Gravitt to bring playoff experience to Lady Bucks volleyball

Gravitt to bring playoff experience to Lady Bucks volleyball News Staff Tue, 06/11/2024 - 4:57 pm Emily Gravitt (at right), with husband Byron, will lead the Lady Buckaroos volleyball team after previous stints at Petrolia, Iowa Park and Wichita Falls. Contributed photo/Emily Gravitt By Mike Williams news@breckenridgeamerican.com Two decades of coaching experience will be on the sidelines this season when the Lady Buckaroos’ volleyball season begins in August.  Breckenridge ISD has officially hired Emily Gravitt to replace Krista Wilcox, who stepped down to take a coaching position at Comanche. Gravitt’s head coaching career officially began at Petrolia in 2012 where she led the Lady Pirates to the playoffs in all four years. She has also held coaching positions at Iowa Park and Wichita Falls High School, which closed its doors following the 2023-2024 school year.  The move to Breckenridge is a move that she said was made due to an affinity for small-town life. “My husband and I have always loved small towns and 3A and 4A has always been the size that we really liked,” she said. “That was the first thing and the second we are both able to come (to Breckenridge) and (work) together. Leaving Old High, which was closing, we were possibly going to be split. This job gave us an opportunity to all be together, so that was enticing as well.” Gravitt’s husband, Byron, will join the Buckaroos football coaching staff as a special teams coordinator. Gravitt was a two-sport athlete at Holliday High School playing basketball and volleyball. Her volleyball career continued at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, where she graduated in 2001. Although she excelled in basketball and wanted to further her career on the court, Gravitt said volleyball emerged as her true calling. “When I started out I wanted to be a basketball coach, that’s what I wanted to do,” she said. “In college I got asked to coach a little league volleyball team. Volleyball just kept falling in my lap. People kept asking if I would do (things) for volleyball. Finally it’s like ‘Okay, God, it’s obviously going to be volleyball, you want me to go that route.’ That’s honestly how it happened. I grew up playing basketball, that was that thing, but in college, volleyball just kept falling in my lap.” The Lady Bucks have begun to play summer league matches at Graham High School and this has afforded Gravitt the opportunity to get an early peek at what her team will look like. Having not been able to see all of her upcoming team, the new coach said she likes what she sees so far.  “They work really, really hard. They want to do well, I can tell that immediately,” she said. “If they do something wrong or don’t get the point they don’t sulk in it and pout (about it). They just move on to the next play and I really like that. I like that they’re ready for the next ball.” Although Gravitt comes to Breckenridge with many years of playoff experience, she said the highlights of her career have been watching her players grow as both athletes and people.She will be seen on the sidelines cheering good plays for her team even when they don’t necessarily score points, because those plays show the growth of her athletes and the work in practice beginning to pan out. The first day of official practices is Monday, Aug. 5 with scrimmages allowed to begin Friday, Aug. 9. Regular season matches and tournaments will be allowed to begin Monday, Aug. 12. Media day will be Saturday, Aug. 10 where the team will traditionally hold an intra-team scrimmage. The 2024 Lady Bucks volleyball schedule has yet to be announced. Sports Log in to post comments