Briefs: Hiura makes Collegiate National Team

UC Irvine standout Keston Hiura has made the USA Baseball collegiate national team that will compete in friendship series this summer in Taiwan, Japan and Cuba.

Orange Coast College Coach John Altobelli will be an assistant coach for the team, which is guided by Oregon Coach George Horton.

Hiura, an outfielder limited to a designated hitting role due to a sore elbow, hit .358 with seven home runs and 41 runs batted in as a sophomore for the Anteaters in 2016. In Team USA’s first three exhibition games, he was three for six, including a solo home run on Thursday at Angel Stadium in a 5-0 win over the MLB Urban Youth Academy Barons.

Hiura came off the bench to get hits in a 10-6 win over the Santa Barbara Foresters on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium and in a 1-1 tie against the Foresters in 10 innings on Wednesday at UC Santa Barbara. He was one for two as a designated hitter on Tuesday and had a pinch-hit single in his only at-bat Wednesday.

Hiura started Thursday’s game at designated hitter. The former Big West Conference Freshman Field Player of the Year, who was also a freshman All-American in 2015, joins the 24-player roster that will compete against Chinese Taipai (July 5-9), against Japan (July 12-17) and against Cuba (July 23-27).

Altobelli, whose son J.J. played four years for Horton at Oregon, was a late addition to the staff. He replaced David Pierce, the former coach at Tulane who was named Wednesday as the new head coach at Texas.

Team USA’s tune-up tour included a game Friday against the Conejo Oaks at Angel Stadium, and will conclude Saturday against the Barons at the MLB Urban Youth Academy in Compton at 1:30 p.m.

— Barry Faulkner

— Barry Faulkner

Ex-’Eater Jock advances

EUGENE, Ore. — Former UC Irvine All-American Charles Jock qualified on Friday for the semifinals of the 800 meters at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials at Hayward Field.

Jock finished third in his heat with a time of 1 minute, 48.71 seconds to join 16 semifinalists, who will run Saturday at noon.

The final is Monday at 5:51 p.m.

Jock was NCAA champion in the event in 2012.

— Barry Faulkner

— Barry Faulkner

Local Sailor All-American

Newport Beach’s Charlotte Belling, who just completed her senior season at Yale, has been named All-American crew by the Intercollegiate Sailing Assn.

It’s the third consecutive All-American recognition for Belling.

Newport Beach’s Carolyn Smith (a skipper at St. Mary’s College of Maryland) and Chloe Dapp (crew at College of Charston), both juniors, received honrable mention.

— From staff reports

— From staff reports