Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Volleyball Gains Three Signees on National Signing Day
11/14/2018 3:47:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Middle Tennessee volleyball team announced the signing of three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on Wednesday, the first day of the NCAA Signing Period.
The Blue Raiders claimed a trio of standout athletes from Florida, South Carolina and Texas. Becoming members of the Middle Tennessee volleyball team include libero Marley Banton, outside hitter Kayla Henley and middle blocker Dasia Smith.
Marley Banton | L | 5-8 | St. Augustine, Fla. | Pedro Menendez High School
Banton is a Florida native who has been playing club volleyball for 11 years and most recently under the helm of CJ Sherman at the Jacksonville Juniors Volleyball Association. During the 2018 club season, Banton recorded a career-best 532 digs while adding 68 aces for her team. In three seasons, the Florida product eclipsed the 1,000-dig mark in three seasons (2016-18) while inking 164 aces through her final three years of club play.
For her high school team, Banton was a four-year varsity letter winner at Pedro Menendez High School. During her four years on the team, she earned the All-Academic Award four times while being named to the St. Johns River All-Conference team, the St. Augustine Record All-County Team and the Florida Times Union All-County team all four seasons. Likewise, Banton is a three-time recipient of the Prep Volleyball Defensive Dandy Award and earned the Prep Volleyball Service Ace Award.
Banton will enroll at Middle Tennessee in the Fall of 2019, majoring in Exercise Science and Nutrition. Outside of volleyball, Banton enjoys skateboarding and watching Impractical Jokers on Netflix.
"Marley is an extremely tough athlete, that has become a strong and courageous person in part from overcoming and surviving a brain tumor," said head coach Chuck Crawford. "Through her life experiences, Marley has learned to become resilient on and off the court. We are extremely excited for Marley to join our team next season, as she is an athlete who understands the game completely and will bring a very high energy with positive attitude to the team".
Kayla Henley | OH | 6-0 | Little River, S.C. | North Myrtle Beach High School
Henley is left handed outside hitter from Little River, S.C. who has been playing volleyball for eight years. The South Carolina product joined her first club team in 2010 with the Grand Stand Juniors under head coach Alex Sing. In addition to club play, Henley was a part of the USA Volleyball's High-Performance Program, aiding the A1 white team to a silver medal finish in the Gold division.
During her final season at North Myrtle Beach High School, Henley's team claimed the Class AAAA Volleyball state title over rival Pickens, 3-1. Henley was instrumental in helping North Myrtle Beach claim the title in the third set, inking three kills to spark an early 9-3 run and recording the match winning point from a blocked shot. During her time with her high school, Henley earned the Chief Award and the Most Outstanding Player honor.
Besides court volleyball, Henley is active on the beach, recording two third place finishes with her partner Hope Goodwin this summer in the Women's AA category with AVP America.
Henley will major in exercise science at Middle Tennessee, enrolling in the Fall of 2019. When Henley is not on the court, she enjoys listening to "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys and watching the Vampire Diaries on Netflix.
"Kayla is a very special recruit for us, for many reasons," stated Crawford. "She is an extremely special player who super dynamic on the court. Kayla is a left-handed hitter, who jumps extremely well and is comfortable hitting on both sides of the court. Throughout club and high school, she was a six-rotation player, who can play the game tough and gritty. We're very excited to have Kayla in Murfreesboro with us and we ready to see the impact she will make to the team immediately".
Dasia Smith | MB | 5-11 | Houston, Texas | Stafford High School
Smith is a middle blocker who hails from Houston, Texas. The Houston, Texas native has played club volleyball for six years with the Houston Juniors under the coaching direction of Colonel Phillippe.
While playing at Stafford High School, Smith was a three-year varsity letter winner and earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2017.
Smith's dream job is to become a biology engineer project manager after graduating from Middle Tennessee.
"Dasia is an extremely dynamic player," said Crawford. "She has a fast arm and gets the ball down for the kill from the middle. Dasia is an awesome person and player with a bubbly personality that will immediately make an impact on our team".
