De’Tavious Graves has made an immediate impact on B-CC’s track and field program, breaking school records in the triple jump, long jump, and high jump.
Graves, a senior, is a multi-sport athlete who has played baseball and basketball and competed in Boys Indoor Track and Field. Now, as he enters the outdoor season, he continues to prove his merit as a student-athlete who works hard, unites his team, and exhibits impressive skill. This is Graves’s first year participating in track and field at B-CC, and he has done an excellent job contributing to his team’s success.
Graves has always been around the track and field community. He has been influenced by his younger brother, Jay Graves, who also participated in the sport. Seeing an opportunity to utilize his talents more effectively, he switched from basketball and baseball to track and field this year. “I didn’t want to play basketball, because I felt like my athleticism wouldn’t be much of an advantage for the team. So I decided to use [it] for something else … I decided to do track, and now I’m here.”
Track and field is often viewed as an individual sport, where athletes concentrate on their own performance. However, Graves highlights the significance of teamwork and a supportive team environment. In sports, strong team chemistry fosters better communication, trust, and adaptability to challenges, all of which are vital for success in track and field. Trust between teammates is essential for winning meets.
“Well, in track, you gotta think of it as your success is the whole team’s success. Honestly, you can’t win the whole track meet by yourself, so when you’re doing your own individual event, if you do well, you gotta realize that it’s not just a win for you but a win for the whole team, and it’s what connects us as a whole team.”
On Jan. 13, Graves broke the school triple jump record, taking first place with a jump of 44 feet (13.41 meters). Nine days later, on Jan. 22, during the MCPS Indoor Championships, Graves shattered another school record, this time in the long jump. In the long jump, Graves achieved an impressive mark of 6.41 meters, securing first place.
On March 14, Graves delivered another impressive performance, achieving a personal best and tying the school high jump record at the Nike Indoor Nationals in New York, specifically in the men’s emerging elite high jump category. He finished in third place with a recorded jump of 1.95 meters, or six feet and four inches.
When Grave broke the school jump record, he didn’t know it at first; it took Track and Field head coach Mr. Kirk telling him for him to realize: “My initial reaction to it was… I actually didn’t have one. My coach, he never told me what the jump record was … when he told me during the banquet, I was really surprised … at the moment, I didn’t know I actually broke it.”
With spring sports beginning, Outdoor Track and Field is back, and Graves has another season to showcase his athletic abilities and have a great season. He said, “I’m gonna do outdoor and hopefully break more records and, who knows, go to States, probably win States.”
So far, Graves is experiencing a smooth transition to his outdoor track season. In his first outdoor meet at B-CC on
March 25, he broke the high jump record. where Barons faced their rival, Walter Johnson High School.
With all his achievements, Graves has decided to commit and take his talents to Wagner College, a Division I school, where he will continue his pursuit of track and field.
