That’s just Derriana

A leader on the volleyball court and in the classroom, it’s not every day that you meet an individual like sophomore Derriana Smith. Full of energy, ready to help others and always surrounded by friends, she prides herself on putting the best version of herself forward at all times. 

“The way you act impacts other people, positively or negatively,” Smith said. “If I’m always smiling and happy and showing people there’s no need to worry, they’re going to reflect it and feel comfortable.”

A mainstay on the varsity soccer team, Smith started playing soccer at 6 years old for Athens United. Later on, Smith rediscovered her love for the sport when she joined W.R. Coile’s team and before deciding to try out for the high school team.

“She introduced herself to me last year and told me, ‘I’m going to play soccer.’ She didn’t ask about anything else, and she didn’t ask about tryouts. She just said, ‘I’m going to play soccer.’ It made an instant impression on me,” girls soccer head coach Alley Howell said. 

Smith began the season on junior varsity, where she regularly started as a forward, scoring five goals in three matches.

“I think she might have been holding back during tryouts, but her impact on the JV team was immediate,” Howell said. “You cannot look away from her on the field. Your eyes are immediately drawn to her and you can’t ignore her talent.”

Smith soon began practicing with the varsity squad, learning new tactics and getting to know more teammates.

“It was difficult. JV worked on different tactics than varsity, but I still learned a lot. You could tell that varsity had been playing together for longer because their chemistry was so different,” Smith said.

When the Lady Jags played Banks County in February, Smith got her first taste of varsity minutes.

“I knew she could get some minutes against Banks County. She looked a little nervous when I told her she was going in. Then she shook it off, looked at me, and said, ‘I’m gonna score.’ Almost immediately after she went in, she scored. She fell when she shot the ball, but the second it went in, she jumped so high in the air and screamed,” Howell said.

This season, however, Smith might not be able to play soccer.

“I was very busy last year, going from volleyball, to cheer, to soccer, and I had to miss a handful of practices because of conflicts,” Smith said. “It’s hard but my coaches are very understanding, they know I just want to enjoy my high school experience.”

Instead, Smith plans to take her primary sport, volleyball, to the next level, joining travel club Metro Elite Volleyball.

“Travel volleyball runs from winter through spring, especially if we make it to nationals, but I still want to do soccer,” Smith said. “I’ve talked to coach (Howell), and I’m going to try and make it work, but if it’s too much I might have to drop soccer, which is really sad.”

Smith joined the Cedar volleyball team her freshman year, playing 38 out of 46 sets, recording 22 digs, and attempting the second most serves on the team.

“Derriana definitely exceeded my expectations,” assistant volleyball coach Moira Lackey said. “She constantly wants to improve herself. She always comes to me asking, ‘Coach can we talk about this again? Coach, can you show me how to do this again? Coach, I want to be better.’ It’s another thing that really sets her apart from others. When it comes to that coaching and constructive criticism aspect, not everyone can handle it, but Derriana can.”

Lackey first met Smith during volleyball tryouts in 2022, when Smith was a freshman.

“She brings a lot of enthusiasm to the team; it doesn’t matter what she does, she always puts in 100%, and when she doesn’t have that 100%, she communicates it to her coaches and her teammates. It’s one of the reasons why she’s our captain this year,” Lackey said. 

Smith’s abundance of energy and infectious personality carries beyond the court to her friendships. 

“I want to make everyone laugh and smile and feel included,” Smith said. “That’s made making friends so much easier for me because if you go around with the mindset of ‘I only want to hang out with these people’ or ‘I don’t like that one person,’ you’re going to create enemies. It’s better to have a lot of friends than a bunch of enemies.”

One of those many friends is sophomore Stephanie Emegwam. The pair met in their sixth grade math class at Coile Middle School, and they have been inseparable ever since. 

“She’s the type of person that you would want to go to for anything, it does not matter. She won’t judge you, she’s willing to be there no matter what,” Emegwam said. 

Emegwam serves as the student manager for both the volleyball and soccer teams, traveling to most games, setting up drills and keeping track of equipment.

“We got to spend more time together through soccer and volleyball. As a manager, I get to tell her what happened on the field or court and what she did well, what she could do better, and of course, take pictures of her,” Emegwam said. “Being with her makes me want to be outgoing and put myself out there, she’s just that type of person.”

When Smith isn’t playing soccer or volleyball after school, she can be found participating in Future Farmers of America (FFA) and student government.

Smith competed at the FFA National Convention in 2022 for her project titled “Not Foods but Products,” which discussed the consumer perception of organic and non-organic foods. The convention took place in Indianapolis, and the project placed fifth in the nation.

“Everyone sees FFA as just farming, but I feel that it is much more than that. It’s more about conservation, the environment and really just agriculture in general,” Smith said. “I also love being in SGA because it makes me feel more involved and feels like I have a voice for my grade and friends,” Smith said. “It’s important because you don’t want to go to a school event and it be boring and not the vibe you want or were hoping for.”

During the school day, Smith is an honor roll student taking multiple Advanced Placement (AP) and honor-level classes, such as AP World History, Spanish III, and Chemistry.

“They’re a lot of reading. I didn’t really like the reading at first, which made it a little difficult, but if you get the work done, and turn it in, you should be fine,” Smith said. “You have to balance everything. I try to break things up into tiny bits to finish by the end of the day. I know my coaches are understanding. They know that school comes first, so if I need extra time before practice so I can get my work done, they will allow it.”

In the future, Smith hopes to study anesthesiology, the medical area that specializes in the administration of anesthesia. 

“The job itself is a little stressful and complicated, but being able to help people makes it worth it,” Smith said. “Seeing everyone happy and with a smile on their face makes me happy.”