A three-year member of the Bridgewater State men’s swimming and diving team, Rick Battistini competed for the Bears from 1974 to 1977 and captained the squad during his junior and senior seasons. Rick qualified for back-to-back NCAA Division III Swimming & Diving Championships as part of the 800-yard freestyle relay (1975) and 400-yard freestyle relay (1976) including the inaugural meet in 1975. At the time of his graduation, Battistini held seven individual school records (500 Free, 1000 Free, 1650 Free, 100 Fly, 200 Fly, 200 IM, 400 IM) and was part of three record-setting relays (400 Free, 800 Free, 400 Medley). He was named the recipient of the Bill Taft Joy of Effort Award in 1975 and again in 1977, and was a two-time team MVP (1976, 1977). Rick, who also competed on the Bears' track and field team for two seasons as a javelin thrower, graduated from Bridgewater State in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education with a concentration in aquatics and a minor in English. Following graduation, Rick coached high school swimming for 42 years from 1978 to 2020 at Haverhill (1978-2019), Lowell (1994-2020) and Andover (1989-1992). He compiled an impressive dual meet record of 511-129 (.798), guided his teams to 11 Merrimack Valley Conference championships and coached 49 MIAA individual state champions as well as seven All-America student-athletes. Battistini was a ten-time Merrimack Valley Conference Coach of the Year, ten-time Eagle Tribune Coach of the Year, three-time Boston Globe Coach of the Year and five-time Lowell Sun Coach of the Year. He was also named the Greater Boston League Coach of the Year in 1980 and was also selected as the New England Sons of Italy Coach of the Year in 1992. Rick was inducted into the Massachusetts High School Swim Coaches Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Haverhill High School Hall of Fame in 2012. Battistini was also named the U.S. Swimming New England Coach of the Year in 1992 and was honored with the YMCA National Coaches Excellence Award (1986), the Bay State Games Outstanding Service Award (2002), the MIAA Award of Appreciation (2002), and the Massachusetts Coaches Meritorious Service Award (2012). A long-time resident of Haverhill, Massachusetts, Rick presently resides in South Freeport, Maine with his wife, Michele. He was a third generation owner and operator of Haverhill TV & Appliance for 32 years until he retired in 2020.