Centre College Athletics Photo
Shelby Smith has such an outgoing personality that she not only was the track team captain at Adair County High School but was also a cheerleader, homecoming queen and elite student.
Smith picked Centre College in part because of the chance to be on the track team but also because of the educational opportunities.
“It was just the best fit for me,” she said.
Smith graduated from Adair with a 5.0 grade-point average and took only college classes her junior and senior years through nearby Lindsey Wilson College. She took public speaking, writing and psychology classes that helped her when she got to Centre.
“I don’t think anything could have totally prepared me for the academic rigors here but it was a good step in the right direction,” Smith, a behavioral neuroscience major who hopes to eventually be a physical therapist, said. “I didn’t just want to pick an easy route here, so I picked the neuroscience major so I could learn something new and fun. I did an internship with PT Pros Physical Therapy here in Danville last spring and got a good insight of what I want to do for the future.”
She had no idea what her future in track would be when she started her journey in seventh grade. Her coach persuaded her to try the triple jump and “it kind of stuck” with her.
“I’ll do long jump but I can’t say I am a huge fan of it. I like triple jump a lot better,” Smith said. “Everybody thinks long jump is easier but I just like the triple.”
She has been named Southern Athletic Association Athlete of the Week with a jump of 37 feet, 5 inches, and has hit some new personal marks in what she admits has been her best season at Centre.
“I always wanted to get that conference honor,” she said.
That has not been easy because Centre senior Jasmine Claunch is the conference’s dominant triple jumper and one of the best in the nation. Freshman Serena McNeilly has also had an extraordinary first season.
“I actually competed against Jasmine in high school at the really big meets but I never really talked to her. I have been able to learn so much from her and we are really good friends,” Smith said. “We clicked right away here.
“She’s one of the hardest working people I know and deserves every bit of recognition she gets. I love jumping with her.”
Claunch missed time with an Achilles injury last season that Smith said was an inspiration for her.
“Seeing how she worked to rebound and come back so quickly was unreal,” Smith said. “Now we have added Serena who is also really good at high jump and long jump as well. It’s just been fun getting to compete daily with other people that are so good.”
Smith obviously was the most athletic cheerleader at Adair County and joked that when other cheerleaders felt conditioning runs were punishment, she wanted to run even more.
“My aunt got me started in cheerleading because she did it when she was growing up. I wanted to wear the uniform and do the flips,” Smith said. “After I started track, cheerleading was what got me through the rest of the year and kept me in shape.”
Smith hopes to have a top three finish in the triple jump at the upcoming SAA Championship with teammates also on the medal podium with her.
“We were at the indoor (conference championship) and that would be pretty incredible,” Smith said.
The Centre senior knows the new indoor facility made a huge difference in her performance.
“I usually do mediocre indoors but this year was a lot better,” she said. “I feel blessed to have been able to use it for a year because at Adair County we didn’t have anything. There was an old gravel track that was like concrete. I had no jump pit. I think this new facility is going to get a lot more kids here. There’s nothing like this in Division III. It will get people here and then also make you better.”
