Ian Clark Volleyball

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Seaside Heights,NJ 2006

PART I (1st 10 AVP 2007 events)

PART II (2nd half 8 AVP 2007 events)

PART III (last 4 AVP 2007 events)

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FORMERLY THE BELMAR SUNKIST OPEN

July 18-19,1998 - Belmar, New Jersey - June 26-27,1999 - Belmar, New Jersey
July 21st-23rd 2000 - Belmar, New Jersey-July 20th-22nd 2001 - Belmar, New Jersey
June 28th-30th 2002 - Belmar,New Jersey

NEXT EVENT: June 29th-July2nd 2006 !!!!!!

AVP Jose' Quervo SERIES Seaside Heights OPEN
Seaside Heights, NJ- JUNE 29TH-JULY 2nd 2006
presented by Bud Light

Event Coverage

Casino Pier and Beach, Seaside Heights, New Jersey

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NEW JERSEY
"YOUR HOME FOR FAMILY FUN SINCE 1913!"
Official Web Site

Weather:

Event Links:
AVP Tour Event Coverage

AVP Seaside Heights Open
Seaside Heights, June 29 - July 2, 2006

TICKETS FOR THE AVP SEASIDE HEIGHTS OPEN PRESENTED BY BUD LIGHT ARE NOW ON SALE!

*All ticket holders will also be required to purchase a $5.00 Seaside Heights daily beach badge for the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday day sessions.

BUY TICKETS NOW!

AVP Seaside Open
6/29 – 7/2
Qualifier- 6/29
Main Draw – 6/30-7/2
(Men’s at 2:30 pm on Sunday, 7/2; and Women's Final at 4:00 on Sunday, 7/2)

Thursday
Qualifier play starts at 8:00 AM (Registration at 7:00 AM)

Friday
Play starts at 9:30 AM
(4 men’s courts and 4 men’s courts)

Saturday
Play starts at 9:30 AM
(4 men’s courts and 4 men’s courts)
Night Session starts at 7:30 pm
(1 court)

Sunday
Play starts at 9:45 am
(4 courts)

--REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS JUNE 26TH AT NOON PST
--TO HAVE A VALID ENTRY, BOTH MEMBERS OF A TEAM MUST SIGN UP.
--TOURNAMENT REGISTRATION FEE PER PLAYER IS $50
--(IF A LATE REGISTRATION IS ACCEPTED, THE REGISTRATION FEE IS $100 PER PLAYER)

AVP will do it’s best to accommodate all teams that sign up for the qualification tournament. In the event that the qualification tournament will need to be capped due to a limited number of courts, teams will be granted entry into the qualifier based on their AVP entry point ranking.

As a result, until the final qualification bracket is released on Wednesday by 12:00 noon PT of the week of the Seaside event, all entries into the tournament are pending. All teams who are not able to compete due to draw limitations will have their entry fees refunded.

QUALIFICATION TOURNAMENT:
--Registration and check in will take place starting at 7:00 AM. Players must bring a form of identification (e.g., Driver's License).

--ALL players must register and check in by 10:00 AM. Check in must be completed before your first match. If you do not check in before the first game in your first match, you will forfeit your first game. If you fail to check in 10 minutes after your match is called up, you FORFEIT your match. Competition play will start at 8:00 AM.

--ALL players who qualify for the main draw MUST sign the AVP Player Agreement. Players who do not sign the agreement prior to start of the main draw will be unable to participate and will be ineligible for future AVP competition.

--APPAREL GUIDELINES: All qualifier participants must be in matching apparel. Specifically, all playing partners are required to wear the same color swimwear. This means the same color shorts for the men and the same color suits for the women. The apparel can be different in design and can be from any manufacturer but must be the same color. Please remember in the case of patterned swimwear, all colors in the pattern must match your partner. Players who DO NOT adhere to this guideline WILL FORFEIT their match.

MAIN DRAW COMPOSITION:
Men and Women:
--32 Team Draw
--22 automatic entries
--Up to 2 wild card spots. Any wild card spots not used will be added to the automatic entries.
--8 teams through the qualifier

EVENT REGISTRATION PROCEDURE AND DEADLINES:
The only valid method of entry for AVP events is online at www.avp.com. ALL ENTRIES MUST BE RECEIVED WITH PAYMENT (VISA/MC/AMEX/DISCOVER) along with an accurate address, phone number, email address, and playing partner's name. Any player who does not have access to a computer or the internet may register in person at the AVP offices. Phone and facsimile entries will not be accepted.

NO ENTRY FEES SHALL BE REFUNDED IN THE EVENT OF A WITHDRAWAL, APPROVED OR OTHERWISE.

If you have questions, please contact AVP at avpreg@avp.com.

What:
AVP 2006 Seaside Heights Open

Where:
Seaside Heights,NJ

The AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light will be held on Fourth of July Weekend (June 29th - July 2nd, 2006) at Seaside Heights Beach. The stadium will be located between Blaine and Sumner Avenues, accessible from the boardwalk.

General Directions:

By Car From the North and South:
Garden State Parkway Exit 82 eastbound. Take Route 37 east. Cross the Barnegat Bay. Follow the signs into Seaside Heights.

By Car From Philadelphia:
Route 70 east to Route 37 east at Lakehurst. Take Route 37 east. Cross the Barnegat Bay. Follow the signs into Seaside Heights.

