The Northridge girls basketball coach has always gone out of his way to welcome me whenever I have covered an event at the high school. I say event, because Smith is involved with much more than just the basketball program at Northridge.

He greeted me near the net after a girls volleyball match in late August and we caught up on a few things.

Smith was there to support several of his basketball players who are also members of Kait Hyde’s volleyball team.

“I think it’s important to show support with any activities the kids have, whether it’s another sport, whether it’s theater or band,” Smith said. “It goes beyond the basketball court. They’re individuals.”

Freddie Lacey, supplied by Chris Smith

Smith is a people person with his life in order, never demonstrated more so than when I thought I had a fun angle for a story back in 2017.

His wife, Roxann, was due to deliver a baby any moment and Northridge had a game that night. I asked if there would be a conflict if she went into labor — basically, where his priorities were.

Without hesitation, Smith confirmed his commitment to his wife. Northridge won the game, Roxann held off on the baby girl until the next day, and the Knights qualified for the 5A state tournament that weekend, capturing a play-in game.

“We had a birth and a berth in the same week,” Smith quipped.

That little girl, Ellie, is named after one of Smith’s players from the 2017 team, a favorite of her older sister, Gabriella. Ellie was alongside Smith during our August meeting on the volleyball court.

Photo supplied, Chris Smith

As Northridge swept Roy 3-0, Smith had a chance to watch several of his basketball players contribute to the win.

“I personally love multi-sport athletes and how they translate from sport to sport.  Volleyball is great, but sometimes you can’t see how athletic a person really is until you see them on the basketball court, where they’re running, jumping and doing all the other stuff,” Smith said. “In women’s sports, we have a lot of athletes we have to share. Forcing kids to choose prematurely isn’t fair for them. They matter; they’re valuable as a person beyond the sport you coach.”

The volleyball crossover athletes Smith came to watch included seniors Morgan Hale and Keeley McLeod, junior Brooklyn Mayfield, and sophomores Molly Larsen and Taylee Poll.

Hale and Mayfield were top three in aces, digs and kills for the Knights that night.

As some girls transitioned out of volleyball into basketball tryouts that were held November 9-10, Smith lost Mayfield to club volleyball but is anxious to get basketball underway.

“We have been interacting over the summer. This was not just about team members, but anybody who is interested,” Smith said.  “I wanted them to make my decisions hard when it comes to determining who is going to make the team.”

One no-brainer for Smith is senior forward Rihanna May. who led the Knights in scoring and rebounding in 2025-26.

“She’s a very talented player. She can do pretty much anything. I tell her just make the right play, regardless of what it is, and we’ll deal with the outcome,” Smith said. “Lead by example. I’m excited to see what she does this year.”

Other key returners are senior Megan Sargent, recovered from a torn ACL, and soccer crossovers in senior Abbi Frost and juniors Kayla Stevenson and Jessa Johnson.

Hale was fourth on the team in scoring last year, while McLeod, Larsen and Poll are hoping to carve out some time on the hardwood this season.

“I’m excited about our team. We’ll have some versatility on the defensive end. We’ll get out and run,” Smith said. “We have good kids that love each other and respect each other. It should be a fun year.”

Northridge will be trying to improve on a 4-19 campaign from a year ago. Smith is 112-200 in 14 seasons as head coach.

“It’s more than just about wins and losses. We can’t choose what happens to us, but we can choose how we respond to it. Come into the gym, ready to work hard,” Smith said. “We get to play a sport. We get to participate in extra-curricular activities. We’re in America and have freedoms others don’t have.”

Smith is a 2002 graduate of Northridge, where he started his coaching career as a senior assistant manager to the girls team when he didn’t make the boys squad.

In Smith’s words, the boys coach “told me he’s not going to cut me, but he’s not going to keep me.”

He bounced around as a sophomore coach at Northridge, an assistant at Layton, then returned to his roots as Northridge head coach after the Knights had had multiple changes at the top in just a few years.

“I was grateful for the opportunity to try and bring some consistency to the program and let the girls know they’re valued and important,” Smith said. “Twenty years ago, few people focused on girls sports; it was kind of an afterthought. I grew to love it, enjoyed seeing the game grow and move forward.

“I’ve been fortunate to be around the game for so long,” Smith said.

Smith walks the walk about girls and women’s sports, too. He and Roxann traveled to Dallas for the 2023 NCAA women’s basketball championship game between Iowa and LSU to see Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese battle it out, and have gone to New York to see WNBA games.

He has had season tickets to the University of Utah and also frequents Weber State women’s games, and he said it’s family bonding time. They are the parents of four girls and one boy.

Smith’s 2017 tournament team was the first time Northridge went to the playoffs since he was an assistant in 2002.

In another full-circle moment, Smith hired Shara Fernandes as an assistant coach last year, the same woman who hired him as the sophomore coach years ago.

Two other current assistant coaches are Smith’s former players in Lydia Mashburn and Jessica Petersen.

It’s a family affair for Smith, who notes, “I’ve had former players who want to coach with me; they show up to games. I have kids invite me to weddings. It’s awesome that I was able to make a difference in their lives in a positive way and be a role model.”

This analogy Smith shared seems to indicate why.

“I prefer to be a thermostat, not a thermometer. A thermostat, you control the temperature, whereas a thermometer, you just check it,” Smith said.

“I want to be an example as a coach and have the kids emulate their coach. I’m competitive; I hate to lose,” Smith said. “I hope the kids realize it’s important to work hard, and at the end of the day, things will work out the way we want them to. If we give our best, we have no reason to hang our heads.”

Other coaching offers have come Smith’s way over the years, but he remains a Northridge girls lifer.

“I’ve had chances to coach boys teams a couple of times, but this program has been good to me. If I were to leave the girls program, then what am I telling them? ‘Boys are more valuable, worth more?’ That’s not the case.”

Inside the Lines covers Northern Utah high school sports through the eyes of 51-year sportswriting veteran Bob Judson, who is a resident of Layton.