The Blue Raiders claimed a trio of standout athletes from Florida, South Carolina and Texas. Becoming members of the Middle Tennessee volleyball team include libero Marley Banton, outside hitter Kayla Henley and middle blocker Dasia Smith.
Marley Banton | L | 5-8 | St. Augustine, Fla. | Pedro Menendez High School
Banton is a Florida native who has been playing club volleyball for 11 years and most recently under the helm of CJ Sherman at the Jacksonville Juniors Volleyball Association. During the 2018 club season, Banton recorded a career-best 532 digs while adding 68 aces for her team. In three seasons, the Florida product eclipsed the 1,000-dig mark in three seasons (2016-18) while inking 164 aces through her final three years of club play.
For her high school team, Banton was a four-year varsity letter winner at Pedro Menendez High School. During her four years on the team, she earned the All-Academic Award four times while being named to the St. Johns River All-Conference team, the St. Augustine Record All-County Team and the Florida Times Union All-County team all four seasons. Likewise, Banton is a three-time recipient of the Prep Volleyball Defensive Dandy Award and earned the Prep Volleyball Service Ace Award.
Banton will enroll at Middle Tennessee in the Fall of 2019, majoring in Exercise Science and Nutrition. Outside of volleyball, Banton enjoys skateboarding and watching Impractical Jokers on Netflix.
"Marley is an extremely tough athlete, that has become a strong and courageous person in part from overcoming and surviving a brain tumor," said head coach Chuck Crawford. "Through her life experiences, Marley has learned to become resilient on and off the court. We are extremely excited for Marley to join our team next season, as she is an athlete who understands the game completely and will bring a very high energy with positive attitude to the team".
Kayla Henley | OH | 6-0 | Little River, S.C. | North Myrtle Beach High School
Henley is left handed outside hitter from Little River, S.C. who has been playing volleyball for eight years. The South Carolina product joined her first club team in 2010 with the Grand Stand Juniors under head coach Alex Sing. In addition to club play, Henley was a part of the USA Volleyball's High-Performance Program, aiding the A1 white team to a silver medal finish in the Gold division.
During her final season at North Myrtle Beach High School, Henley's team claimed the Class AAAA Volleyball state title over rival Pickens, 3-1. Henley was instrumental in helping North Myrtle Beach claim the title in the third set, inking three kills to spark an early 9-3 run and recording the match winning point from a blocked shot. During her time with her high school, Henley earned the Chief Award and the Most Outstanding Player honor.
Besides court volleyball, Henley is active on the beach, recording two third place finishes with her partner Hope Goodwin this summer in the Women's AA category with AVP America.
Henley will major in exercise science at Middle Tennessee, enrolling in the Fall of 2019. When Henley is not on the court, she enjoys listening to "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys and watching the Vampire Diaries on Netflix.
"Kayla is a very special recruit for us, for many reasons," stated Crawford. "She is an extremely special player who super dynamic on the court. Kayla is a left-handed hitter, who jumps extremely well and is comfortable hitting on both sides of the court. Throughout club and high school, she was a six-rotation player, who can play the game tough and gritty. We're very excited to have Kayla in Murfreesboro with us and we ready to see the impact she will make to the team immediately".
Dasia Smith | MB | 5-11 | Houston, Texas | Stafford High School
Smith is a middle blocker who hails from Houston, Texas. The Houston, Texas native has played club volleyball for six years with the Houston Juniors under the coaching direction of Colonel Phillippe.
While playing at Stafford High School, Smith was a three-year varsity letter winner and earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2017.
Smith's dream job is to become a biology engineer project manager after graduating from Middle Tennessee.
"Dasia is an extremely dynamic player," said Crawford. "She has a fast arm and gets the ball down for the kill from the middle. Dasia is an awesome person and player with a bubbly personality that will immediately make an impact on our team".
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