Destiny Smith-Barnett makes dent in UNLV record book

Destiny Smith-Barnett might never have tried track and field if she didn’t tag along with a friend to middle school tryouts on a whim.

Her career took off from there, and now the UNLV junior’s split-second decisions have resulted in one of the best sprinting careers in school history. Smith-Barnett ran at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 60-meter dash Friday at Texas A&M’s Gilliam Indoor Stadium, finishing 14th with a time of 7.35 seconds.

”She’s such a talented young lady,” UNLV track and field coach Yvonne Wade said. “Now that she got a taste of that atmosphere, she wants more of that.”

After middle school, Smith-Barnett started to excel on the track at Skyline High School in Oakland, California, finishing as the state runner-up in the 100 meters as a senior. It became clear early on in college that she was ready to make an impact at the next level.

In her first indoor race as a freshman at Northern Arizona’s Mountain T Invitational, she won the 60-meter dash in 7.39 seconds, a top-five time in school history.

The only thing that kept Smith-Barnett from climbing further up the record books as a sophomore was a back injury that forced her to miss the entire indoor season.

“It was very hard because I wanted to be there for my team,” Smith-Barnett said. “My coaches were both patient and understanding and talked me out of coming back too early.”

She only ran the 100 meters last spring as she worked her way back, and her fitness level is still not quite there for the 200 meters. But sticking to shorter races has never bothered Smith-Barnett, who has stuck to sprints since she started competing.

“My coach tried to race me in the 400 one time, and I said I don’t think this is for me,” Smith-Barnett said. “I like the adrenaline rush you get (with sprints). I like how quick it is. The race is so fast, and you never know exactly what’s going to happen.”

Her times started dropping again when she returned to indoor competition this winter, and she ran a career-best 7.20 seconds in the 60 meters in the Mountain West Championships preliminaries on Feb. 23. The time got her a spot in the NCAA field and ranked sixth-best in the country heading into the meet. The time also tied the school record in the event, set by Ashley Owens in 2006.

She couldn’t hit the mark again at the NCAA Championships, but she’ll move right into the outdoor season, which begins with the UNLV Invitational/Sheila Tarr Multi on Thursday.

“We’re disappointed. She allowed the meet to get bigger than her abilities,” Wade said. “But she has tremendous momentum going into the outdoor season.”

BASEBALL

After a home-heavy opening part to their schedule, the Rebels must get used to the road soon.

Fourteen of the team’s first 18 games are at home, including contests against Grand Valley on Tuesday and Wednesday. UNLV then will play 13 of its next 18 on the road.

SOFTBALL

Conference play begins for the Rebels this weekend after a strong start to the season.

The team’s strength has been pitching, as UNLV ranked fourth in the Mountain West in ERA (3.01) entering last weekend. Senior Morgan Ettinger has been the leader in the circle with a 2.12 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 66 innings.

Contact reporter Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.