Lined up across two separate rows on a raised stage, the college-bound athletes from Corona del Mar High participated in the school’s signing day ceremony on Monday inside the Sea King Theatre.
It was a fitting look for some of the athletes who have often performed at a high level in front of their local community.
Fifteen of the 26 signees for the Sea Kings will be competing in some form of aquatics, a range including swimming and diving, rowing, sailing and water polo.
Ruby Srinivasan is excited to be joining the rowing squadron at Harvard, where she will be returning to a place of her past.
“I lived in Boston until I was in sixth grade,” Srinivasan said. “A lot of my family still lives there. I tend to go back in the summers, but I’m just really excited because the Charles [River] is such a historical place to row. As a kid, I grew up watching [the] Head of the Charles [regatta] with my family. My grandpa used to be a professor at [Boston University], so I’m just really thrilled to be back.”
Among the group, the Sea Kings had five members of their senior class commit to play college football: quarterback David Rasor (UC Davis), wide receiver Cooper Hoch (San Jose State), and linebackers Mason Kubichek (Chapman), Kaulin Post (Chapman) and Brady Sarkisian (Texas).
“It’s really cool having a program that produces not just good football players, but just good men, in general,” Rasor said of his school’s gridiron program.
Jack Loucks, who served as a receiver for CdM, will also be competing at the next level, but in basketball. The senior guard signed on the dotted line to join Fairleigh Dickinson, one of the best stories in March Madness history.
Fairleigh Dickinson became the first No. 16 seed to overthrow a No. 1 seed in the first round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament when it beat Purdue this past season.
“It was like a week after [the upset], when I was out on my visit,” Loucks said of the timing of his commitment. “It’s in New Jersey, so it’s really far. It’s a really different place. I was just really excited when I was out there. Obviously, I was excited to get recruited by them before their upset, but after that made me more intrigued when I was there. But that didn’t play too big of a factor whether or not I was going to go there.”
The crosstown rivalry — the Battle of the Bay — meant a lot to Loucks, who grew up on the other side of the Back Bay.
“Beating Newport Harbor my junior year at Newport Harbor was probably my favorite moment in basketball, just because it’s the rivals [in] in Newport,” Loucks said. “I grew up with all those kids on the other team, and I went to Ensign for seventh grade. I grew up on the other side of the bay, so when I switched over, it was a little bit of extra rivalry because I knew all of them a little bit better.”
Other highlights around the area for spring signing day events included Huntington Beach, which had its baseball program set a school record for seniors signed in a single sport with 13 this year.
Fountain Valley also saw Vivian Hennessey, who is headed to the University of Colorado, become the school’s first cheerleader to sign a national letter of intent to compete in the sport.
“Since competitive cheer became an officially sanctioned sport six years ago, it makes Vivian Hennessey the very first cheer athlete at [Fountain Valley] to sign with a college for the sport of cheer,” Fountain Valley cheer coach Tara Bearden said in a statement. “We are all so very proud of her hard work and passion for the sport. Seeing a cheerleader up there getting the respect they deserve made it such an amazing day and proud moment for everyone involved.”
Below is a list of local athletes who have signed or committed to play a sport in college:
CORONA DEL MAR
Aubrie Anderson, Brown University women’s water polo
Milan Bever, University of San Diego women’s swimming
Chloe Bohuslavizki, UNLV women’s diving
Lily Britt, Harvard women’s water polo
George Bruening, UC Santa Barbara men’s volleyball
Amelia Clark, Harvard rowing
Emily Cloherty, UC San Diego women’s water polo
Sarah Decker, Brown University women’s water polo
Frankie Garcia, San Diego State women’s lacrosse
Gavin Gossen, Stevenson University men’s lacrosse
Colin Hebble, University of Delaware men’s lacrosse
Ashley Highland, Yale sailing
Cooper Hoch, San Jose State football
Hannah Hykes, University of Michigan women’s rowing
Mason Kubichek, Chapman University football
Jack Loucks, Fairleigh Dickinson University men’s basketball
Makena Macedo, San Diego State women’s water polo
Katherine Odeen, Clemson University women’s rowing
Kaulin Post, Chapman University football
David Rasor, UC Davis football
Brady Sarkisian, University of Texas football
Maggie Schalow, University of Virginia women’s swimming
Jillian Schlom, University of Michigan women’s water polo
Ruby Srinivasan, Harvard women’s rowing
Jordyn Warner, Texas Christian University women’s diving
Scott Westrick, Providence College men’s lacrosse
EDISON
Kendall Adams, University of Colorado cheerleading
Sofia Chock, Colorado Mesa University women’s lacrosse
Ben Crinella, University of Hawaii, Hilo men’s golf
Natalie Cuadras, Missouri University of Science and Technology softball
Grant Edmonds, Missouri University of Science and Technology men’s volleyball
Emerson Evans, New York University men’s volleyball
Nathan Gates, Washington State University football
