In Westchester volleyball circles, the name Burcescu is synonymous with success. For the last two years, Brigitte Burcescu has been the top player in the area, following in the footsteps of her older sister, Vivian, and passing the torch to her younger sister, Yvette.
Burcescu, now a senior at Walter Panas High School, put together a decorated four-year varsity career with the Panthers and set the stage for a Division 1 future in college. She started playing volleyball in seventh grade, and by making the Panas varsity as a freshman, she got to play two seasons with Vivian, now a sophomore on the University of Virginia volleyball team.
“Watching my older sister play definitely helped me learn a lot,” Burcescu says. “You improve a lot when you’re around such great players.”
That early experience helped her become a force for Panas, which she led to the Class A state semifinals for the first time in school history as a junior.
“That was one of the greatest experiences in my volleyball career,” says Burcescu, who was the Journal News Volleyball Player of the Year as a junior and senior. Burcescu finished her senior season—she had the “privilege” of playing with her eighth-grade sister, Yvette, the latest family standout—with a host of school records and an honorable-mention Under Armour All-American nod.
Burcescu developed her game year-round with Downstate Juniors Volleyball Club in Peekskill, and will continue her volleyball career at Northeastern University.
