Printer Friendly Version - Ferrucci Opens a Window of Success with Her Defense and Screens

After playing a pivotal role in the Knights’ field hockey team’s state championship season last fall, Biance Ferrucci helped Westbrook girls’ hoops have another solid year through her determination on defense, plus an ability to set tremendous screens on offense. Photo courtesy of Biance Ferrucci

Biance Ferrucci has learned a valuable lesson throughout her time as an athlete at Westbrook High School: As long as you always give 100 percent, you can make valuable contributions to the success of your team.

Biance recently completed her tenure with Westbrook girls’ basketball on the heels of a field hockey career that saw her make All-Conference, while helping the Knights win a Class S state title last fall. This winter, Biance became a key component on the basketball court by constantly hustling on defense, while setting a slew of quality screens on offense for Head Coach Kelly Landino’s squad. Westbrook finished its season with 16 victories, including two in postseason play.

“Biance is a coach’s dream. She is the most unselfish kid I have ever coached. She will do anything, take on any role to help her team win and to help her teammates be successful. Biance led our team in screens, in toughness, and in unbelievable defense against the other team’s toughest players. She took pride in setting up our scorers and in stopping the opponent’s scorers. She played any position we needed her to, and she gave 100 percent every second,” says Coach Landino. “We won games because of the intangibles that Biance brought to our team every day in practice and in games. Biance thinks she is 6-feet tall and she plays like it. Biance is all of 5-foot-6, and the rest of her greatness is in her heart. I’ve watched Biance grow since 8th grade into a beautiful, warm, and wonderful young lady. She is one of my most favorite kids and I will miss her smile every day in the gym.”

One of the reasons why Biance gives everything she has every day is because she’s inspired by an extremely supportive cast of coaches and teammates. Biance says they always saw her positives as a basketball player and helped her accentuate them to the fullest.

“My coaches and teammates make it easy to have a strong drive. I had a connection with my team, and I wanted to work as hard as I could for them because they made basketball so enjoyable for me,” Biance says. “They knew I wouldn’t be a strong offensive player, so they highlighted my strengths on defense.”

Speaking to her success as a defender, Biance feels that it came from a competitive practice environment in which the Knights consistently pushed each other to yield the best results. Although Biance wasn’t always the one scoring the points come game time, she was still a catalyst for Westbrook’s offense with her knack for setting screens for the Knights’ point producers.

“When we practice with each other in 5-on-5 scenarios, our coaches say we have to push each other, which has helped me a lot. I also think having to just focus on one thing like defense has helped me, too. I just tried to work as hard as I could to make my teammates better,” Biance says. “Screens are crucial to the offense because our best offensive players were always facing a box-and-1, so the screens helped them get open.”

Biance enjoys the grind of each season as she and her teammates battle together to reach a common goal. Fortunately for Biance, that’s something she’s had the privilege to experience three times a year at Westbrook as Biance is also a softball player for the Knights.

“I love being on a team and just creating that family bond between each other,” Biance says. “It’s great to have that connection with people and have that mutual goal and success. It brings everyone closer together.”