Former Local LAX Star Finishes Decorated College Career

Blue Point resident Drew Smith grew up like most of his friends, having fun playing sports. He enjoyed soccer and golf in his early years, but had never really participated in any team sports.

In 1998, when Drew was in the fourth grade, the Bayport Youth Lacrosse program was formed. The impact it had on Drew and countless other young children is nearly immeasurable.

Smith, now a senior at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island recalls bringing the permission slip home from school.

"The youth program gave me my first opportunity to play," he said. "It’s probably the only opportunity I would’ve had. I remember the first day they sent out the fliers in school about it. I brought it home and I was all excited about it, but nobody really knew what it was."

Smith took that boyish passion for the game and quickly turned it into a very successful career, both at the high school and collegiate levels.  A two-time all-conference selection, Smith led Roger Williams in scoring in both his junior and senior seasons. He also finished third on the team in scoring in his sophomore campaign, despite playing sporadically.

In addition to his sucess on the field, Smith has excelled in the classroom as well. Since arriving at Roger Williams, he's made the Dean's List every semester, and currently has a 3.6 grade-point average.

"There’s something about the fact that I knew my parents were going to be cutting a check every month or so for me to be up here, and for me to be doing this," he said. "It kind of clicked for me a little bit. I really started to value the importance of doing well in the classroom as well as the field. I wanted to be able to do it all and make the most of these four years."

Smith was a highly decorated player throughout his stay at Roger Williams, but he says being named a junior captain is one thing he'll always hold close to his heart.

"Being a captain as a junior, there’s a very small group of guys that have come through this program that have done that," he said. "I place a lot of value on that personally. It’s one of my favorite accomplishments that I’ve ever had."

In just the final week of the regular season alone, Smith was selected as the Roger Williams University Male Athlete of the Week, the Commonwealth Coast Conference Men's Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week and Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference's Division-III New England Offensive Player of the Week.

"It’s an honor because our conference is so competitive," Smith said of the personal achievements. "I try not to put too much value on the individual things. I try to focus on the team effort, but it is very nice to be honored like that. It’s nice to see the hard work pay off on the individual level. I feel like I’m representing Roger Williams and my guys up there. I think they feel the same way, and they’re pretty proud of me."

Smith credits the Bayport-Blue Point Youth Lacrosse program for teaching him the basics of the game, and giving him a head start on nearly all of his competition.

"[The youth program] allowed me to pick the game up when I was young, instead of when I hit middle school lacrosse, like a lot of my friends did," he said. "It allowed me to get the base layer of skills and concepts, so when I got to middle school lacrosse, I was a starter right off the bat. I was in seventh grade playing with the eighth graders."

That early experience paved the way for Smith to be a leader at the high school level. His close relationship with Bayport-Blue Point head coaches Mike Luce and Brad Weinman was a product of a mutual respect and love of the game.

"I had a very close relationship for both of them, a tremendous respect for both of them," said Smith recalling his high school career. "You know, I’ve had a lot of coaches in my life, but there was a certain feeling as a player, playing for those two men. Deep down, I really wanted to put it all out there on the field for those two coaches. It’s hard to find that in a coach. It’s very obvious when it’s not there. I think it’s a respect thing, and it just comes with the territory when you’ve got guys like Luce and Weinman."

The coaches, who played opposite ends of the field during their playing days, helped Smith become a leader both on and off the field.

"The dynamic is cool that they have together when they’re on the field," said Smith. "I can’t tell you that there’s anybody from Bayport who feels differently about those two guys."

I was only playing half of each game, but I ended up having the second most points on the team. I really took advantage of the time I had on the field.