Coming out of nearby Jim Ned High School in Tuscola, Texas, Carla Lewis enrolled at McMurry in 2006 and competed in cross country and track & field in 2006, 2007 and 2009. She also was a cheerleader in 2008.Lewis broke onto the scene right away and won the American Southwest Conference Runner of the Year and Freshman of the Year in 2006, leading McMurry to its first and only women's cross country championship. Her 6K time of 24:11.00 won her individual medalist honors.As a senior in 2009, she became the program's only two-time conference medalist with a first-place time of 25:01.52. She remains the only runner in program history to win two ASC Runner of the Year awards. That same season, Lewis became the first female runner from McMurry to advance to the NCAA Division III national meet.In the cross country record books, Lewis continues to hold some of the top times in history. At the 4K distance (discontinued), she owns the McMurry record at 15:18. She also has the highest finish in a regional meet for McMurry, placing sixth in Greensboro, N.C. in 2009.Lewis was a three-time first team all-conference selection, as well as a seven-time ASC Runner of the Week. She currently ranks second all-time behind Alaisha Guerra for most weekly awards in program history.In the classroom, Lewis is a two-time Academic All-American and a multi-time Academic All-ASC selection.On the track, Lewis is part of one standing record – the indoor 4x400 relay. In 2007, she teamed up with Taron Weaver, Molly Fuston and Richalle Wright to record a time of 3:56.81. Also in her career, she once held records for the 800m and 1500m runs, as well as the steeplechase.Lewis was a two-time individual conference champion for track & field, winning the steeplechase and 800m run in 2008. She earned all-conference honors for the 2007 and 2008 seasons.Lewis cites Coach David Chandler as someone who impacted her career, stating he "poured so much time and effort into individualizing each athlete's training to help us be the most successful." She also mentioned Stephen Sherman as someone who pushed her to be a better runner.While at McMurry, Lewis was a member of Delta Beta Epsilon, served as a Tribe Guide and was the recipient of the Ginny Carlson Outstanding Senior Award – given since 1967.Lewis graduated from McMurry in May 2010 with a degree in exercise science and human performance. She went on to attend Hardin-Simmons University to earn a Doctorate degree in physical therapy in 2012.Following graduation, she began working as a physical therapist at the Hendrick Center for Rehabilitation in January of 2014 and has remained there ever since. Her currently title is Senior Physical Therapist.In her spare time, she is also the co-owner of CrossFit Abilene – established in 2017. She enjoys competing in CrossFit competitions as a hobby.