For some, playing sports in college is just a dream. But for Mark Gasperini ’16, that dream has become a reality.

Gasperini recently signed his letter of intent to American University, marking a great achievement in his basketball career, which is just the beginning of the road ahead.

Gasperini first started playing basketball in 5th grade when he moved here from Russia, and began playing organized games in the 7th grade. His favorite basketball memory so far is his first dunk during a game against Framingham when he was a freshman at Brookline High.

“I always thought that I was good at it (basketball), even though up until like middle of my sophomore year at Brimmer I realized that I was actually pretty terrible,” Gasperini said.

Coming here as a sophomore, Gasperini pounded in countless hours on the court—and it paid off almost immediately.

“The recruiting process for me was crazy,” he says. “I first got noticed by Holy Cross when they came to a workout at Brimmer, and then the summer before my junior year I received an offer from them. After that, it really picked up. I started getting offers from a multitude of schools including the school I’m committed to.”

Gasperini ended up with 15 official offers, with at least 10 more unannounced. “It was crazy some days because I would have to take up to 6 phone calls from different schools in one day.”

Recruitment of high school basketball students can be hectic and sporadic, but for Gasperini it turned out well.

“I feel great about going there because I really feel that it is the best situation for for me, and signing the NLI really brought closure for me from this long and difficult process of earning a full scholarship. It was great to fulfill my goal and my parents trust on letting me transfer into a private school,” says Gasperini.

In addition to his parents, Gasperini credits his Brimmer and May coach, Tom Nelson, for playing a big role in his success. “He is the one that brought me into Brimmer and the one that’s spent countless hours with me in the gym, on the road and just hanging out,” Gasperini says. “He has really shaped me into the person that I am today. I owe him every scholarship and basketball award that I’ve earned.”

Congratulations to Mark for this amazing achievement. We wish him luck in his basketball career.