By Car From the Pocono's Area:
Take Route 80 East to Route 287 South to the Garden State Parkway. South on the Garden State Parkway to exit 82. Take Route 37 East. Cross the Barnegat Bay. Follow the signs into Seaside Heights.

By Car From the Pennsylvania Turnpike:
Take the Pennsylvania Turnpike Eastbound to connection with the New Jersey Turnpike. North on the New Jersey Turnpike to exit 7A. Take Interstate 195 east to the Garden State Parkway south. Take Parkway south to exit 82 eastbound on to Route 37.Follow route 37 east. Cross over the Barnegat Bay. Follow signs into Seaside Heights.

By Car From Trenton:
Take Interstate 195 east to the Garden State Parkway south. Take Parkway Exit 82 eastbound. Take Route 37 east. Cross the Barnegat Bay. Follow the signs into Seaside Heights.

Airport:
Atlantic City Airport and Newark Airport.

Train:
NJ Transit North Jersey Coast Line service to Bay Head. Taxi to Seaside Heights.

Bus:
NJ Transit No. 67, seasonal service to Seaside Heights.

NJ Transit Information:
In New Jersey 1 (800) 772-2222
Out-of-State 1 (973) 762-5100

Parking:
Free parking and shuttle service will be available from Toms River High School East and from Seaside Heights municipal parking lot on Bay Boulevard.

Directions to High School East from the Garden State Parkway are as follows: By Car From the North and South: Garden State Parkway Exit 82 eastbound. Take Route 37 east. Take the jug handle for Coolidge Avenue. Take Coolidge Avenue and turn left onto Raider Way. Turn left into Toms River High School East at 1225 Raider Way.

The shuttle schedule is Friday 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. and Sunday 7:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

When:
Thursday June 29
Qualifier
Gates Open 8am - 6pm

Friday June 30
Main Draw Competition
Gates Open 9:30am - 6pm

Saturday July 1
Main Draw Competition
Gates Open 9:30am - 6pm

Saturday Night July 1
Main Draw Competition
Gates Open 7:30pm - 10pm

Sunday July 2
Men's / Women's Finals
Gates Open 9:45am - 5:30pm

Television Coverage:
Check Back Soon For TV Times

Webcam:

Click on banner for webcam view

AVP Seaside Heights Open History

2005 Champions: The AVP returns to Seaside Heights for the first time since 1995.

Seaside Heights Facts: 2006 will be the AVP Men's third visit to Seaside Heights. In 1993, Karch Kiraly / Kent Steffes defeated Mike Dodd / Mike Whitmarsh. And in 1995 Adam Johnson / Jose Loiola defeated Dodd / Whitmarsh. 2006 will be the Women's second visit to Seaside Heights. In 1995 Nancy Reno / Holly McPeak defeated Linda Hanley / Jackie Silva.

Men's AVP $75,000 Miller Lite Seaside Heights Open
June 12-13, 1993
Finish Player Partner Winnings
1 Karch Kiraly Kent Steffes $15,000.00
2 Mike Dodd Mike Whitmarsh $9,000.00
3 Sinjin Smith Dan Vrebalovich $7,126.00
4 Adam Johnson Bruk Vandeweghe $5,626.00
5 Eduardo Bacil Jose Loiola $4,500.00
5 Scott Ayakatubby Steve Timmons $4,500.00
7 Brent Frohoff Ricci Luyties $3,376.00
7 Brian Lewis Randy Stoklos $3,376.00
9 Al Janc Craig Moothart $2,438.00
9 John Hanley David Swatik $2,438.00
9 Matt Sonnichsen Troy Tanner $2,438.00
9 John Brajevic Bill Suwara $2,438.00
13 Robert Chavez Chris Young $1,688.00
13 Bill Boullianne Leif Hanson $1,688.00
13 Eric Fonoimoana Tim Walmer $1,688.00
13 Scott Friederichsen Eric Wurts $1,688.00
17 John Child Eddie Drakich $750.00
17 Albert Hannemann Matt Unger $750.00
17 Chris Hannemann Michael Schlegel $750.00
17 Andrew Smith Wes Welch $750.00
17 Mark Eller Jim Nichols $750.00
17 Kevin Waterbury Tony Zapata $750.00
17 Ed Carrillo Carl Henkel $750.00
17 Owen McKibbin Larry Mear $750.00
25 Brian Gatzke Jeff Rodgers $.00
25 Patrick Boyle Michael Long $.00
25 Marcelo Duarte Rob Heidger $.00
25 James Fellows Burke Stefko $.00
25 Eric Boyles Doug Foust $.00
25 Mike Mattarocci Dane Selznick $.00
25 Mark Kerins Kevin Martin $.00
25 Brett Gonnermann Lance Lyons $.00
25 Curtis Griffin Nick Petterson $.00

Women's AVP Women's Tour Seaside Heights
June 12-13, 1993
Finish Player Partner
1 Holly McPeak Nancy Reno
2 Linda Hanley Jackie Silva
3 Rita Crockett Royster Angela Rock
4 Linda Chisholm Cammy Ciarelli

