Notable Alumni

  • Chris Zajac, Class of 2023

  • Peter Rankowitz, Class of 2013

    Rankowitz was a four-year letterwinner at Staples High School. As a Senior, he was a team captain, and averaged 19 points along with five rebounds and five assists. He received All-FCIAC honors twice, being nominated to the Second Team as a Junior and First Team as a Senior. He also was named to the Connecticut Post All-State First-Team. Following his graduation from Staples High School, Rankowitz went on to play for the Bears of Washington University.

  • Gabe Seidman, Class of 2011

    Seidman was named to the 2011 All-FCIAC First Team as a Senior, and the FCIAC All-West Team as a Junior. He tallied a whopping 30 points in the 2011 FCIAC Tournament Quarterfinals for the Wreckers. Following his graduation, Seidman joined the Gators of Allegheny College. As a Freshman, Seidman appeared in 19 games while making 16 starts at guard. He shot over 50% from the floor while playing primarily on the wing including 11-of-26 from three-point range. His Sophomore year, he played in 13 games with seven starts. In a November game against Geneva, Seidman exploded for career-high 22 points, going 9-for-12 from the floor, while also grabbing season-high five rebounds. Unfortunately, he did not see the floor his Junior year due to injury. In his Senior campaign, Seidman appeared in 21 games, making six starts. He averaged 3.0 points and 2.1 rebounds, while totaling 25 assists, along with an impressive FT% of 79%.

  • Luke Yeager, Class of 2011

    Yeager, a 2011 graduate of Staples High School, was named to the FCIAC All-West Team in his Senior season. Following his graduation, Yeager decided to continue his basketball career at Grinnell College. He went on to have an extremely successful four years there, kicking it off with an excellent Freshman season, in which he averaged 10.7 points per game. His Sophomore year, Yeager continued to improve. The highlight of his season was undoubtedly his performance against Cornell College, racking up 35 points and 6 assists. His Junior Season, he played in 25 games, starting 14 of them. He averaged 16.7 points per game, including an impressive 37 point performance against the College of Faith. Yeager's final season with the Pioneers was a sight to be seen. In a December contest against William Penn, Yeager scored 50 points. In total, Yeager played 96 games for the Grinnell Pioneers, second most in school history. Across those 96 contests, he racked up 1509 points, twelfth most in school history.

  • John Dibartolemeo, Class of 2009

    Dibartolemeo was scholar athlete who earned three letters as a guard for the Wreckers. As a Junior, he earned second team All-FCIAC and Connecticut Post Honorable Mention accolades. His Senior year, he was selected as co-captain and co-MVP. He averaged 20 points per game, and made 70 three point field goals, enough to earn first team All-FCIAC honors. After graduating from Staples, Dibartolemeo attended the University of Rochester. As a Freshman, he emerged as a force on both ends of the court for the Yellowjackets, on his way to becoming UAA Rookie of the Year and Second Team All-UAA selection. He followed that off with an exceptional sophomore year which culminated in him being named UAA Player of the Year, First Team All-UAA and NABC All-American. He led the UAA in scoring, at 17.7 ppg, and finished 2nd in assists, at 5.7 per game, despite missing the first five games of the season As a Junior, he started all 25 games for the Yellowjackets, and for the second straight year, was an All-UAA First Team selection. Following the season, he was named a DIII News All-American. Dibartolemeo capped off an amazing career at Rochester being selected as UAA Player of the Year for a second time. He was also named a consensus 1st Team All-American (NABC, D3hoops.com, DIII News, USBWA) and National Player of the Year by D3hoops.com and DIII News. In total, Dibartolemeo racked up over 1000 points for the Yellowjackets. Following his graduation from the University of Rochester, Dibartolemeo decided to continue his basketball career overseas. He first joined Palma Air Europa, a Spanish basketball club, before taking his talents to Israel to join Maccabi Haifa. Currently, Dibartolemeo is a member of Maccabi Tel Aviv, and recently signed a three year extension.

  • Andrei Oztemel, Class of 2009

    A 2009 graduate of Staples High School, Oztemel earned three varsity letters and was a two-time All-FCIAC selection. As a senior, he was a Connecticut Post Super 15 selection, as well as all-area Most Valuable Player. He also served as team captain. After graduating from Staples, Oztemel attended the University of Ithaca. He played in all 28 games as a freshman and started two en route to being named Empire 8 Rookie of the Week three times, and MVP of the ECAC Upstate NY Championship Tournament. As a Sophomore, Oztemel ranked fourth on the team with 12.9 points per game and drained 88 three pointers (second all-time at Ithaca for most season three-pointers made). He was named Empire 8, D3Hoops.com and ECAC Upstate N.Y. Player of the Week on Jan. 11. He played in 27 of the Bombers’ 28 games as a junior captain, starting 22. Oztemel was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Oswego Max Ziel Classic and the Juniata Doc Greene Tournament. He recorded 17 double-digit scoring performances during the season. His Senior year, Oztemel was the recipient of the Robert C. Deming Leadership Award, and was named Ithaca’s All-Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year. He became the 22nd Bomber to cross the 1000 point threshold, and his 228 career treys rank third all-time at Ithaca.

  • John Baumann, Jr., Class of 2004

    A 6’7” forward, Baumann is Staples High School’s all-time leading scorer and was among Connecticut’s leading scorers over his final two seasons at Staples. Baumann averaged 29.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game as a senior, and as a junior, he averaged 28 points, 12.7 rebounds and shot 50 percent from the floor. Baumann finished his high school basketball career with 1,683 points and a 26.2 points per game scoring average and was a two-time All-State selection. He went on to play basketball at Columbia University where he was named to the Ivy League first team two times. He was also the Columbia MVP during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons and was selected as a team captain for his senior season. Baumann became the 23rd player in Columbia Men’s Basketball history to score 1,000 points and was inducted to the Columbia University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014 . Baumann was a two sport athlete at Columbia where he also played baseball, and was named All-Ivy League as a starting pitcher in 2007.