Former Westwood Basketball Star Sticks to Her Roots

When Carolyn "C" White played point guard for the Westwood High School basketball team, she was determined to win.

"It was always my dream to make the Varsity team," said White, who officially goes by C. "I couldn't wait to be in uniform."

With four undefeated seasons in the Tri-Valley league, she conquered her goal. The only four games the team lost were at the gym at Massasoit Community College, which White calls the "curse gym."

"Senior year we were supposed to be at a different gym and we were happy we were finally not going to have to play at Massasoit," White said. "But then someone dunked on the hoop and broke it and we had to play there again."

Her success has not gone unnoticed, either. In 2008, White was inducted into the Westwood High School Hall of Fame for her achievements.

Eventually, White's hard work on and off the court landed her at Bentley University, where she continued her duties as point guard for the Bentley Falcons. The transition from high school basketball to college basketball was not easy.

"The biggest transition was the speed of the game," White said. "It was so much faster. I was always fast, but the fact that you had to play in such a physical way was exhausting."

Although it was difficult, White was up to the challenge, and thrived for all four years on her love for the game while playing for the Falcons.  As a junior she helped the team reach a record of 27-4, and as a senior a record of 31-3.  

In her final year of play, White was averaging 7.1 points per game, finishing off her career with 1,056 points towering high on Bentley's all-time list at 26th. What's more, she ranks tenth all-time with 486 assists and 164 three pointers, landing her in the top five all-time in threes. The Falcons only lost nine games in her four years of play.

After she graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing, White began volunteering as a part-time assistant for the Falcons during the 2001-2002 season.

"Bentley lost all of their point guards in one year, and I was asked to stay and volunteer to turn two guards into point guards," she said.

In addition, White also worked in the gym as a personal trainer in 2002.  

During the 2002-2003 season, White left Bentley for an assistant coaching position at Harvard University, but by the following fall she was back at Bentley as the assistant coach to Barbara Stevens, and is now in her seventh season of coaching for the Falcons.

"I get to coach die-hard kids who want the national championship," White said. "They are all high-caliber athletes."

During the spring and summer months, she runs clinics and practices for boys and girls basketball. And every winter, after the Girl's Winter Tournament in Westwood, White hands out the Elaine "Gus" White Sportsmanship award, named after her mother.

Moreover, every year an award is given in memory and honor of her mother, Elaine "Gus" White. White can also be found in the stands at Westwood Girls Basketball games from time to time, as well as recruiting Westwood's stars of tomorrow.