Claudia Smith

this hard-working athlete perseveres through touch challenges and leads others along the way.

In a race, being 50-yards behind the leader doesn’t defeat Claudia Smith. She digs deeper, finding a way to overtake the front-runner before the finish. It’s this perseverance that allows Claudia to shine regardless of the obstacles in her way. While Claudia has a gift for cross-country, her passion lies with basketball. She played in grade school, and with the help of her coach, she recognized her ability to play at an elite level.

In ninth grade, Claudia started at a new high school dedicated to preparing children for college and future careers through the mastery of academics, critical thinking and communication. While her friends went on to other schools and continued to play basketball and win at a high level, Claudia’s all-freshmen starting basketball team recorded just three wins its first season.

As captain and the team’s leading scorer, Claudia made it her goal to lead by example. With her vision, a lot of hard work and the right talent mix, the team made it to the district championship the next year. During their junior year, the team was riding 24 wins and had a state title run in its sites when Claudia tore her ACL. While deeply disappointed, Claudia chose to focus on the positive. Her injury also kept her from participating in cross-country early this past season, but she recently bounced back for an eighth place finish at state. Now in her senior basketball season, having successfully tested her knee, she’s prepared to help her team finish their goal of becoming state champions.