Men's AVP $100,000 Miller Lite Seaside Heights Open
June 17-18, 1995
Finish Player Partner Winnings
1 Adam Johnson Jose Loiola $20,000.00
2 Mike Dodd Mike Whitmarsh $11,400.00
3 Bill Boullianne Brian Lewis $9,030.00
4 Eric Fonoimoana Ricci Luyties $7,130.00
5 Matt Sonnichsen Bill Suwara $5,700.00
5 Lee LeGrande Matt Unger $5,700.00
7 Mark Kerins Andrew Smith $4,280.00
7 Al Janc Michael Schlegel $4,280.00
9 Nick Hannemann Mark Paaluhi $3,090.00
9 Brent Frohoff Rob Heidger $3,090.00
9 Troy Tanner Wes Welch $3,090.00
9 Canyon Ceman Jeff Rodgers $3,090.00
13 Mike Garcia Mike Minier $2,130.00
13 Scott Friederichsen Leif Hanson $2,130.00
13 Rico Guimaraes Wayne Seligson $2,130.00
13 Jim Nichols Pat Powers $2,130.00
17 Daniel Cardenas David Swatik $950.00
17 Lance Lyons Justin Perlstrom $950.00
17 Kevin Martin Chris Young $950.00
17 Albert Hannemann Tim Hovland $950.00
17 Doug Foust Dan Vrebalovich $950.00
17 Henry Russell Burke Stefko $950.00
17 Dain Blanton Ian Clark $950.00
17 Aaron Boss Kurt Dumm $950.00
25 Ednilson Costa Jason Pursley $500.00
25 Eduardo Bacil Randy Stoklos $500.00
25 Brian Gatzke Eric Wurts $500.00
25 James Fellows Tony Zapata $500.00
25 Todd Ahmadi Brennan Robison $500.00
25 Curtis Griffin Dane Hansen $500.00
25 Chris Pliha Jason Stimpfig $500.00

Ian Clark Dain Blanton

Ian Clark
United States

Partner Summary

AVP Pro Beach Tour
Partner Dain Blanton
Played 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 7th 9th 13th 17th 25th
25 0 0 0 0 2 1 5 8 8 1
Money $30,490

Statistics Courtesy of Beach Volleyball Database

Men's Entries:

Men's AVP $91,500 Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
June 29-July 2, 2006
Finish Player Partner Seed
1 Matt Fuerbringer Casey Jennings 4 $19,000.00 360.0
2 Dax Holdren Sean Scott 7 $13,400.00 324.0
3 Phil Dalhausser Todd Rogers 1 $8,500.00 270.0
3 Mike Lambert Stein Metzger 2 $8,500.00 270.0
5 John Hyden Jeff Nygaard 5 $5,500.00 216.0
5 Nick Lucena Sean Rooney 14 $5,500.00 216.0
7 Jake Gibb Sean Rosenthal 3 $4,250.00 180.0
7 Larry Witt Kevin Wong 11 $4,250.00 180.0
9 Brent Doble Ryan Mariano 8 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Ty Loomis Ed Ratledge 9 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Canyon Ceman Matt Olson 13 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Brad Keenan John Mayer 18 $2,450.00 144.0
13 Hans Stolfus Aaron Wachtfogel 6 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Aaron Boss Jason Ring 16 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Chip McCaw Matt Prosser 22 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Mike DiPierro Steve Grotowski 25, Q2 $1,400.00 108.0
17 Paul Baxter Fred Souza 10 $600.00 72.0
17 Dain Blanton Eric Fonoimoana 12 $600.00 72.0
17 Ben Koski Jeff Minc 15 $600.00 72.0
17 Matt Heath Jason Lee 17 $600.00 72.0
17 Jeff Carlucci Albert Hannemann 19 $600.00 72.0
17 Scott Davenport Scott Lane 20 $600.00 72.0
17 Anthony Medel Brad Torsone 21 $600.00 72.0
17 AJ Mihalic Chad Mowrey 23, Q1 $600.00 72.0
25 Eduardo Bacil Mike Morrison 24 $300.00 36.0
25 Austin Rester Adam Roberts 26, Q3 $300.00 36.0
25 Dane Jensen Jim Nichols 27, Q5 $300.00 36.0
25 David Fischer Jack Quinn 28, Q4 $300.00 36.0
25 Dana Camacho Ivan Mercer 29, Q6 $300.00 36.0
25 Gaston Macau Jon Mesko 30, Q7 $300.00 36.0
25 Casey Brewer Danko Iordanov 31, Q8 $300.00 36.0
25 Mike Salak Amaury Velasco 32 $300.00 36.0
33 Guy Hamilton Dan Mintz Q9 $.00 18.0
33 John Moran Chris Seiffert Q10 $.00 18.0
33 Caleb Cook Danny Cook Q11 $.00 18.0
33 Justin Phipps Jeff Soler Q14 $.00 18.0
33 Jake Elliott Joshua Zuidema Q15 $.00 18.0
33 C.J. Denk Robert Jackson Q16 $.00 18.0
33 Santana Aker Jim Vanderwall Q44 $.00 18.0
33 Fred Fauhl, Jr. Tony Yates Q45 $.00 18.0
41 Robert deAurora Vince Zanzucchi Q13 $.00 12.0
41 Matt Heagy Dan Madden Q19 $.00 12.0
41 Paul Araiza Jeff Conover Q22 $.00 12.0
41 Brett Benfield Craig Cromwell Q24 $.00 12.0
41 Wes Moore Jon Rose Q25 $.00 12.0
41 Jon Barnes Kristopher Fraser Q26 $.00 12.0
41 Brian Olsen Steven Stacy Q28 $.00 12.0
41 Matthew Terrell Peter Weremay Q31 $.00 12.0
41 Tim Church Adam Niemczynowicz Q33 $.00 12.0
41 Ihor Akinshyn Tim McNichol Q35 $.00 12.0
41 Craig Pendergrass Mike Riley Q36 $.00 12.0
41 Chris Patrick Mike Potts Q38 $.00 12.0
41 Matt Ogin Todd Strassberger Q42 $.00 12.0
41 Brian Reiner Justin Ridgway Q47 $.00 12.0
41 Andrew Klein Chris Klein Q48 $.00 12.0
41 Art Barron Jason Hodell Q12 $.00 0.0
57 Thom Huggins Brandon Lamb Q17 $.00 8.0
57 Jim Walls Jeff Wentworth Q18 $.00 8.0
57 Scott Kiedaisch Daniel Skilins Q20 $.00 8.0
57 Yariv Lerner Dan Newman Q21 $.00 8.0
57 Richard Krutop Paul McDonald Q23 $.00 8.0
57 Scott Bundonis Peter Frey Q27 $.00 8.0
57 Chris Hosley Bill Schultz Q29 $.00 8.0
57 Wayne Holly Brad Vallett Q30 $.00 8.0
57 Badger Bergmann Bill Bowe Q34 $.00 8.0
57 Eric Armstrong Ben Mol Q37 $.00 8.0
57 Jason Buckwalter Gabe Sweeney Q39 $.00 8.0
57 John Leake Greg Rubin Q40 $.00 8.0
57 Michael McAllister Jason Stefon Q41 $.00 8.0
57 Jack Delehanty Phil St. Pierre Q43 $.00 8.0
57 David Dlugolenski Mark Kavulak Q46 $.00 8.0
57 Nick Bernardo Justin Gaul Q49 $.00 8.0
57 Christopher Shipps Justin Stack Q50 $.00 8.0
57 David Moore Brian Simmons Q51 $.00 8.0
57 Jason Bartholow Matt Davis Q32 $.00 0.0

