Staff Reports

BOILING SPRINGS – Former East Wilkes High basketball standout Delaina Adams Smith was inducted into Gardner-Webb University’s Athletics Hall of Fame recently.

She was part of a five-member Class of 2009. Others included Wes Gentry (baseball, Tazwell, Va.), James Harbison (football, Shelby) and Jeff Parker (football, Seneca, S.C.) – along with Meritorious Service Award recipient Pam Scruggs (Boiling Springs).

Delaina Adams Smith competed at a very high level during her playing days with the Gardner-Webb women’s basketball team, finishing her career with more than 1,000 points and 700 rebounds.

A standout forward for the Lady Bulldogs, Adams averaged double figures scoring in all four seasons and was the team’s top scorer in 1993-94 (19.1 ppg) and 1994-95 (19.4 ppg).

She currently ranks fourth in Gardner-Webb history with 1,686 points and sixth with 737 career rebounds, and is one of only four women in GWU basketball history to rank in the top six in both categories.

Adams earned first-team All-South Atlantic Conference honors as a sophomore and second-team honors as a junior, and remains among the league’s top-10 in several categories - ranking sixth in SAC history in scoring (17.1 ppg) and second in career field goal percentage (.577).

The Roaring River native shot a school-record 62.8 percent in 1993-94 and broke her own record with 225 free throws attempted in 1994-1995.

Adams also had two of the top scoring games in GWU history, netting 38 points in 1994 vs. Presbyterian and 37 in 1995 vs. Queens (N.C.) College.

Her leadership as a senior was evident, as she averaged 11.6 points and 6.0 rebounds to help the Lady Bulldogs to a 22-7 record and a berth in the 1996 NCAA Division II Tournament.