Rocky Ciarelli, who coached Huntington Beach and Newport Harbor volleyball teams to CIF championships, died Tuesday.
The Daily Pilot reported that Ciarelli died from a heart attack suffered while playing golf at Mile Square Park. He was 66.
Ciarelli coached Orange County high school volleyball for 32 years, 24 of them at his alma mater Huntington Beach after spending his first three coaching seasons at Edison. His final five seasons were at Newport Harbor. He mostly coached boys volleyball teams and coached girls teams for a few years.
In his final season of coaching he led the 2019 Newport Harbor boys team to the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship and to the CIF Southern California Regional Division 1 championship. That teams finished 39-1.
Ciarelli’s 2018 Newport Harbor boys team lost to Corona del Mar in the CIF-SS Division 1 final in an epic five-sets match where four of the sets were decided by two points.
His first CIF-SS championship was similarly dramatic. The 1993 Huntington Beach team was down 2-1 in sets in the Division 1 final against Capistrano Valley and came back to win the next two sets and take the division championship.
Yesterday HBHS lost a true legend. Rocky Ciarelli was a Student-Athlete, a Social Studies teacher, a Coach, a Mentor, and a true Oiler. When you think of HBHS, you think of the Ciarelli family. His passion for Volleyball was 2nd to none. He will be truly missed. #O4L @HBOilers pic.twitter.com/YY6zoC6MsM
— HB Oiler Athletics (@HB_OilerSports) February 22, 2023
Ciarelli was co-coach with his wife Cammy, an all-time beach volleyball great, for the 1996 Huntington Beach girls volleyball teams that won CIF-SS and CIF State championships.
Many of his players went on to college volleyball success, including his son Tony Ciarelli who was the men’s volleyball national player of the year at USC in 2012. Rocky’s brother Tony Ciarelli is one of the area’s top track and field coaches for throwing the discus and the shot put.
Services information is pending.
