Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, California, confirmed that its head baseball coach, John Altobelli, his wife, Keri, and their daughter Alyssa were among the nine people who died Sunday morning in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California.
Retired Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, were also on board the helicopter. In a statement, Orange Coast College said Altobelli was "a coach, a colleague, a mentor, and a friend at OCC for 27 years." Jason Kehler, the college's athletic director, said Altobelli "truly personified what it means to be a baseball coach. The passion that he put into the game, but more importantly his athletes, was second to none — he treated them like family."
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