"How much time do you want to put into it to make it to the next level? Are you willing to practice when nobody's watching? As an athlete, that's where you're going to stand out." - David W. Reaver
December 2, 2021
On November 23, David W. Reaver LHS Class of 1999, was recognized as the Distinguished Graduate in the Athletic category. Reaver was a very active member of the Linganore community, participating in both baseball and basketball.
Reaver was a four-year starting shortstop for the baseball team, led the team to Central Maryland Conferences titles in 1998 and 1999, and was selected as first-team All-CMC and All-Area. He did this while compiling a .587 batting average–.247 above the overall average for high school baseball players.
In his 212-game career with the Brooklyn Cyclones, Capital City Bombers, St. Lucie Mets, and Washington Wild Things, Reaver compiled a career batting average of .258 with 3 home runs and 84 RBI. He began playing during the 2003 season and last took the field during the 2005 campaign.
During his time at Linganore, Reaver was also a member of Students Against Drunk Driving and participated in the Students Helping Other People Organization. Aided by their advisor, Mr. Mike Chavez, Reaver would help families in the Linganore area. Their yearly project was to clean up the New Market town park.
“Coming back today to receive this award, I started to think of all those goals we have at a very early age. Mine was baseball. That’s all I wanted to do and it’s still a huge part of my life. My playing days are over, but now I coach,” said Reaver.
Reaver didn’t brag about his successes–he recognized the hard work it took him to get to where he is.
“I was fortunate to have a lot of success both individually and as a team. As everybody knows, when you’re winning you can only win if you’re having fun. So I am very appreciative of all those opportunities and those teams I was on.”
At the University of Richmond, Reaver earned his degree in Business Administration. During his Richmond Spider baseball career, he won the Atlantic 10 regular-season championship in 2002 and 2003 and the Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship.
Reaver set the Richmond school record with a 34-game hitting streak and holds the all-time University of Richmond and Atlantic 10 Conference single-season hits record with 104 and 30 doubles.
In the 2002 season, Reaver helped to lead the University of Richmond baseball to hold a record of 53-13–the highest number of wins in Richmond history. He was later inducted into the University of Richmond Hall of Fame.
In 2003, Reaver was drafted into the MLB New York Mets Minor League and continued playing for two seasons. During that time, Reaver played for the Brooklyn Cyclones, the Port St. Lucie Mets, and the Capital City Bombers. He also played for one season on an independent league, the Washington Wild Things.
“Baseball at Linganore has been very good to me and has given me a lot of opportunities. It allowed me to go to college, get a degree from the University of Richmond. It allowed me to reach a goal of mine, to play at the professional level. I was able to travel out of the country, see a lot of states and stadiums. Some of those bus rides were 14 hours long. I’ve met a lot of good friends along the way, I talk to these guys almost every day. I appreciate all those friendships I gained, ” said Reaver.
At the Distinguished Graduate ceremony, Reaver gave advice to the Class of 2025.
“When things started to get serious for me, I was sitting right in this auditorium [during the distinguished graduate ceremony] as a freshman at Linganore. If I could stress one thing today, it would be, you have to start understanding how to invest your time if something is truly your goal. That might mean putting the phone down, putting the video game down, or be late to a social event, whatever it might be, those are just the small decisions that will make or break your dreams and goals,” said Reaver.
Reaver is now a firefighter and an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) in Loudoun County Virginia. His stepson is currently a sophomore at Linganore.
After the ceremony, Reaver visited Football Coach Rick Conner and Basketball Coach Rachel Easterday’s physical education classes and shared his wisdom with students that may aspire to become professional athletes in the future.
“Be open-minded. It might not be Plan A, it might not be Plan B. You might not make the varsity team freshman year, you might not get your division I scholarship. But as long as you are on a team, as long as someone is willing to give you division II or division III, whatever it might be, as long as you have the opportunity to play and are still willing to invest time in yourself and your sport, you will always have a chance,” said Reaver.
On November 10, Senior Benjamin Moore signed for a full ride to play baseball for the Monarchs at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. The Old Dominion Monarchs baseball team is an NCAA Division I college baseball team that competes in the C-USA East Division. Pitcher Moore hasn’t given up an earned run since May 14, 2019.
“When I talked to him he didn’t say much about himself, he made sure to put the focus on me. When he spoke to our class, he reputedly mentioned the importance of practice, I couldn’t agree more.” said Moore.
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“Work hard, play hard, have fun, It’s always a game. Be a good student, be a good teammate, be a good person and cherish your time at Linganore. You will carry these memories with you for a lifetime. Go, Lancers. ” said Reaver.
More information on Reavers Baseball Statistics: Brooklyn Cyclones, St. Lucie Mets, Capital City Bombers, and Washington Wild Things.
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