Good Sports: Sophia Lopes prepares for USC, aiming to make history with Central East

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- She's not conscionable 1 of the best.

"She is the champion hurdler the Valley's ever seen," says Cedric Pulliam.

Sophia Lopes is determined to support making past successful the Valley.

"She's breached each of the Central conception records," Pulliam said.

Even though she's a top-three hurdler successful the authorities of California, Sophia says she inactive hasn't peaked.

"I'm ever looking for better," she said. "I conjecture you could accidental I'm ne'er satisfied."

Her endowment level is high, but the Central East senior's intelligence toughness is elite.

That benignant of spot comes from her family.

"My ma and my dada person ever been my coach," she said. "They ever archer america like, you're not an mean teenager."

There's surely thing mean astir the Lopes household.

"She's been astir way and tract each her life, adjacent erstwhile she was successful the womb," Pulliam said.

All 4 of Sophia's older sisters were successful assemblage athletics, and her ma ran way astatine each level.

"They ever accidental you person to person a antithetic mindset than others, and I deliberation that's what makes maine truthful locked in," Lopes said.

Committing to the adjacent level was a no-brainer.

"Choosing USC, it wasn't hard," Lopes said. "Right erstwhile I stepped onto the campus, I conscionable knew."

Before Sofia heads down southbound to a apical way and tract programme successful the country, she's got immoderate concern to instrumentality attraction of successful the Valley.

Next week, the champion athletes from crossed the authorities volition conscionable astatine Veteran's Memorial Stadium for the CIF State Championship.

"I emotion having competition," Lopes said. "It pushes maine truthful overmuch more, it builds my occurrence truthful overmuch more, truthful I cognize that erstwhile I tally adjacent to idiosyncratic who mightiness beryllium amended than maine oregon person a person time, I cognize I'll get my PR."

Sophia holds the Central conception grounds successful the 300-meter hurdle, needing to shave disconnected conscionable hundredths of a 2nd to ace the apical 10 successful the nation.

She's hoping she'll get there, moving amongst the champion successful California adjacent weekend.

"Fresno - radical don't truly wage that overmuch attraction to it, but a batch of large athletes person travel retired of Fresno," Lopes said. "I emotion erstwhile radical sometimes, like, they don't spot maine arsenic a competitor. It makes maine privation to push, to amusement them similar I beryllium here."

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