USC Track and Field Welcomes 20 New Members for the 2025-26 Season
October 09, 2025 | Track & Field
The Trojans begin their 2026 indoor slate in January
The USC track and field team added 20 new members to the squad for the 2025-26 season. Hailing from four countries and six states, the newcomers bring world, national and state championship titles in multiple distances and field events. Their backgrounds and achievements are outlined below.
Women:
Asjah Atkinson
Atkinson, from Carson, California, competed for four years as a hurdler at UC Berkeley. She was a two-time All-ACC Second Team honoree, earned 2025 USTFCCCA All-Academic recognition and was a two-time All-ACC Academic selection. She also appeared on the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll and earned her B.A. in Cognitive Science. She graduated from St. Anthony High School where she was the 2021 CIF-SS Division 4 runner-up, placed third in the 100m hurdles at the 2019 California State Championships and won the 2019 CIF-SS Masters Championship in the same event. She was named All-City Athlete of the Year and is the most decorated athlete in her school's history.
Oluwatosin AwoleyeÂ
Awoleye, a graduate from South Cobb High School in Georgia, is a distance runner specializing in the 800m. She is a three-time All-American and three-time state champion in the 800m. She won the 800m at the adidas Atlanta City Games in May. She received the 800m Girls All-Metro Athlete Award twice from the Atlanta Track Club.
Anisa Bowen-Fontenot
Bowen-Fontenot, from San Diego, California, is a hurdler and graduate of San Diego High School. She is a two-time state champion in the 100m hurdles, a state runner-up and third-place finisher in the event, and was ranked No. 1 nationally for high school girls. In addition to track and field, she also competed in flag football.
Makenna Barnett
Barnett, from Whitsett, North Carolina, is a hurdler from Grimsley High School. Across her high school career, she became a seven-time 100m hurdles champion, five-time 300m hurdles champion, four-time 55m hurdles champion and three-time 60m hurdles champion. She was named school MVP twice, earned Conference Player of the Year honors twice and was recognized as the Women's North Carolina Track & Field Championship Most Outstanding Performer.
Lillian Harden
Harden comes to USC from the University of Iowa. She competed for the Hawkeyes for one year, most notably running the 60m hurdles in 8.16 at the Larry Wieczorek Invite. She graduated from Bridgeland High School in Cypress, Texas in 2024. She won the 2024 Texas 6A State Championship in the 100m hurdles, placed third in 2024 Texas 6A State 300m hurdles and was a 2024 100m hurdles U20 medalist. She also became a medalist at the Nike Indoor 60m hurdles. She holds the Bridgeland High School all-time record in 100m hurdles and 300m hurdles.
Kailyn Head
Head is a hurdler from Denton, Texas. She won the 2025 5A UIL Texas State Championships in both the 300m hurdles and 100m hurdles, captured the 2024 state title in the 300m hurdles while finishing runner-up in the 100m hurdles, and was the 2023 state runner-up in the 100m hurdles. A four-time All-American, she holds seven school records. She ran a personal best of 41.20 in the 300m hurdles to win the state title during her junior year.
Sydney Knodel
Knodel, from Dallas, Texas, joins the track distance squad headed into her senior year at USC. She will earn degrees in Accounting and Business Administration with a Finance emphasis. She competed in track and cross country at The Episcopal School of Dallas. She was in the top ten in her graduating class, an AP distinguished scholar and member of the National Honors Society.
Madison Mosby
Mosby, a Los Angeles native, is the 2025 California 400m State Champion. In high school, she ran personal-bests of 53.1 in the 400m and 23.86 in the 200m. She competed in both volleyball and track in high school, and she earned First Team and MVP honors in volleyball and a coaches award for track and field.
Holli Prest
A graduate of Woodside High School in 2024, Prest achieved a 2:33 PR in the 800m as a member of the track team. In the year after graduating, she competed unattached while attending Gonzaga University. She achieved times of 4:58 in the 1500m and 2:22 in the 800m at the West Coast Last Chance 2025.
Joelle Trepagnier
Trepagnier, from Inglewood, California, graduated from Culver City High School. While in high school, she won the 2023 CIF State Championship in the 200m and 4x400 and was a CIF State runner-up. She held personal best times of 23.55 in the 200m and 53.46 in the 400m.Â
Paige Unger
Unger joins the team as a distance athlete following two years on the USC triathlon team. She recently competed at the USA Triathlon Nationals in the spring. In high school, she served as captain of cross country and track and field for two years. She also held the school record in the 1600m from 2021 to 2023. She set a personal best in the 1600m of 5:05 and was a 3x qualifier for California State Cross Country Championships. Her cross country team placed fifth in the California State meet and won the Central Coast Section Championships in 2023. Unger was valedictorian of her graduating class.
