Ronald Battista graduated from Bartlett High School in 1960 after having earned nine varsity letters in three sports. He is considered to be one of the best three sport athletes of that decade.

In the fall, Ron starred in football for the Indians. He excelled at four positions for the Indians. At both the defensive end and tight end positions, Ron was an excellent tackler and blocker, with good pair of hands. He also was the punter and kicker on the special teams for Bartlett.

Ron continued his athletic prowess at Bartlett as the starting center for the highly successful basketball team which finished the season with seventeen wins and two losses. As a senior he led the team in scoring, averaging nineteen points per game. Against rivals St. Louis and Wells High schools, Ron scored twenty five and twenty six points respectively. He also scored an amazing twenty seven points against the Nichols College JV team.

Ronald Battista left his mark in the record books as a member of the Bartlett High School baseball team during his senior year. His batting average was .500 midway through the season as a center fielder, and as a pitcher, Ron’s coach, Sigmund Strzelecki, chose him to pitch against the toughest teams on the schedule. He was considered to be a powerful pitcher possessing an extreme fastball. Former teammate Jim Kroll describes Ron’s fastball as “totally overpowering and that Ron would be a sure bet to be pitching in the major leagues today”. Against Worcester Trade, Ron pitched a five hitter, and struck out the side three times while striking out a total of seventeen batters. No one had pitched a no-hitter for Bartlett since 1941 and Ron accomplished this feat, pitching one, and participating in another his senior year. The most memorable was his first against Wells High School. In this game which Bartlett won 1-0, Ron retired sixteen men in order through six innings and allowed only two opponents to reach base. This win ended Wells’ undefeated season at ten games.

After having worked 34 years for Roger’s Corporation in South Windham, CT, Ron presently lives in Brooklyn, CT. He and his wife Jackie have been married forty one years and have a son, James.