept healthy and improving. The two are aware that their situation is very unique at the high school level — and something to take advantage of.
Herhal and his family have been loving Park City and its availability of outdoor activities. He said “this is my community now,” and he’s in it for the long haul, looking to give back with his particular skillset.
“He’s also a great dude. We’re really blessed this summer, I think we’re going to be at our peak condition that we’ve ever been,” said head football coach Josh Montzingo. “We were blessed to get Matt in conjunction with Intermountain Health. He comes in after school, and he’s for everybody after school. If band wants to come in and get a lift, they can schedule a time, and they can get themselves in there. So, it’s not just athletics.”
Montzingo said it’s been to everyone’s advantage that Herhal started working a bit with some of the teams like girl’s lacrosse, track and field and freshman football before officially starting. He had a big smile at a summer practice in June when discussing some of the harder training sessions Herhal has been putting his boys through.
“They also realize the benefits will come at that end of the summer, when they’re in prime condition,” added Montzingo. “He’ll just take us right through the season, keeping our strength levels up.”
Herhal will also see many of the same athletes throughout the year playing different sports, helping their work. PCHS and their programs encourage multi-sport participation.
Miners star halfback Eli Warner is feeling more ready for the upcoming season than ever before. He thanked the trio of Herhal, Montzingo and head boy’s track and field coach Dave Yocum for that feeling. Yocum works with the football team on the summer conditioning many mornings.
“The toughest part is we have a new strength coach, and his workouts are really hard. They really push us; they’re tough,” said Warner on the summer workout plan. “The new strength coach is also really nice. … He’s really good.”
Other PCHS fall sports are boy’s golf, girl’s soccer, girl’s tennis, girl’s volleyball and cross country. They will look to showcase the work they’ll be putting in with Herhal in the gym.
