Ciarelli a second-team All-American player

Huntington Beach High product Tony Ciarelli, now at USC, has been named a second-team American Volleyball Coaches Assn. Division I-II All-American.

Ciarelli, a freshman outside hitter, had 19 kills as the No. 5-seeded, upstart Trojans outlasted Pepperdine, 30-23, 30-25, 20-30, 26-30, 21-19, to win the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament Saturday. USC will be trying to win its first national title since 1990 beginning today at the NCAA Final Four at Provo, Utah.

The No. 3-seeded Trojans (23-11) will play No. 2 Penn State in a semifinal at 6 p.m. today, broadcast live on ESPN2. The winner will play either No. 1 UC Irvine or No. 4 Ohio State in the title match at 4 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2.

Ciarelli’s father, Rocky, the longtime coach of Huntington Beach High volleyball, is a volunteer assistant with the USC men’s team.

— Matt Szabo