Ellie Smith '23 Recruiting Profile

I am most proud of being a four-year varsity starter and being active in my team’s accomplishments of having three state tournament appearances, three sub-state championships, three years regional runner up, and four years district champions. Going to state as a starting freshman was the biggest achievement of my volleyball career while missing going back to state as a sophomore by eight points in the final set has been one of the most challenging things I have had to face.  I have always relied on my faith to get me through difficult times and know that God is in control. I try to understand what lessons can be learned by both positive and negative events in my life. I have learned that even with the hardest training, positive attitude, teamwork and solid skills, sometimes things still do not work out as I had hoped and planned. I understand now that there were other lessons to be learned through this experience such as being a positive role model for my teammates in how to handle defeat, how to display good sportsmanship, and how to use it as motivation to push my training and skills to the next level. In the off season, I concentrated on developing the mental and physical components of the game by researching how to develop a focused mindset and adding weight training and plyometrics to my workouts. I believe these things contributed significantly to our appearance at the state tournament again this year.  I am a self-disciplined and self-motivating individual who enjoys competing at a high level and welcomes constructive criticism to improve my game. I set high goals for myself both academically and athletically and push myself hard to achieve them. I am a leader on my team and enjoy motivating others through example; I have a positive attitude and try not to take myself too seriously. I train year-round and work hard in the gym. In my free time, I enjoy watching college volleyball games, beach volleyball, and training videos to keep my workouts fresh and creative.  Outside of volleyball, spending time with family and friends, watersports, and traveling brings balance and peace in my life.