Cailien Gorsuch, Aurora University women’s lacrosse
Scott Hess, Westmont College men’s soccer
Carter Hogue, Arizona Christian University football
Luke Jones, Chapman University football
Madison Kruis, Colorado Mesa University women’s lacrosse
Sophia Menchine, UC San Diego women’s track and field
Emily Robey, George Fox University women’s soccer
Noah Stockman, Vassar College baseball
Brandon Winokur, UCLA baseball
Sierra Zumwalt, University of Kentucky stunt cheerleading
FOUNTAIN VALLEY
Veronica Campbell, Concordia University women’s track and field
Tim Grack, UC Irvine baseball
JJ Gray, Oberlin College men’s basketball
Vivian Hennessey, University of Colorado cheerleading
Aubri Le, Cal State San Marcos women’s track and field
TJ McDonnell, Oregon State men’s wrestling
Nylah Mirshafiei, Cal State Monterey Bay women’s soccer
Alan Ton, West Point Academy men’s tennis
Jonathan Yu, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo men’s track and field
HUNTINGTON BEACH
Jordan Bailey, University of Tennessee, Martin women’s soccer
Natalie Bains, Agnes Scott College softball
Layne Barnes, Lane College softball
William Bennett, Air Force Academy baseball
Zach Bettino, USC men’s water polo
Grace Brehm, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women’s swimming
Dean Carpentier, USC baseball
Abby Dowd, Vanguard University stunt cheerleading
Aidan Espinoza, UCLA baseball
Emma Francisco, Cal State Polytechnic University, Humboldt softball
Ashley Fujimori, Soka University women’s soccer
Kristopher Greenhaw, Concordia University, Wisconsin men’s tennis
Chloe Griffith, Tennessee Tech women’s golf
Bradley Grindlinger, Charleston Southern University baseball
Wyatt Groeneveld, Concordia University men’s lacrosse
Jillian Hemming, Wagner College women’s water polo
Alicia Hinds, Cal Baptist University women’s soccer
Delaney Julianna, Sarah Lawrence College women’s soccer
Sophia Knight, Boise State University softball
Nalani Knowles, Oregon State dance
Carson Lane, UNLV baseball
Ethan Laghaei, Cal Lutheran University baseball
Trystan Lucero, United States Merchant Marine Academy baseball
Jacey Martinez, Santa Clara University women’s soccer
Bradley Navarro, University of Michigan baseball
Gavin Pacheco, University of San Francisco baseball
Hannah Petteys, Utah Tech women’s soccer
Liam Phinizy, Loyola University, Chicago men’s volleyball
Madeleine Scarth, University of Michigan women’s water polo
Wyatt Thomas, Biola University baseball
Brian Trujillo, Utah University baseball
Colby Turner, San Diego State baseball
Ralph Velazquez, Arizona State University baseball
Gideon Vethan, Westmont College men’s tennis
Isabelle Walsh, Cal State San Marcos women’s soccer
LAGUNA BEACH
Brady Bumgardner, Redlands University men’s water polo
Shea Blanchard, Hawaii-Pacific University baseball
Joey Capobianco, University of San Francisco baseball
Chase Cuevas, Irvine Valley College men’s soccer
Kaydence Daeley, Mt. San Antonio College cheerleading
Macy Draper, Whitman College women’s soccer
Charlotte Riches, Princeton women’s water polo
Jackson Rodriguez, Santa Barbara Community College football
MARINA
Presley Anderson, University of the Cumberlands women’s wrestling
Emmi Burdine, Sweet Briar College field hockey
Jordyn Chrisco, Life University women’s wrestling
Lily Ensley, Concordia University women’s water polo
Samantha Esparza, Idaho State University women’s soccer
Ethan Faulkner, Penn State Brandywine men’s soccer
Mia Grasse, Milligan University softball
Alexa Hartenberg, Drury University women’s rugby
Haden Hernandez, Missouri Valley College men’s wrestling
Mika Ikemori, UC Davis women’s tennis
Hailey Jamison, Alma University cheerleading
Adrian Jimenez, Missouri Valley College men’s wrestling
Gabriella Lopez, UC San Diego women’s track and field
Destiny Marquez, University of the Cumberlands women’s wrestling
Makayla Mathis, Eastern Kentucky University softball
Collin Kiskelly, Long Beach State baseball
Khang Nguyen, Cal men’s track and field
Heather Nugent, Trinity College softball
Saiheron Preciado-Meza, University of the Cumberlands women’s wrestling
Dominique VadeBoncoeur, Concordia University women’s volleyball
NEWPORT HARBOR
Chiara Amoroso, Long Beach State women’s water polo
Jason Hernandez, Illinois College men’s soccer
Anabel Kotzakov, Boise State University women’s volleyball
Shay Wood, Stanford sailing
OCEAN VIEW
Owen Eisen, Lewis and Clark College baseball
Jasmine Hernandez, Hofstra University stunt cheerleading
Cayden Hohman, University of Dallas baseball
Kaitlyn Knobbe, Pacific University softball
Max Ligman, Lees-McRae College men’s cycling
Mulivai Levu, Long Beach State baseball
Evyn Lewis, Lewis and Clark College baseball
Landon Runyan, UC San Diego baseball
PACIFICA CHRISTIAN
Mitch Bahnsen, Westmont College men’s cross-country and track and field
Ian Cross, Grace College men’s cross-country and track and field
Tanner Deal, Grinnell College men’s basketball
Natalie Ferdi, LeTourneau University women’s soccer
Andi Martinez, Chapman University women’s basketball
Peyton Soliday, Vanguard University women’s soccer
Parker Strauss, Northwestern University men’s basketball
Charles Thurston, Menlo College men’s golf
SAGE HILL
Ryan Chang, Chapman University men’s swim
Grant Gallagher, Massachusetts Institute of Technology men’s tennis
Carson Green, Pomona-Pitzer College football
Ty Mazakas, UC Davis football
Dustin Miller, Emory University men’s golf