WEEKLY SPOTLIGHT:  Baseball's Matt Smith speeds to top of career hits list

Rocky Mount, NC - He had 49 as a freshman in 2005 and was named the USA South's Rookie of the Year... He tallied 76 as a sophomore and led his team to the Division III World Series... He added 71 as a junior and was tabbed an All-American... He currently has 55 this season for the nationally ranked Bishops... He is senior Matt Smith, who on Sunday, tied the North Carolina Wesleyan baseball record for hits with the 251st of his career.

The son of Freddy Smith and Mavis Walters, Smith has reached the milestone in a variety of ways. He has nine career homeruns, nine triples, and 34 doubles. Then there's the single... 199 of them to be exact. Some were screaming line drives... some just found a hole... many, however, were simply the result of Smith's speed. Nearly impossible to throw out when he lays down a good bunt, Smith has kept infielders on their toes for four years now while leading the Bishops to four consecutive winning seasons.

And because he can beat you in so many ways with his bat, Smith is one of the most respected hitters in the USA South and in North Carolina Wesleyan history. The four-time All-Conference selection will finish his eligibility this season with a career average upwards of .375, and he'll be remembered as one of the best defensive players to ever wear the Blue & Gold, winning the South Region's Gold Glove in 2007.

For all the accolades, however, this record is special. The 20-year old mark has belonged to former Bishop standout Rusty Dail since 1989. A member of the 1989 National Championship team, Dail was a 2004 inductee into NCWC's Athletics Hall of Fame. Smith needed 56 hits to pass Dail at the start of this season... then 50... then 33... then 21... then 10... now ONE...

One hit and he'll be all alone at the top. This time he'll be hard to catch not because of his speed, but because of the legacy he's leaving behind.

Smith's next chance to break the record will be on Friday when the Battling Bishops travel to Lynchburg College.