‘I’m so honored’: Smith has jersey retired at CTCA

Brandon Hodge Sports Writer

Creighton Smith, left, and his sister Finley Smith, right, take a picture with Creighton Smith's Christ the Cornerstone Academy jerseys during an awards ceremony at the school on May 26.

Contributed photo

LAURINBURG — It's a rare accomplishment for a player's jersey to be retired at a school — it's even rarer for a player to be a school's first.

For Creighton Smith though, he's one of the few who can say they’ve had both happen.

On May 26, Smith had his number ‘3’ basketball jersey retired during an awards ceremony at Christ the Cornerstone Academy (CTCA) in Laurinburg — a private school that is a member of the Carolinas Christian Conference.

"I actually had no idea," Smith said on the school deciding to retire his jersey number. "That never even crossed my mind that I might get my jersey retired; but I thought, if so, it would have been at the athletic banquet. Then, when awards day came, I figured they were talking about me because of the accolades, and I thought maybe I’ll get Athlete of the Year. But, then, when they told me that my jersey was (being) retired, I was just blown away."

CTCA principal Emily Baines and athletic director Jason Hamlett presented Smith with one of his jerseys in a frame during the ceremony to honor him.

Smith, who played point guard, averaged team highs with 22.8 points per game, 3.6 assists per game, and 2.9 steals per game during his senior season; he was second in rebounds per game with 7.3 and blocks per game with 1.0. His career-high in points was 41 against Wilmington Christian Academy during his junior year.

Smith also reached 1,000 career points this past season after a home game against Marlboro Academy. But the journey to get there wasn't easy.

Smith mentioned that CTCA didn't have a basketball team until his sixth-grade year and that the team had to face higher competition during that season.

"We were playing varsity (high school) teams," Smith said. "We had to be a varsity (high school) team when our school was so young because we didn't have enough players to fill out a middle school team. So since sixth-grade, I’ve been playing against guys who are in the 11th and 12th grades. There are memories when we’d go and get beat by 60 or 70 points, where we shouldn't of even been in the same gym as the guys we were playing."

Fast-forward to this season and the Defenders have been completely transformed, having won their first conference championship in school history in a 53-39 win over Cornerstone Christian Academy on Feb. 11.

Third-year head coach Kyle Wyckoff explained what made Smith such a vital part of the team's success.

"Creighton's best attribute is his ‘nose for the ball,’ (he's) not just a good scorer," Wyckoff said. "He is a great rebounder and his ability to anticipate defenses allowed him to get key steals that led to wins."

Smith's plans on attending Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. in the fall, where he will look to continue his basketball career.

"I’m going to try to walk on there (at Liberty)," Smith said. "Basketball is in the center of my future and I will, if I don't make the team, I will be playing a ton of intramural basketball there with my friends. And, then, I’m getting a degree in Business at Liberty and after that, I hope to own my own business."

Reach Brandon Hodge at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @BrandonHSports.