The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Titans’ Harris earned high grades, athletics
Multi-sport LEL champion awarded Lorain Sports Hall of Fame, Popiel scholarships
Ta’Lia Harris excelled in softball, volleyball and bowling, serving as a key of conference champion teams.
Ta’Lia Harris isn’t your normal three sport athlete.
Excelling in softball, volleyball and bowling, Harris was a key member of several conference championship teams. But her accomplishments go much further than the realm of athletics.
Harris graduated near the top of her class at Lorain and earned several scholarships, including the Lorain Sports Hall of Fame Uland scholarship.
It was a scholarship Harris wasn’t expecting to land, but one she was more than qualified for.
“It was a really big honor,” she said. “I was really surprised I got it because there were a lot of people that had applied for it.”
She also is one of 39 Lorain seniors who will graduate from high school with an associates degree from Lorain County Community College.
Harris will continue her education at Cleveland State, where she’ll take the first steps in fulfilling a life goal in becoming a nurse.
“When I was 14, I was diagnosed with diabetes and I was in the hospital for a while and just had this really great team of nurses. And ever since then I’ve known I wanted to be a nurse.”
Alongside the LSHOF scholarship, she was a recipient of the Popiel Foundation scholarship, which is given to a deserving Lorain senior who lettered in at least two sports and who displays a strong combination of athletic and academic accomplishments and participates in community service.
Harris’ athletic accomplishments rival her academic achievements, as she won a triple crown of conference titles with the Titans. Her final came as a member of Lorain’s bowling team, that she paired with an all-conference first-team selection.
She picked up bowling as a junior after her sister, Jazze, talked her into it. A year later Harris and her sister spearheaded the Titans LEL championship run. Alongside Ta’Lia’s allconference selection, Jazze was named LEL female bowler of the year.
Ta’Lia has a LEL player of the year award as well, as in 2018 she was named the top softball player in the conference, after batting .652 with 43 hits and 15 steals.
“I’ve been playing softball since I was 10 and winning that meant a lot to me. Playing in high school is always something I’ve wanted to do for my entire life.”
She followed up that season with another high mark, hitting .543 with 24 RBI and five home runs while also pitching for the Titans, who were short on pitchers.
“I actually normally played shortstop and third base. But we need a pitcher,” she said. “So I had to step up and pitch, which was really tough just trying to keep myself up and being there for my teammates.”
Harris also was named all-county honorable mention for volleyball in 2019, helping the Titans win a conference championship.
“Being a three-sport athlete was challenging, just managing your time,” Harris said. “But I think that really is going to help me prepare for college, because I’m also going to have to manage my time well there.
At Cleveland State, Harris is still undecided on whether or not she’ll continue her softball career. But with all summer and the entire fall semester in front of her to make a decision, she has more than enough time to make an educated choice.