Men's AVP $91,500 Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
June 29-July 2, 2006

Qualifier Bracket
Round 1
Match 2: Adam Niemczynowicz / Tim Church (Q33) def. Jason Bartholow / Matt Davis (Q32) by Forfeit
Match 3: Andrew Klein / Chris Klein (Q48) def. Thom Huggins / Brandon Lamb (Q17) 15-21, 21-19, 15-13 (1:01)
Match 4: C.J. Denk / Robert Jackson (Q16) def. Nick Bernardo / Justin Gaul (Q49) 21-17, 18-21, 16-14 (0:54)
Match 6: Brett Benfield / Craig Cromwell (Q24) def. Jason Stefon / Michael McAllister (Q41) 21-18, 22-20 (0:50)
Match 7: Wes Moore / Jon Rose (Q25) def. Greg Rubin / John Leake (Q40) 21-14, 21-16 (0:43)
Match 10: Brian Olsen / Steven Stacy (Q28) def. Eric Armstrong / Ben Mol (Q37) 21-14, 23-21 (0:50)
Match 11: Santana Aker / Jim Vanderwall (Q44) def. Yariv Lerner / Dan Newman (Q21) 21-19, 21-13 (0:37)
Match 14: Fred Fauhl, Jr. / Tony Yates (Q45) def. Scott Kiedaisch / Daniel Skilins (Q20) 21-19, 21-14 (0:45)
Match 15: Craig Pendergrass / Mike Riley (Q36) def. Chris Hosley / Bill Schultz (Q29) 19-21, 21-13, 15-13 (1:04)
Match 18: Ihor Akinshyn / Tim McNichol (Q35) def. Wayne Holly / Brad Vallett (Q30) 21-17, 21-7 (0:41)
Match 19: Matt Heagy / Dan Madden (Q19) def. Mark Kavulak / David Dlugolenski (Q46) 21-14, 21-13 (0:43)
Match 20: Justin Phipps / Jeff Soler (Q14) def. David Moore / Brian Simmons (Q51) 21-13, 21-10 (0:46)
Match 22: Paul Araiza / Jeff Conover (Q22) def. Jack Delehanty / Phil St. Pierre (Q43) 21-14, 21-15 (0:42)
Match 23: Mike Potts / Chris Patrick (Q38) def. Scott Bundonis / Peter Frey (Q27) 21-19, 21-18 (0:40)
Match 26: Jon Barnes / Kristopher Fraser (Q26) def. Jason Buckwalter / Gabe Sweeney (Q39) 21-15, 21-12 (0:40)
Match 27: Todd Strassberger / Matt Ogin (Q42) def. Richard Krutop / Paul McDonald (Q23) 21-12, 23-21 (0:41)
Match 29: Jake Elliott / Joshua Zuidema (Q15) def. Justin Stack / Christopher Shipps (Q50) 21-13, 21-15 (0:42)
Match 30: Brian Reiner / Justin Ridgway (Q47) def. Jim Walls / Jeff Wentworth (Q18) 12-21, 22-20, 15-8 (0:56)
Match 31: Matthew Terrell / Peter Weremay (Q31) def. Badger Bergmann / Bill Bowe (Q34) 21-15, 21-8 (0:40)

