Topic: Lady Herd's Reshundra Smiley

[DBSVisor]

Reshundra Smiley made a promise four years ago that she's determined to keep, no matter how painful the process.
It was a pact between Smiley and Ceres High athletic director Phil de la Porte that Smiley would put her basketball skills to work by using them as the path toward a college degree.

Smiley is on target to graduate from Marshall University (Huntington, W. Va.) following the 2006 spring semester. Her degree will be in criminal justice with the cost of the education underwritten by her athletic scholarship.

The 5-foot, 8-inch junior guard — the 2001 Modesto Bee player of the year — has seen action in all 12 games the Thundering Herd has played this season. She will carry a 4.8-point scoring average into tonight's game in Charleston against intrastate rival West Virginia.

The athletic/academic process is not easy for Smiley or any other student-athlete. But for Smiley, pursuing a degree means she spends weeks at a time away from her daughter Mia Janae, born May 31, 2003.

Mia Janae (M.J.) lives with Smiley's parents in Adamsville, Ala., a suburb of Birmingham.

"My mom takes care of her in Alabama, which is very hard on me emotionally," Smiley said. "But I know that by staying in school I'm doing the right thing for me and M.J."

Yes, the name is a derivative of Michael Jordan, which is no surprise to those who know Smiley. She has the Jordan logo tattooed on her left calf, and makes sure her daughter is outfitted in only the latest release of Jordan babywear.

The baby is bound to be a basketball player, having logged a significant amount of in-womb playing time.

Smiley was a student at Central Arizona Community College when carrying M.J., and continued playing through the fifth month of her pregnancy.

"I was showing, but only my teammates knew about it," Smiley said. "My stomach grew to the size of a women's basketball, but I only gained 10 pounds.

"I stayed in contact with the doctors, and they told me that as long as I was active before the pregnancy I should continue doing it as long as I could. I got a little slower, but I kept my starting spot."

She decided to attend Central Arizona because it offered athletic-based financial aid, which California community colleges are not allowed to give.

"I think that's why so many of us leave to play in other places," she said. "I just wanted to play for the best junior college that would get me somewhere."

She averaged 12.3 points for Central Arizona in two years, then took a year off from basketball upon transferring to Marshall.

When the basketball season is over, Smiley — a two-time Junior Olympic track finalist in the 200 meters — will run for the Marshall track team.

And every step will bring her closer to graduation and the fulfillment of her promise.

"She did make that promises to use basketball as a means to an end and get that degree," de la Porte said. "She's just a great kid and a great athlete."

http://www.modbee.com/sports/story/9750319p-10616557c.html