Giavanna Smiley is a freshman athlete at Struthers High School. She is on the Struthers (Varsity and JV) softball team. She is very excited to continue this season with her new team.
Smiley is very excited to begin high school softball. She is very confident in her team’s abilities and is excited to see how far they can get. The team had a rocky start, but she is positive that they will be able to show off their capabilities throughout the rest of the season.
The athlete has been playing for most of her life on a travel team, so the transition from that to high school allowed her to slow down.
“High school is definitely taking some time to get used to. With playing travel softball half my life, it’s more of a fast-paced game. I feel like playing in high school slows down. Not all the girls have played that long like I have, and then there are some girls that’ve been playing all their life and know the game very well,” says Smiley.
Smiley has been playing for most of her life due to her father’s influence. This has exposed her to many different opportunities in her life. Softball is a very positive thing in her life. She has gained many lifelong friendships from the sport, as well as catching the eyes of colleges.
Although softball has a very positive impact on her life, it can become a lot to handle.
“It has a big impact on my life. It weighs me down a lot. During the summers, I have either practice on the weekdays or games on the weekend, and I’m never free. Now with high school, we have a game or practice every day, and it gets a little tiring,” says Smiley.
Smiley is very happy with how her softball career has gone up to this point of her life. She is very thankful for all of her opportunities, and she never takes softball for granted. Softball is one of the most important things in her life.
Softball is very important to Smiley.
“Positively, softball has affected me in many ways. I’ve had friendship for over six years, and I already have some colleges looking at me,” says Smiley.