Round 2
Match 33: AJ Mihalic / Chad Mowrey (Q1) def. Adam Niemczynowicz / Tim Church (Q33) 21-14, 21-14 (0:40)
Match 34: C.J. Denk / Robert Jackson (Q16) def. Andrew Klein / Chris Klein (Q48) 18-21, 21-17, 21-19 (0:55)
Match 35: Guy Hamilton / Dan Mintz (Q9) def. Brett Benfield / Craig Cromwell (Q24) 21-15, 21-19 (0:47)
Match 36: Casey Brewer / Danko Iordanov (Q8) def. Wes Moore / Jon Rose (Q25) 21-15, 21-10 (0:40)
Match 37: Dane Jensen / Jim Nichols (Q5) def. Brian Olsen / Steven Stacy (Q28) 21-16, 21-12 (0:42)
Match 38: Santana Aker / Jim Vanderwall (Q44) def. Art Barron / Jason Hodell (Q12) by Forfeit
Match 39: Fred Fauhl, Jr. / Tony Yates (Q45) def. Robert deAurora / Vince Zanzucchi (Q13) 21-17, 21-11 (0:38)
Match 40: David Fischer / Jack Quinn (Q4) def. Craig Pendergrass / Mike Riley (Q36) 21-9, 21-11 (0:35)
Match 41: Austin Rester / Adam Roberts (Q3) def. Ihor Akinshyn / Tim McNichol (Q35) 28-26, 21-15 (0:49)
Match 42: Justin Phipps / Jeff Soler (Q14) def. Matt Heagy / Dan Madden (Q19) 21-13, 21-14 (0:36)
Match 43: Caleb Cook / Danny Cook (Q11) def. Paul Araiza / Jeff Conover (Q22) 21-12, 21-18 (0:37)
Match 44: Dana Camacho / Ivan Mercer (Q6) def. Mike Potts / Chris Patrick (Q38) 18-21, 21-13, 15-10 (1:03)
Match 45: Gaston Macau / Jon Mesko (Q7) def. Jon Barnes / Kristopher Fraser (Q26) 21-16, 21-8 (0:37)
Match 46: John Moran / Chris Seiffert (Q10) def. Todd Strassberger / Matt Ogin (Q42) 21-8, 19-21, 15-10 (1:05)
Match 47: Jake Elliott / Joshua Zuidema (Q15) def. Brian Reiner / Justin Ridgway (Q47) 21-9, 21-14 (0:35)
Match 48: Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (Q2) def. Matthew Terrell / Peter Weremay (Q31) 21-19, 21-13 (0:44)

Round 3
Match 49: AJ Mihalic / Chad Mowrey (Q1) def. C.J. Denk / Robert Jackson (Q16) 21-13, 21-11 (0:42)
Match 50: Casey Brewer / Danko Iordanov (Q8) def. Guy Hamilton / Dan Mintz (Q9) 18-21, 21-18, 15-13 (1:08)
Match 51: Dane Jensen / Jim Nichols (Q5) def. Santana Aker / Jim Vanderwall (Q44) 21-15, 21-13 (0:40)
Match 52: David Fischer / Jack Quinn (Q4) def. Fred Fauhl, Jr. / Tony Yates (Q45) 21-17, 21-17 (0:42)
Match 53: Austin Rester / Adam Roberts (Q3) def. Justin Phipps / Jeff Soler (Q14) 21-14, 21-14 (0:46)
Match 54: Dana Camacho / Ivan Mercer (Q6) def. Caleb Cook / Danny Cook (Q11) 24-22, 21-15 (0:36)
Match 55: Gaston Macau / Jon Mesko (Q7) def. John Moran / Chris Seiffert (Q10) 21-19, 21-9 (0:46)
Match 56: Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (Q2) def. Jake Elliott / Joshua Zuidema (Q15) 21-18, 21-15 (0:39)

Winner's Bracket
Round 1
Match 1: Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers (1) def. Amaury Velasco / Mike Salak (32) 21-15, 21-15 (0:48)
Match 2: Matt Heath / Jason Lee (17) def. Aaron Boss / Jason Ring (16) 27-25, 24-22 (1:02)
Match 3: Ty Loomis / Ed Ratledge (9) def. Eduardo Bacil / Mike Morrison (24) 24-22, 21-15 (0:51)
Match 4: Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (25, Q2) def. Brent Doble / Ryan Mariano (8) 21-16, 23-21 (0:48)
Match 5: John Hyden / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. David Fischer / Jack Quinn (28, Q4) 21-9, 21-18 (0:38)
Match 6: Dain Blanton / Eric Fonoimoana (12) def. Anthony Medel / Brad Torsone (21) 17-21, 21-18, 15-6 (1:06)
Match 7: Canyon Ceman / Matt Olson (13) def. Scott Davenport / Scott Lane (20) 21-16, 20-22, 15-11 (1:01)
Match 8: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Dana Camacho / Ivan Mercer (29, Q6) 28-26, 21-16 (0:53)
Match 9: Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) def. Gaston Macau / Jon Mesko (30, Q7) 21-17, 21-13 (0:37)
Match 10: Nick Lucena / Sean Rooney (14) def. Jeff Carlucci / Albert Hannemann (19) 21-18, 21-17 (0:35)
Match 11: Larry Witt / Kevin Wong (11) def. Chip McCaw / Matt Prosser (22) 21-13, 21-18 (0:38)
Match 12: Aaron Wachtfogel / Hans Stolfus (6) def. Dane Jensen / Jim Nichols (27, Q5) 21-16, 21-10 (0:40)
Match 13: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. Adam Roberts / Austin Rester (26, Q3) 21-16, 21-13 (0:43)
Match 14: Paul Baxter / Fred Souza (10) def. AJ Mihalic / Chad Mowrey (23, Q1) 21-18, 21-16
Match 15: Ben Koski / Jeff Minc (15) def. John Mayer / Brad Keenan (18) 22-24, 21-17, 15-8 (0:56)
Match 16: Mike Lambert / Stein Metzger (2) def. Casey Brewer / Danko Iordanov (31, Q8) 15-21, 21-9, 15-12 (0:51)

