Instead of leaping across the country to compete in college track & field, Talin Lewis is bounding to Los Angeles.
Lewis, a champion hurdler and long jumper who graduated from Oaks Christian in the spring, will be joining the track team at the University of Southern California this fall. The Malibuite announced in May he was set to attend the University of North Carolina, but he decided to make the change earlier this month.
Lewis believes USC to be a good school and made the switch for track reasons. He said he expects the competition to be tougher at USC, which competes in the Pac-12 Conference, than the opponents UNC faces in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
“It’s better athletics,” he said.
Lewis won CIF Division IV titles in the 300-meter hurdles and long jump in May. He was also a member of the Oaks Christian 4×400 relay team that ran off with the title at the same event. Oaks Christian’s boys track team was the overall CIF Division IV champion.
Lewis, who isn’t attending USC on a scholarship, expects to compete in the 400-meter hurdles in college. He said his goal is to one day be a national champion.