Men:Â
Gus Armstrong
Armstrong, from Pasadena, California, is a graduate of Long Beach Polytechnic High School. He won the 2025 California State Meet 4x400m relay championship, helped his team win the 2024 California State team title and contributed to back-to-back CIF Division One team titles in 2024 and 2025.
Ethan Exilhomme
Exilhomme, a graduate student from Orlando, Florida, is a hurdler who competed for four years at Northeastern University. He earned 2024 All-American honors in the 60m hurdles and CAA Track Athlete of the Year in the same season. A three-time NCAA National Championship qualifier (2023–25), he holds school records in the 110m hurdles, 60m hurdles, 60m and 4x100m relay. He earned his undergraduate degree in Health Science, earned 2024 Academic All-American and appeared on the CAA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll all four years. In high school, he won the 2021 Nike Outdoor National Championship and the Florida State Championship in the 110m hurdles.Â
Mico Lampinen
Lampinen, from Sälinkää, Finland, is a discus and hammer thrower who graduated from Mäntsälä High School. Some of his accomplishments include becoming the U20 Nordic champion in both discus and hammer in 2024 and 2025, winning silver in hammer throw at the 2025 U20 European Championships, being named a 2024 national champion in discus throw and taking bronze in discus throw at the 2025 U20 World Championships. He holds the national record in discus throw, with a distance of 62.74m. His personal best distance in hammer throw is 74.78m.
Wiaan Martin
Martin, from De Doorns, Western Province, South Africa, is a 400m sprinter who competed at Life University in Marietta, Georgia, prior to joining USC. He won the NAIA Indoor 400m Championship, placed fourth in the 4x400m indoor relay, and earned Dean's List honors in the spring. He represented Team South Africa at the 2023 African U20 Championships and the 2024 World Relay Championships. He won gold in the 4x400m mixed relay and placed third in the 4x400m men's relay at the 2023 U20 African Championships. He also finished third in the 400m at the ASA Youth & Juniors Championships and was named the 2023 Boland Junior Athlete of the Year.
Jackson Norris
Norris, from Humble, Texas, graduated from Atascocita High School in 2025. While in high school, he won the 2025 UIL 6A State Championship in long jump, placed second in the 2025 Nike Outdoor Nationals, earned runner-up in long jump at the 2024 UIL 6A Championships and became the 2023 USATF Junior Olympic Champion. His top performance in long jump was a distance of 7.59 meters.Â
Kitso Paulson
Paulson, from Newton, Massachusetts and born in South Africa, is a thrower who graduated from Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He won the New Balance Nationals Rising Star title in 2023 and earned All-NEPSAC Division 2 honors in both discus and javelin that same year. He holds a javelin PR of 174 ft 3 in. Along with track and field, he also competed as a wrestler.
Jack Stadlman
Stadlman, a graduate of Temecula High School, started as a basketball athlete prior to competing solely in track. In high school, he ran the 200m and 400m with personal best times of 20.82 and 45.69, respectively. He also ran anchor on the 4x100m relay helping his team to a time of 41.3. He was a two-time recipient of the Athlete of the Month and was honored as MVP of the track team. He also received a 4.0+ GPA award during his senior year.Â
Tom Tersek
Tersek, a thrower from Slovenia, is the U20 world champion in javelin. He also won the 2024 Slovenian national title in javelin and holds a PR of 80.87m. He competed in high jump throughout his high school years as well. Along with track and field, Tersek played handball and basketball. He holds winning the world title as his most thrilling moment as an athlete.Â
Cordial Vann
Vann, from Dallas, Texas, is a sprinter and jumper who graduated from Frisco Heritage High School. He was the Texas Relays champion in the 100m, the U20 Team USA champion in the long jump, and the Nike Indoor 60m champion. He ranked as the No. 1 high school long jumper in the United States and was a member of both the National Honor Society and the Nike Elite Program.