Round 2
Match 17: Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers (1) def. Matt Heath / Jason Lee (17) 21-15, 21-15 (0:41)
Match 18: Ty Loomis / Ed Ratledge (9) def. Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (25, Q2) 21-14, 21-12 (0:41)
Match 19: John Hyden / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. Dain Blanton / Eric Fonoimoana (12) 21-15, 19-21, 15-12 (1:03)
Match 20: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Canyon Ceman / Matt Olson (13) 21-19, 18-21, 15-12 (1:04)
Match 21: Nick Lucena / Sean Rooney (14) def. Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) 21-19, 18-21, 27-25 (1:15)
Match 22: Larry Witt / Kevin Wong (11) def. Aaron Wachtfogel / Hans Stolfus (6) 30-28, 21-17 (0:58)
Match 23: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. Paul Baxter / Fred Souza (10) 21-15, 21-11 (0:46)
Match 24: Mike Lambert / Stein Metzger (2) def. Ben Koski / Jeff Minc (15) 21-12, 21-13 (0:34)

Round 3
Match 25: Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers (1) def. Ty Loomis / Ed Ratledge (9) 15-21, 21-18, 15-13 (1:14)
Match 26: John Hyden / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) 21-17, 21-13 (0:42)
Match 27: Nick Lucena / Sean Rooney (14) def. Larry Witt / Kevin Wong (11) 21-15, 27-25 (0:38)
Match 28: Mike Lambert / Stein Metzger (2) def. Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) 21-17, 21-17 (0:52)

Round 4
Match 29: Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers (1) def. John Hyden / Jeff Nygaard (5) 22-20, 23-21 (0:47)
Match 30: Mike Lambert / Stein Metzger (2) def. Nick Lucena / Sean Rooney (14) 21-15, 21-14 (0:36)

Contender's Bracket
Round 1
Match 31: Aaron Boss / Jason Ring (16) def. Amaury Velasco / Mike Salak (32) 21-13, 21-17 (0:40)
Match 32: Brent Doble / Ryan Mariano (8) def. Eduardo Bacil / Mike Morrison (24) 21-9, 21-12 (0:38)
Match 33: Anthony Medel / Brad Torsone (21) def. David Fischer / Jack Quinn (28, Q4) 21-15, 17-21, 15-11 (0:59)
Match 34: Scott Davenport / Scott Lane (20) def. Dana Camacho / Ivan Mercer (29, Q6) 21-14, 21-18 (0:39)
Match 35: Jeff Carlucci / Albert Hannemann (19) def. Gaston Macau / Jon Mesko (30, Q7) 21-13, 21-18 (0:46)
Match 36: Chip McCaw / Matt Prosser (22) def. Dane Jensen / Jim Nichols (27, Q5) 21-19, 11-21, 15-13 (0:52)
Match 37: AJ Mihalic / Chad Mowrey (23, Q1) def. Adam Roberts / Austin Rester (26, Q3) 21-16, 24-26, 20-18 (1:11)
Match 38: John Mayer / Brad Keenan (18) def. Casey Brewer / Danko Iordanov (31, Q8) 21-15, 21-11 (0:32)

Round 2
Match 39: Aaron Boss / Jason Ring (16) def. Ben Koski / Jeff Minc (15) 21-13, 20-22, 15-9 (0:58)
Match 40: Brent Doble / Ryan Mariano (8) def. Paul Baxter / Fred Souza (10) 21-15, 21-15 (0:50)
Match 41: Aaron Wachtfogel / Hans Stolfus (6) def. Anthony Medel / Brad Torsone (21) 14-21, 21-17, 15-12 (1:08)
Match 42: Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) def. Scott Davenport / Scott Lane (20) 21-14, 21-16 (0:48)
Match 43: Canyon Ceman / Matt Olson (13) def. Jeff Carlucci / Albert Hannemann (19) 24-22, 21-12 (0:49)
Match 44: Chip McCaw / Matt Prosser (22) def. Dain Blanton / Eric Fonoimoana (12) 21-14, 17-21, 15-9 (1:00)
Match 45: Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (25, Q2) def. AJ Mihalic / Chad Mowrey (23, Q1) 21-17, 21-16 (0:42)
Match 46: John Mayer / Brad Keenan (18) def. Matt Heath / Jason Lee (17) 21-17, 21-15 (0:40)

Round 3
Match 47: Brent Doble / Ryan Mariano (8) def. Aaron Boss / Jason Ring (16) 21-15, 21-14 (0:50)
Match 48: Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) def. Aaron Wachtfogel / Hans Stolfus (6) 23-21, 21-18 (0:56)
Match 49: Canyon Ceman / Matt Olson (13) def. Chip McCaw / Matt Prosser (22) 21-17, 24-26, 15-13 (1:05)
Match 50: John Mayer / Brad Keenan (18) def. Mike DiPierro / Steve Grotowski (25, Q2) 21-10, 21-18 (0:34)

Round 4
Match 51: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Brent Doble / Ryan Mariano (8) 21-9, 19-21, 15-13 (1:07)
Match 52: Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) def. Ty Loomis / Ed Ratledge (9) 24-22, 21-18 (0:50)
Match 53: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. Canyon Ceman / Matt Olson (13) 21-13, 23-21 (0:42)
Match 54: Larry Witt / Kevin Wong (11) def. John Mayer / Brad Keenan (18) 21-15, 21-16 (0:38)

