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03/19/2024 11:38 AMBeing a three-sport athlete is challenging in itself, but performing well in all three takes an exceptional amount of hard work and leadership year-round. Brendan Cassella thoroughly understands this sentiment as a superb athlete on various athletic circuits for Old Saybrook.
The Rams junior captain and guard has excelled on the basketball court this winter, as he has logged huge minutes for his team. He rarely came off the floor, and provided Old Saybrook with consistent leadership and lockdown defense.
As an all-around player, Brendan’s been vital to Head Coach Chris Perras’ squad. His attitude on and off the court has been essential for building a culture and providing the younger players with a role-model teammate.
“As a coach he’s exactly what you want one of your captains to be like,” says Perras. “He represents the program well, does a lot of stuff that doesn’t necessarily show up in the book at the end of the game, but always has an impact.”
Brendan is a three-sport varsity athlete for Old Saybrook, playing soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. Regardless of which sport is in season, Brendan prides himself on going all out for his team. During this year’s basketball season, however, he noticed that pure effort wasn’t going to cut it.
“My biggest thing is really putting in 100% effort,” says Brendan. “I really try to do that in all the sports I play. But in basketball, I noticed this year that it takes more than just 100% effort. There is really an emphasis on having attention to detail and having some finesse to yourself. That was an adjustment I had to make this year, where I really felt like giving 100% effort couldn’t do it all for me, so I grew in that sense.”
That attention to detail hasn’t gone unnoticed by his coaching staff. Perras refers to Brendan as “another coach on the floor,” and feels that his dependability has been huge for a young team that dealt with adversity this year.
“Having another basketball mind, having another coach out there on the court, is huge for us as a young program,” says Perras. “We had a young team this year, we battled through some things, but I think that sets us up in a good position for next year.”
A solid foundation for many young teams starts on the defensive end. That is where Brendan made his mark most notably this season, frequently drawing the opponent’s best player and doing his best to make his night uncomfortable.
“We put him on the other team’s best offensive player,” says Perras. “He embraced that role and took it and accepted the challenge, and did a really nice job with it. You can count on him, he’s very dependable. He’s a kid that has a high basketball IQ.”
Brendan not only embraced the challenge but enjoyed it, taking pride in his role each game and knowing that defense would keep the Rams competitive, even if the offense struggled.
“I consider defense to be pretty fun to play,” says Brendan. “I don’t think a lot of people view it like that. Especially when you’re going against the other team’s best player, because there really is a pride in being able to stop them.”
Brendan has been around the game for most of his childhood. His parents have had Providence Friars basketball season tickets for 40 years. There, he learned the game and honed that basketball IQ, starting to play in an organized league himself by third grade. He has played for Old Saybrook Parks & Rec, Travel, and the school teams.
Off the court, Brendan keeps his schedule full, volunteering his time and helping out with various community organizations, including an upcoming walk for cancer, which he will be working on with his brother, Connor.
For his Capstone project at Old Saybrook, Brendan is starting a disc golf club, and even helped construct the course. He enjoys the relaxing aspect of Disc Golf, especially after the pressure that comes with his varsity seasons. That pressure is especially ramped up in the fall on the soccer field, where Brendan has helped Old Saybrook’s renowned soccer program to three Connecticut state titles. The Disc Golf course provides a welcome respite for the pressure that comes with those deep tournament runs.
Turning his attention back to the basketball court, Brendan hopes to improve his shooting over the offseason ahead of his senior year. This rounding out of his game would certainly add another dimension to his already impressive repertoire.
“I want to become a better shooter,” says Brendan. “Shooting has kind of been a struggle for me the first few years of high school, but I think if I put my mind to it, I can 100% become an effective shooter.”
As a captain, Brendan hopes to return the Rams to tournament play in 2024-25. He feels a strong showing in each of the Shoreline Conference and Connecticut state tournaments would leave the basketball program on an upward trajectory once Brendan graduates next year.
“We missed both the Shoreline and state tournaments this year,” says Brendan. “My goal for next year is to not only make those tournaments, but also win at least one game in both of them. I feel like that would symbolize where the program is hopefully going.”