Sacramento State’s No. 1 men’s tennis player, Xavier Barajas-Smith, ends each school day the same way: cruising out of the school’s parking garage in his 2005 blue Roush Mustang with car alarms blasting.

Barajas-Smith received 15 full-ride scholarship offers from Santa Clara, Brigham Young, Nevada, Saint Mary’s and other schools on the west coast. However, he chose Sacramento State because the coaches are really good and he liked the area too, Barajas-Smith said.

Along with accepting Sac State’s full-ride scholarship, his stepfather came through on his promise of buying him a new car.

Barajas-Smith said he is a competitor, especially when it comes to sports.

“It is not my day when I don’t walk off the court with the tennis balls and the win,” he said.

Barajas-Smith is undefeated this year at the No. 1 singles spot for Sac State. He is a freshman, but you wouldn’t know that by his devastating forehand.

Barajas-Smith has 150 trophies from playing tennis tournaments, but becoming a tennis player was not his main passion. He grew up playing basketball and baseball, but gave them up because they took time away from tennis.

“I always liked playing basketball more than tennis, but after a few years of playing tennis, I started liking it more,” Barajas-Smith said.

Since he was 16, his tennis game has been spectacular. He reached No. 1 in singles and doubles in Northern California for the 16-year-old division. In his senior year of high school, Barajas-Smith was the No. 1 tennis player in Northern California and in the top 10 nationally.

However, that was not always the case for Barajas-Smith. His stepfather Gary Smith introduced him to tennis when he was eight. Gary saw potential in him and thought he could have a bright future in the sport.

Tennis runs in Barajas-Smith’s extended family as his stepbrother Kevin Smith was No. 1 for University of Pacific all four years and his 5-year-old half brother Ivan Smith, has been playing tennis for two years.

When Barajas-Smith started playing in tournaments as a kid, he had a temper and broke plenty of racquets.

“I was one of the worst ones in the section I played in,” he said.

With time, he learned he didn’t want to be immature, so he tried not letting his temper get the best of him.

With his power game and strong serve, he emulates Pete Sampras. He said he is more of a baseline player and is trying to brush up his volleys since they are his weak points.

“(Barajas-Smith’s) forehand is a rocket,” senior Warwick Foy said.

His mindset is to work his hardest every point and try not lose any bad points. The men’s tennis assistant coach Kevin Kurtz praised his positive attitude and his willingness to learn.

His doubles partner, junior Hague Van Dillen, said he loves playing with Barajas-Smith.

“He may look like he is just being lazy on the court, but it’s not true. He’s just tricking you into the whole thing,” Van Dillen said. “We realize we are the best looking doubles team out there.”

They laugh while they are out there as a doubles team, and since they have opposite playing styles, they seem to mesh well. Van Dillen serves and volleys while Barajas-Smith stays back.

Barajas-Smith is more successful at singles than doubles. He enjoys college tennis and said it is more fun than in high school and juniors because he gets to play at a higher level of competition.

He has been very busy playing tennis 20 hours a week. He is a communications studies major, taking 14 units, and has a few complaints about school. His main complaint is fitting school into his schedule.

However, he has his priorities straight and is appreciative of what tennis has given him. Barajas-Smith hopes to play tennis professionally after he graduates.

“He has the most talent I have seen in a long time,” Kurtz said. “Barajas-Smith could end up becoming the most successful Sacramento State product ever.” Tyrone Bowman can be reached at [email protected]