Women:
Asjah Atkinson
Atkinson, from Carson, California, competed for four years as a hurdler at UC Berkeley. She was a two-time All-ACC Second Team honoree, earned 2025 USTFCCCA All-Academic recognition and was a two-time All-ACC Academic selection. She also appeared on the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll and earned her B.A. in Cognitive Science. She graduated from St. Anthony High School where she was the 2021 CIF-SS Division 4 runner-up, placed third in the 100m hurdles at the 2019 California State Championships and won the 2019 CIF-SS Masters Championship in the same event. She was named All-City Athlete of the Year and is the most decorated athlete in her school's history.
Oluwatosin AwoleyeÂ
Awoleye, a graduate from South Cobb High School in Georgia, is a distance runner specializing in the 800m. She is a three-time All-American and three-time state champion in the 800m. She won the 800m at the adidas Atlanta City Games in May. She received the 800m Girls All-Metro Athlete Award twice from the Atlanta Track Club.
Anisa Bowen-Fontenot
Bowen-Fontenot, from San Diego, California, is a hurdler and graduate of San Diego High School. She is a two-time state champion in the 100m hurdles, a state runner-up and third-place finisher in the event, and was ranked No. 1 nationally for high school girls. In addition to track and field, she also competed in flag football.
Makenna Barnett
Barnett, from Whitsett, North Carolina, is a hurdler from Grimsley High School. Across her high school career, she became a seven-time 100m hurdles champion, five-time 300m hurdles champion, four-time 55m hurdles champion and three-time 60m hurdles champion. She was named school MVP twice, earned Conference Player of the Year honors twice and was recognized as the Women's North Carolina Track & Field Championship Most Outstanding Performer.
Lillian Harden
Harden comes to USC from the University of Iowa. She competed for the Hawkeyes for one year, most notably running the 60m hurdles in 8.16 at the Larry Wieczorek Invite. She graduated from Bridgeland High School in Cypress, Texas in 2024. She won the 2024 Texas 6A State Championship in the 100m hurdles, placed third in 2024 Texas 6A State 300m hurdles and was a 2024 100m hurdles U20 medalist. She also became a medalist at the Nike Indoor 60m hurdles. She holds the Bridgeland High School all-time record in 100m hurdles and 300m hurdles.
Kailyn Head
Head is a hurdler from Denton, Texas. She won the 2025 5A UIL Texas State Championships in both the 300m hurdles and 100m hurdles, captured the 2024 state title in the 300m hurdles while finishing runner-up in the 100m hurdles, and was the 2023 state runner-up in the 100m hurdles. A four-time All-American, she holds seven school records. She ran a personal best of 41.20 in the 300m hurdles to win the state title during her junior year.
Sydney Knodel
Knodel, from Dallas, Texas, joins the track distance squad headed into her senior year at USC. She will earn degrees in Accounting and Business Administration with a Finance emphasis. She competed in track and cross country at The Episcopal School of Dallas. She was in the top ten in her graduating class, an AP distinguished scholar and member of the National Honors Society.
Madison Mosby
Mosby, a Los Angeles native, is the 2025 California 400m State Champion. In high school, she ran personal-bests of 53.1 in the 400m and 23.86 in the 200m. She competed in both volleyball and track in high school, and she earned First Team and MVP honors in volleyball and a coaches award for track and field.
Holli Prest
A graduate of Woodside High School in 2024, Prest achieved a 2:33 PR in the 800m as a member of the track team. In the year after graduating, she competed unattached while attending Gonzaga University. She achieved times of 4:58 in the 1500m and 2:22 in the 800m at the West Coast Last Chance 2025.
Joelle Trepagnier
Trepagnier, from Inglewood, California, graduated from Culver City High School. While in high school, she won the 2023 CIF State Championship in the 200m and 4x400 and was a CIF State runner-up. She held personal best times of 23.55 in the 200m and 53.46 in the 400m.Â
Paige Unger
Unger joins the team as a distance athlete following two years on the USC triathlon team. She recently competed at the USA Triathlon Nationals in the spring. In high school, she served as captain of cross country and track and field for two years. She also held the school record in the 1600m from 2021 to 2023. She set a personal best in the 1600m of 5:05 and was a 3x qualifier for California State Cross Country Championships. Her cross country team placed fifth in the California State meet and won the Central Coast Section Championships in 2023. Unger was valedictorian of her graduating class.