Round 5
Match 55: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Jake Gibb / Sean Rosenthal (3) 21-18, 15-21, 15-12 (1:04)
Match 56: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. Larry Witt / Kevin Wong (11) 21-17, 13-21, 15-7 (1:08)

Round 6
Match 57: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Nick Lucena / Sean Rooney (14) 21-14, 21-16 (0:43)
Match 58: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. John Hyden / Jeff Nygaard (5) 21-14, 21-17 (0:45)

Semifinals
Match 59: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers (1) 21-19, 14-21, 15-10 (1:02)
Match 60: Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) def. Mike Lambert / Stein Metzger (2) 19-21, 21-17, 15-13 (1:15)

Finals
Match 61: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) 16-21, 21-12, 17-15 (1:18)

2006 Men's Seaside Heights,NJ Open Tournament Champions >>Casey Jennings/Matt Fuerbtinger

                                            Casey Jennings                                                                          Matt Fuerbringer

Women's Entries:

Women's AVP $91,500 Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
June 29-July 2, 2006
Finish Player Partner Seed
1 Misty May-Treanor Kerri Walsh 1 $19,000.00 360.0
2 Rachel Wacholder Elaine Youngs 2 $13,400.00 324.0
3 Jennifer Boss Nancy Mason 4 $8,500.00 270.0
3 Nicole Branagh Holly McPeak 6 $8,500.00 270.0
5 Carrie Dodd Barbra Fontana 9 $5,500.00 216.0
5 Michelle More Suzanne Stonebarger 13 $5,500.00 216.0
7 Annett Davis Jenny Johnson Jordan 3 $4,250.00 180.0
7 Semirames Marins Tatiana Minello 8 $4,250.00 180.0
9 Tyra Turner Makare Wilson 7 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Katie Lindquist Tracy Lindquist 11 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Angela Lewis Priscilla Lima 18 $2,450.00 144.0
9 Keao Burdine April Ross 21 $2,450.00 144.0
13 Dianne DeNecochea Tammy Leibl 5 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Denise Johns Alicia Polzin 14 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Angie Akers Heather Lowe 15 $1,400.00 108.0
13 Janelle Ruen Jennifer Snyder 25, Q2 $1,400.00 108.0
17 Jenny Pavley Paula Roca 10 $600.00 72.0
17 Brooke Hanson Sarah Straton 12 $600.00 72.0
17 Saralyn Smith Ann Windes 16 $600.00 72.0
17 Courtney Guerra Jenelle Koester 17 $600.00 72.0
17 Patti Cook Ashley Ivy 19 $600.00 72.0
17 Jill Changaris Diane Pascua 22 $600.00 72.0
17 Claire Robertson Julie Romias 23 $600.00 72.0
17 Cinta Preston Kelly Rowe 29, Q6 $600.00 72.0
25 Jennifer Fopma Stacy Rouwenhorst 20 $300.00 36.0
25 Suzana Manole Krystal McFarland Jackson 24, Q4 $300.00 36.0
25 Catie Vagneur Beth Van Fleet 26, Q1 $300.00 36.0
25 Meri-de Boyer Amber Willey 27, Q9 $300.00 36.0
25 Dana Schilling Alicia Zamparelli 28, Q10 $300.00 36.0
25 Elsa Binder Charnette Fair 30, Q14 $300.00 36.0
25 Jessie Cooper Kristin Ursillo 31, Q12 $300.00 36.0
25 Dana Fiume Jill Pickus 32 $300.00 36.0
33 Erin Byrd Paige Davis Q3 $.00 18.0
33 Sarah White Chrissie Zartman Q5 $.00 18.0
33 Holly Reisor Dagmara Szyszczak Q7 $.00 18.0
33 Chara Harris Tara Kuk Q8 $.00 18.0
33 Lisa Marshall Kirstin Olsen Q11 $.00 18.0
33 Sara Dukes Kerri Eich Q13 $.00 18.0
33 Kathleen Madden Cherry Simkins Q15 $.00 18.0
33 Laura Romeika Kim Whitney Q16 $.00 18.0
41 Agnieszka Pregowska Alexsandra Wolak Q17 $.00 12.0
41 Monique Frey Jennifer Leone Q18 $.00 12.0
41 Jennifer Blair Melanie Caron Q19 $.00 12.0
41 Marcela Gammara Bonnie Levin Q20 $.00 12.0
41 Becca Smith Rachel Smith Q21 $.00 12.0
41 Capri Hilgendorf Alyse Santisi Q22 $.00 12.0
41 Beth Kennedy Sharon Wentworth Q23 $.00 12.0

Women's AVP $91,500 Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
June 29-July 2, 2006

