FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Laguna Beach Unified School District
Contact: Anakaren Ureño
Director of Communications and Engagement
(949) 497-7700 Ext. 5232

Nov 10, 2022

Laguna Beach High School student-athletes sign commitment to play collegiately

Laguna Beach, Calif. — Eleven Laguna Beach High School (LBHS) student-athletes participated in National Signing Day on Wednesday afternoon, officially committing to an NCAA Division I or Division II school that has offered them a scholarship to play for a sports team. 

The following students signed National Letters of Intent (NLI) for the 2023-24 school year at a ceremony attended by their peers, family and school staff: 

• Jana Jocic, Swim (Women), UC San Diego
• Colin Kidd, Baseball (Men), New Jersey Institute of Technology
• Griffin Naess, Baseball (Men), Cal Poly San Luis Obispo    
• Cadence Peery, Track (Women), Cal Poly Humboldt
• Jordan Schneider, Water Polo (Women), University of Michigan
• Lauren Schneider, Water Polo (Women), University of Southern California    
• Lauren Short, Water Polo (Women), Villanova
• Katelyn Smith, Tennis    (Women), UC Davis    
• Eva Travis, Volleyball (Women), UC Santa Barbara    
• Cleo Washer, Water Polo (Women), Brown     
• Brooklyn Yelland, Volleyball (Women), Boston College    

“This is a great day because it signifies that moment when students have committed to a particular college to continue their athletic and academic careers,” said Laguna Beach Unified School District Athletics Administrator Denise Selbe, Ed.D. She continued, “It is the culmination of incredibly hard work that began many years before even starting high school. Today is a great opportunity for students and their families to celebrate this ceremonial signing of their letter of intent.” 

The National Letter of Intent is a binding agreement between a prospective student-athlete and an NLI member institution. Started in 1964 with seven conferences and eight independent institutions, the NLI program now includes 652 Division I and Division II participating institutions.

“I’m always impressed and appreciative of our students and their commitment to athletics while balancing academics. Our students are very successful student-athletes,” said LBHS Principal Jason Allemann, Ed.D. “I know that parents and caregivers put in endless hours of driving and support too. So for me, it is a perfect representation of working together to help our students towards a common goal,” he concluded. 

More than 48,000 prospective student-athletes sign NLIs to attend NCAA Division I or II institutions each year. 

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