Men:Â
Gus Armstrong
Armstrong, from Pasadena, California, is a graduate of Long Beach Polytechnic High School. He won the 2025 California State Meet 4x400m relay championship, helped his team win the 2024 California State team title and contributed to back-to-back CIF Division One team titles in 2024 and 2025.
Ethan Exilhomme
Exilhomme, a graduate student from Orlando, Florida, is a hurdler who competed for four years at Northeastern University. He earned 2024 All-American honors in the 60m hurdles and CAA Track Athlete of the Year in the same season. A three-time NCAA National Championship qualifier (2023–25), he holds school records in the 110m hurdles, 60m hurdles, 60m and 4x100m relay. He earned his undergraduate degree in Health Science, earned 2024 Academic All-American and appeared on the CAA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll all four years. In high school, he won the 2021 Nike Outdoor National Championship and the Florida State Championship in the 110m hurdles.Â
Mico Lampinen
Lampinen, from Sälinkää, Finland, is a discus and hammer thrower who graduated from Mäntsälä High School. Some of his accomplishments include becoming the U20 Nordic champion in both discus and hammer in 2024 and 2025, winning silver in hammer throw at the 2025 U20 European Championships, being named a 2024 national champion in discus throw and taking bronze in discus throw at the 2025 U20 World Championships. He holds the national record in discus throw, with a distance of 62.74m. His personal best distance in hammer throw is 74.78m.
Wiaan Martin
Martin, from De Doorns, Western Province, South Africa, is a 400m sprinter who competed at Life University in Marietta, Georgia, prior to joining USC. He won the NAIA Indoor 400m Championship, placed fourth in the 4x400m indoor relay, and earned Dean's List honors in the spring. He represented Team South Africa at the 2023 African U20 Championships and the 2024 World Relay Championships. He won gold in the 4x400m mixed relay and placed third in the 4x400m men's relay at the 2023 U20 African Championships. He also finished third in the 400m at the ASA Youth & Juniors Championships and was named the 2023 Boland Junior Athlete of the Year.
Jackson Norris
Norris, from Humble, Texas, graduated from Atascocita High School in 2025. While in high school, he won the 2025 UIL 6A State Championship in long jump, placed second in the 2025 Nike Outdoor Nationals, earned runner-up in long jump at the 2024 UIL 6A Championships and became the 2023 USATF Junior Olympic Champion. His top performance in long jump was a distance of 7.59 meters.Â
Kitso Paulson
Paulson, from Newton, Massachusetts and born in South Africa, is a thrower who graduated from Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He won the New Balance Nationals Rising Star title in 2023 and earned All-NEPSAC Division 2 honors in both discus and javelin that same year. He holds a javelin PR of 174 ft 3 in. Along with track and field, he also competed as a wrestler.
Jack Stadlman
Stadlman, a graduate of Temecula High School, started as a basketball athlete prior to competing solely in track. In high school, he ran the 200m and 400m with personal best times of 20.82 and 45.69, respectively. He also ran anchor on the 4x100m relay helping his team to a time of 41.3. He was a two-time recipient of the Athlete of the Month and was honored as MVP of the track team. He also received a 4.0+ GPA award during his senior year.Â
Tom Tersek
Tersek, a thrower from Slovenia, is the U20 world champion in javelin. He also won the 2024 Slovenian national title in javelin and holds a PR of 80.87m. He competed in high jump throughout his high school years as well. Along with track and field, Tersek played handball and basketball. He holds winning the world title as his most thrilling moment as an athlete.Â
Cordial Vann
Vann, from Dallas, Texas, is a sprinter and jumper who graduated from Frisco Heritage High School. He was the Texas Relays champion in the 100m, the U20 Team USA champion in the long jump, and the Nike Indoor 60m champion. He ranked as the No. 1 high school long jumper in the United States and was a member of both the National Honor Society and the Nike Elite Program.
Players Mentioned
Distances
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldDistances
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldDistances
/ Track & FieldThrows
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldJumps
/ Track & FieldThrows
/ Track & FieldDistances
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldThrows
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldDistances
/ Track & FieldSprints
/ Track & FieldUSC Track & Field - 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships: Day 4 Highlights (6/14/25)
Saturday, June 14
USC Track & Field - 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships: Day 3 Highlights (6/13/25)
Friday, June 13
USC Track & Field - 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships: Day 2 Highlights (6/12/25)
Thursday, June 12
USC Track & Field - 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships: Day 1 Highlights (6/11/25)
Wednesday, June 11
