Professional
Alex Smith played professionally for the Rochester Rattlers. Smith was selected with the third overall pick in the 2007 Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Collegiate Draft. Smith was elected to the 2007 MLL All-Star game, when faceoff specialist Peter Vlahakis was unable to play due to an injury.
Smith had an outstanding rookie campaign. He went on to win Cascade Rookie of the Week twice, and was also awarded the Defensive Player of the Week once. At the conclusion of the regular season, Smith was selected as the MLL Rookie of the Year
During the 2007 NLL Entry Draft, Smith was selected with the 4th pick in the 3rd round, 32nd overall, by the expansion Boston Blazers. When the Blazers announced that they would not play in the 2008 NLL season, a dispersal draft was held, and Smith was chosen in the third round by the Rochester Knighthawks. Smith was released from the team prior to the start of the season.
On August 9, 2008, Alex Smith set the single season mark for most faceoff's won in Major League Lacrosse history, by going 23 of 34 from the 'X' against the Chicago Machine. The record stands at 249 faceoff's won in a single season. This total surpassed Paul Cantabene's record of 238 faceoffs, set in 2004. Along with setting the record for faceoff's won, he also tallied the second best percentage all time, at 63%, just behind Cantabene's record of 63.3%, also set in 2004. Following Smith's performance against the Machine he was named the MLL Defensive Player of the Week. Following Smith's record setting performance, he took his team into the 2008 playoffs as the number one ranked team. In the semi-final game against the Philadelphia Barrage Smith won possession of the lone faceoff in overtime, which helped his team to a victory. He then went on to assist his team in winning their first ever MLL title.
In May, 2010 Smith and his Chesapeake Bayhawks wingmen had one of the greatest games ever at the face-off X winning 34 of 39 while defeating the defending MLL Champions the Toronto Nationals, 25-12.
Later in 2010 Alex played on the United States team that captured the Gold Medal in the FILA world games in Manchester England. The United States defeated Canada in a very close game. Additionally, in August 2010 his Major League Lacrosse team, the Chesapeake Bayhawks, captured the MLL Professional Championship. He also became the only face-off man in MLL history to be named to the ALL-MLL Team four consecutive years.
In August 2011 Smith achieved another milestone by winning his 1000th face-off as a professional. He became the only player in lacrosse history to have 1000 wins as a collegian and professional.
In 2012 after recovering from "Tommy John Surgery" on his left arm Alex returned to the Chesapeake Bayhawks for the last three games to help the Bayhawks win their fourth Major League Lacrosse Championship defeating the Denver Outlaws 16-6 at Harvard Stadium, Boston, Massachusetts.
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Famous quotes containing the word professional:
“Never be intimidated when you deal with men. Curse, don’t cry.”
—Anonymous, U.S. professional woman. As quoted in Aspirations and Mentoring in an Academic Environment, ch. 4, by Mary Niles Maack and Joanne Passet (1994)
“The professional must learn to be moved and touched emotionally, yet at the same time stand back objectively: I’ve seen a lot of damage done by tea and sympathy.”
—Anthony Storr (b. 1920)
“The professional celebrity, male and female, is the crowning result of the star system of a society that makes a fetish of competition. In America, this system is carried to the point where a man who can knock a small white ball into a series of holes in the ground with more efficiency than anyone else thereby gains social access to the President of the United States.”
—C. Wright Mills (1916–1962)