Volleyball: Panthers' Burcescu a Role Model

Walter Panas senior standout Vivian Burcescu has had a career to remember at the Cortlandt-Manor based school. She has stood out to the point that she was named Con-Ed Scholar Athlete of the Week this season and will be playing volleyball on the Division I level at the University of Virginia next fall.

However, what the middle blocker/outside hitter Burcescu has accomplished on the court pales to her love for her teammates and everyone involved in the Panas' volleyball program.

Burcescu stresses team over the individual because she says that one person can’t win a game by themselves. She also believes in the team philosophy because she cares about what will happen to the Panther program after she graduates from Panas next June.

That is why when Panas coach Joe Felipe sat her in the third game on senior night in a 3-0 win against Carmel on Oct. 25, Burcescu had no problem with it. Matter of fact, she spent that third game enthusiastically cheering on her teammates that were playing.

“It’s not one individual who wins, you win as a team, you lose as a team,” Burcescu said. “All of the girls on this team are so close. We like to see what is coming up for next year. I like to get to know the younger girls too.”

Being a role model for the younger kids is something that she is very cognizant of. She takes her leadership role in the program so seriously that she actually watched an entire modified game.

“This year I have realized the importance of it a little bit more,” Burcescu said. “I remember being a freshman on the varsity and how much I looked up to those older seniors. I remember watching them play and being so impressed by them. It’s weird that now I am in the senior spot."

“I can so clearly remember being a freshman on the team and just being wowed by the seniors,” Burcescu continued. “So now that they are looking up to me, I try to be the player that I want everyone else to be.”

Felipe said that when it comes to being a team player, Burcescu is second to none.

“I would say that she is one of the best team players I have ever had,” Felipe said. “She is someone that the other girls on the team look up to.”

One big reason why her teammates can look up to her, besides her tall frame, is because of her work ethic.

“In the offseason, she will work out with the team and sometimes she will work out on her own,” Felipe said. “She will go to the gym on Saturdays if we didn’t have something going on in the offseason.”

Felipe said that she is the perfect example for the other players that want to be successful.

“She is such a leader in conditioning and in practice,” Felipe said. “And I can get on her as much as anyone because her attitude is that she is part of the team, that she isn’t above anyone else.”

In turn Burcescu, who has been coached by Felipe the last four years, credits her coach for help putting her in position to be able to play volleyball at the next level.

“Coach Felipe has had the biggest impact on me,” Burcescu said. “He has always seen the potential in me that at times I might have lost sight of. He made me realize what I could do. For example, in practice he would tell me to change something and as much as I wanted to go back to my old patterns, I fully trusted him. He has always been a great coach.”