Showcasing historical Women of Troy on International Women’s Day

Deanna Hill (2015 – Present)

Deanna Hill is currently a senior on USC’s track and field team. She competes on relay teams as well as in the 100m and 200m dashes.

Hill currently holds top 10 times in USC’s school records in the 100m (6) and 200m (3) dashes. She is a part of the school record-setting 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams. The 4x400m relay team recorded the second-fastest time ever ran by a collegiate team in the NCAA finals last season.

Starting in her freshman year, Hill strongly solidified her spot in school record rankings, steadily climbing each season. Throughout her senior season, she will look to rise in the rankings even further and lead the USC women’s track and field team with her strength and captaincy.

Sara Hughes and Kelly Claes (2014 – 2017)

Former beach volleyball players Sara Hughes and Kelly Claes graduated from USC in 2017 after winning two national championships together. They met in high school and have been an unbeatable pair ever since. After three years of partnership at USC, they boasted an overall record of 174-4, including one undefeated season.

Together they set an NCAA record for winning 103 consecutive matches. Given opportunities to partner with Olympians post-graduation, these women chose to remain a pair and aim for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. They have since become the youngest team ever to win an AVP Championship. During the rest of 2017, they were busy earning three other AVP Top 10 finishes and four International FIVB Top 10 finishes, with Hughes also earning FIVB Rookie of the Year.

Hughes and Claes were named 2017 Sportswomen of the Year by the Los Angeles Sports Council. These two will continue training with their sights set on Tokyo 2020.

Michaela Michael (2014 – 2017)

Another student-athlete who graduated last year, former USC women’s lacrosse player Michaela Michael was a standout on the team all four years of her career. In her senior year, she led the NCAA in number of goals scored with 71.

In the MPSF, she was the top scorer and draw specialist, setting new MPSF single season records for goals scored and draw controls. She was a nominee for the 2017 Tewaaraton Award, given to the most outstanding lacrosse players in the country.

In her junior year, she set new USC single season records with points, shots and game-winning goals. She once again led the MPSF in points and goals scored, among other categories. She earned MPSF Player of the Year her sophomore year, and started all 18 games in her freshman year.

Cheryl Miller (1982 – 1986)

Cheryl Miller was a USC women’s basketball player from 1982-1986, winning numerous awards all throughout. She led the team to NCAA National Championship Titles in 1983 and 1984, both times earning the NCAA Tournament MVP award. Miller still currently holds the USC record for points scored (3,018), rebounds, field goals made, free throws made, games played and steals.

During her senior year, her jersey was retired, becoming the first USC basketball player jersey retired in both men’s and women’s basketball. She led the gold medal-winning team in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

She has since been inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and returned to USC as head coach of the women’s basketball team from 1993-1995. She then continued her coaching career in the WNBA with the Phoenix Mercury, taking them to a WNBA championship game.

Today, she coaches at Cal State L.A.