Briefs: Pirates on next level

McKay Smith, the Co-Most Valuable Player in the Pacific Coast Conference in 2011, as well as Danny Baker, a freshman libero out of Corona del Mar High, are among six Orange Coast College men’s volleyball players to secure futures with four-year schools, Pirates Coach Travis Turner said Wednesday.

Smith is bound for Long Beach State, while Baker, a first-team all-conference performer in 2011, is ticketed for reigning NCAA champion Ohio State.

The duo helped lead the Pirates to a 16-3 record, including the PCC title and a berth in the state semifinals.

Troy Tomasello (UC San Diego), Jeff Patton (Loyola of Chicago), James Anderson (Cal Baptist) and Johannes Brink (Hawaii) will also play on next season.

Tomasello was a 6-6 sophomore outside hitter, while Patton was a 6-7 sophomore outside hitter for the Pirates.

Anderson, a 6-1 sophomore, was the Pirates’ setter.

Brink, a 6-7 freshman outside hitter, played a reserve role.

Turner said Richard De St. Jean, a sophomore middle blocker out of Newport Harbor High who earned first-team all-conference laurels in 2011, will attend Indiana, but will not play.

Turner said Ryan Thompson, a 6-9 freshman middle blocker out of Costa Mesa High, has taken official visits to UC Santa Barbara and Hawaii, but has yet to decide where he will go.

— From staff reports

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Davis commits to ASU

Grant Davis, a Newport Beach resident, has committed to play baseball at Arizona State, he said.

Davis is the starting second baseman for JSerra High, which was ranked No. 3 in the CIF Southern Section Division I coaches’ poll.

Davis, who played at Corona del Mar High as a freshman, helped JSerra to two tournament titles this season. JSerra is the No. 4 seed in the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs and open at home against Great Oak on Friday.

— From staff reports

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Locals win crown

Corona del Mar High products Kate Baldoni and Victoria Kennedy were a part of Stanford’s NCAA championship victory Sunday at the University of Michigan.

The Cardinal beat rival UC Berkeley, 9-5, to capture their second national title and their first since 2002. Stanford (28-1) claimed its 31st consecutive victory over Cal, which the Cardinal has not lost to since March 26, 2000.

Baldoni and Kennedy are both sophomores. Baldoni will be the only returning goalie for the Cardinal. Stanford goalie Amber Oland played in her final collegiate game Sunday and made 11 saves.

The Cal Bears featured junior Jessica Robinson, a Newport Harbor High product.

— From staff reports