Senior, Elaina Smith who is a member of the Varsity Volleyball Team and the Track and Field Team is looking forward to a positive close on her high school career. Sports have always been there for Smith, helping her to make friends, memories, and learn valuable lessons throughout her time as an athlete.

“I believe the true success of playing on an athletic team is personal growth. You learn so many important skills whether it be communication, teamwork, discipline, time management, leadership, etc,” Smith stated.

For Smith, volleyball has been more than just on the court achievements, but instead has helped her to form lifelong friendships.

“The best thing about being a part of the volleyball team is the friends for sure. I showed up on the court with these random girls one day and had no idea they’d be such an important part of my life,” says Smith.

Smith has been a member of the both the Varsity Volleyball and Track Teams for three years. She holds the current school record in long jump (17′ 5″) and was the 4A State Champion in 2023 for both the long and triple jump. Being a multisport athlete has also helped her better herself within all sports she plays.

Smith says, “Track has helped improve my volleyball ability in that my legs are stronger and I have more endurance. Volleyball helps improve my track ability in that it’s an easy transition from a team sport to an individual one.”

While being a multisport athlete has been a rewarding experience for her, still there are times that it can be hard to persevere through.

“The hardest part of playing multiple sports is definitely burnout. It’s super difficult to be “Go Go Go” every season and lack time to just be me. There’s so much about myself I have yet to discover just because all my time has been occupied by sports,” Smith says.

While there have been harder times during her many years of playing sports, it has been an overall positive experience for her.

“To oppose my other statement, I do love the game aspect and the friends I’ve made along the way. Even in tough times, there’s always positives that keep me going,” Smith says.

As she reflects that this is her last year playing high school sports, she is grateful for her time spent in the athletic scene and she looks forward to the positive close it is coming to.

Smith says, “I honestly feel relieved it is ending, sports can be so consuming and it’s nice knowing I get to ride it out on a positive note.”

She would like to be remembered for her time in sports as an overall positive athlete but remains humble about her career.

“We’re all just people and I don’t think any one person is better than the other. I hope people just remember me as someone who was kind and uplifting, but also someone hungry and fearless on the court and on the track,” Smith adds.