Photo by Steve Buchanan Photography
Makena Smith spent a few years living in California, where volleyball dominates. That’s where Smith, a recent Broadneck graduate, got the itch to play the sport and set a lofty goal in middle school of making it her future.
“I’ve known since the sixth grade I wanted to play Division I volleyball,” she explains. “I wasn’t going to let anything stop me.”
Smith played for the SoCal Volleyball Club, but made a key career move later after moving to Maryland when she joined the Metro Volleyball Club of D.C. in 2016. What a club it is. She competed with Metro in the USA Volleyball Championships—which featured the 36 best teams in the country—for four years in Minnesota, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.
And Smith faced elite players who went onto the best college programs in the country, including Stanford, UCLA, and Texas. Those types of experiences and suiting up for Metro were crucial to her development.
“It’s just an amazing experience playing with and against the best players in the country,” she says. “Everyone on my team is going to Division I. I have gotten so much better playing club for my D.C. team. I compete at a high level now, but also can compete at the highest level in college.”
Indeed. The 6-foot Smith will attend Lehigh University on a volleyball scholarship. She chose the school over offers from East Carolina and UMBC.
“They have a relatively new coach (Alexa Keckler) and I love her idea of revamping the program,” says Smith, who wants to major in marketing. “It’s something I want to be part of. It’s also relatively close to home and a beautiful campus. There’s nothing I don’t love about Lehigh.”
Keckler often recruits players from Metro Volleyball Club of D.C., and Smith possesses all the skills the coach looks for in a top-notch setter. There’s an opening in the lineup this fall for the Mountain Hawks, but Keckler makes it clear that Smith stand out in preseason practices.
“We try to identify kids that are going to develop and make an impact in our league,” the coach says. “She has all the skills to do that for sure. Her height combined with her smooth hands, ability to be offensive, and big presence at the net was very attractive.”
Rigorous workouts over the summer helped Smith prepare for the fall season. She trained two hours a day, running, lifting free weights, and riding a Peloton bike. “I want to have the opportunity to start as a freshman,” says Smith, who trained an hour per day in the offseason during high school. “I can’t do that if I am not in the best shape possible.”
At Broadneck, Smith will be remembered. She set a school record with a whopping 1,258 assists over a four-year career as a starter. Smith was nominated twice for the Maryland Gatorade Volleyball Player of the Year. She served three years as a team co-captain. Broadneck Volleyball Coach Tracey Regalbuto raved about Smith’s leadership skills and maturity.
“Typically, a sophomore doesn’t have that role as a team captain, and a leader of players two years older than her,” Regalbuto says. “Her teammates looked up to her and wanted to work as hard as she did. She has shown leadership skills ever since I have known her, since she was 12.”
Smith, who carried a 3.65-grade point average in high school, helped Broadneck to the Class 4A state championship game during her junior year when she totaled 741 assists, 152 digs, 48 aces, 76 kills, and 33 blocks.
She earned Baltimore Sun First-Team All-Metro as both a sophomore and junior and was named All-County in her first three seasons with the Bruins.
“She was the reason our offense was as so fast and consistent,” Regalbuto says. “Her blocking was fantastic. She shuts hitters down. The biggest thing she adds to any team; other teams have a hard time keeping up with the speed and direction of her sets.”
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