Smith making his mark

Chris Yemma

David Smith, a sophomore on the UC Irvine men’s volleyball team, is

anything but impaired when it comes to a net and a ball.

The rising middle blocker has moved into a more prominent role

this season after a lesser role last season in which he averaged 2.22

kills per game, led the team in hitting percentage at .369 and was

second in blocking with a 1.03 per-game average.

He even played well enough to be selected to play on the U.S.

junior men’s team that finished second to Cuba in the North, Central

America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation tournament this past

summer.

Smith has been playing volleyball since he was a freshman at

Saugus High, near Santa Clarita, and will continue to play as long as

he can.

But one aspect of Smith’s life is different from all other players

on the Anteater squad, or the U.S. junior squad, or just about any

volleyball team. Smith is hearing impaired and has been his entire

life. With both ears combined, he has a 70-80 decibel loss,

considered severe, and wears a hearing aid in each ear.

Because Smith was born with a lack of hearing, he has no idea what

other people hear for granted, and never will. But adaptation and

evolution have been intertwined with him, as he leads a life that is

more productive, active and achievement-ridden than most college

students his age.

“I can’t hear stuff every once in a while and sometimes I might

miss a whistle or two,” Smith said. “The team really does help.

They’re not like, ‘He’s hearing impaired, we don’t care.’ They make

sure I get everything and that I’m on top of it.”

At his age now, 19, the hearing impairment is not really a big

deal for Smith. Growing up, though, he received his fair share of

schoolyard criticism.

“You always get bugged by kids and all that stuff,” he said. “But

it’s not like I know any difference, so I can’t compare.”

Smith and the rest of the ‘Eater volleyball team are coming off a

14-18 record last season. They were 8-14 in the Mountain Pacific

Sports Federation. They finished last season ranked No. 8 in the

nation and head into this season with high expectations.

And Smith isn’t going to be short on practice. Not only does he

play college volleyball and club ball, he is part of the

aforementioned U.S. team that qualified for the world championship

competition next summer in India.

The U.S. team, consisting of players 21 and under, was coached by

UCI men’s coach John Speraw and also included UCI sophomores Jayson

Jablonsky and Matt Webber. The team competed against Cuba, Mexico,

Puerto Rico and the host team, Canada.

The United States was swept in the first round by Cuba in three

games, but went on to sweep Mexico, Puerto Rico and Canada to advance

to the championship match against Cuba. The Americans took one game

against Cuba in the final, but lost three to finish second.

“[Cuba] was big,” Smith said. “They were big guys and they could

jump like no other. They were hitting over our blocks -- they were

ridiculously huge.”

Smith will be bringing his experience to the table this season for

the UCI volleyball team in a year that some naysayers have pegged as

a rebuilding season.

The Anteaters are 1-3 heading into the Jan. 15 Mountain Pacific

Sports Federation opener at UCLA.

“We lost a few seniors and the majority of our starting lineup,”

Smith said. “I’m going to have to pick up a little more leadership

and a little more consistency.

“Right now we’re getting overlooked, but we do have a lot of skill

and a lot of talent.”