Qualifier Bracket
Round 1
Match 2: Laura Romeika / Kim Whitney (Q16) def. Agnieszka Pregowska / Alexsandra Wolak (Q17) 21-17, 21-17 (0:36)
Match 6: Jessie Cooper / Kristin Ursillo (Q12) def. Becca Smith / Rachel Smith (Q21) 21-17, 18-21, 15-8 (0:49)
Match 7: Sara Dukes / Kerri Eich (Q13) def. Bonnie Levin / Marcela Gammara (Q20) 21-16, 21-19 (0:40)
Match 10: Elsa Binder / Charnette Fair (Q14) def. Melanie Caron / Jennifer Blair (Q19) 21-12, 21-13 (0:35)
Match 11: Lisa Marshall / Kirstin Olsen (Q11) def. Capri Hilgendorf / Alyse Santisi (Q22) 23-21, 21-16 (0:36)
Match 14: Dana Schilling / Alicia Zamparelli (Q10) def. Beth Kennedy / Sharon Wentworth (Q23) 21-15, 21-23, 15-11 (1:04)
Match 15: Kathleen Madden / Cherry Simkins (Q15) def. Monique Frey / Jennifer Leone (Q18) 16-21, 21-17, 15-11 (1:00)

Round 2
Match 17: Catie Vagneur / Beth Van Fleet (Q1) def. Laura Romeika / Kim Whitney (Q16) 21-11, 21-15 (0:36)
Match 18: Meri-de Boyer / Amber Willey (Q9) def. Chara Harris / Tara Kuk (Q8) 21-17, 21-12 (0:34)
Match 19: Jessie Cooper / Kristin Ursillo (Q12) def. Sarah White / Chrissie Zartman (Q5) 21-19, 18-21, 15-12 (1:04)
Match 20: Suzana Manole / Krystal McFarland Jackson (Q4) def. Sara Dukes / Kerri Eich (Q13) 12-21, 21-13, 15-11 (0:47)
Match 21: Elsa Binder / Charnette Fair (Q14) def. Erin Byrd / Paige Davis (Q3) 15-21, 23-21, 15-11
Match 22: Cinta Preston / Kelly Rowe (Q6) def. Lisa Marshall / Kirstin Olsen (Q11) 21-10, 21-15
Match 23: Dana Schilling / Alicia Zamparelli (Q10) def. Holly Reisor / Dagmara Szyszczak (Q7) 21-18, 20-22, 17-15 (1:08)
Match 24: Janelle Ruen / Jennifer Snyder (Q2) def. Kathleen Madden / Cherry Simkins (Q15) 21-10, 21-8 (0:29)

Winner's Bracket
Round 1
Match 1: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Dana Fiume / Jill Pickus (32) 21-17, 21-8 (0:30)
Match 2: Ann Windes / Saralyn Smith (16) def. Courtney Guerra / Jenelle Koester (17) 21-15, 21-14 (0:40)
Match 3: Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) def. Suzana Manole / Krystal McFarland Jackson (24, Q4) 21-9, 21-14 (0:31)
Match 4: Janelle Ruen / Jennifer Snyder (25, Q2) def. Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) 15-21, 21-18, 18-16 (0:56)
Match 5: Dianne DeNecochea / Tammy Leibl (5) def. Alicia Zamparelli / Dana Schilling (28, Q10) 21-9, 21-15 (0:34)
Match 6: Keao Burdine / April Ross (21) def. Sarah Straton / Brooke Hanson (12) 21-19, 21-14 (0:34)
Match 7: Michelle More / Suzanne Stonebarger (13) def. Stacy Rouwenhorst / Jennifer Fopma (20) 24-26, 21-15, 15-13 (1:00)
Match 8: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Cinta Preston / Kelly Rowe (29, Q6) 21-16, 21-17 (0:40)
Match 9: Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) def. Charnette Fair / Elsa Binder (30, Q14) 21-15, 21-12 (0:36)
Match 10: Alicia Polzin / Denise Johns (14) def. Patti Cook / Ashley Ivy (19) 29-27, 20-22, 15-10 (1:01)
Match 11: Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (11) def. Jill Changaris / Diane Pascua (22) 21-13, 21-10 (0:33)
Match 12: Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) def. Meri-de Boyer / Amber Willey (27, Q9) 21-16, 21-9 (0:34)
Match 13: Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson (7) def. Catie Vagneur / Beth Van Fleet (26, Q1) 21-13, 21-14 (0:37)
Match 14: Jenny Pavley / Paula Roca (10) def. Claire Robertson / Julie Romias (23) 21-12, 21-16 (0:38)
Match 15: Angie Akers / Heather Lowe (15) def. Angela Lewis / Priscilla Lima (18) 21-18, 21-14 (0:39)
Match 16: Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) def. Jessie Cooper / Kristin Ursillo (31, Q12) 21-11, 21-7 (0:30)

Round 2
Match 17: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Ann Windes / Saralyn Smith (16) 21-12, 21-13 (0:33)
Match 18: Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) def. Janelle Ruen / Jennifer Snyder (25, Q2) 21-15, 21-12 (0:34)
Match 19: Keao Burdine / April Ross (21) def. Dianne DeNecochea / Tammy Leibl (5) 21-17, 21-18 (0:38)
Match 20: Michelle More / Suzanne Stonebarger (13) def. Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) 9-21, 21-11, 15-11 (0:50)
Match 21: Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) def. Alicia Polzin / Denise Johns (14) 21-11, 21-13 (0:29)
Match 22: Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) def. Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (11) 21-11, 21-13 (0:34)
Match 23: Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson (7) def. Jenny Pavley / Paula Roca (10) 21-12, 21-15 (0:36)
Match 24: Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) def. Angie Akers / Heather Lowe (15) 21-18, 21-16 (0:38)

Round 3
Match 25: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) 21-16, 21-18 (0:40)
Match 26: Michelle More / Suzanne Stonebarger (13) def. Keao Burdine / April Ross (21) 23-21, 13-21, 15-7 (0:58)
Match 27: Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) def. Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) 21-13, 21-19 (0:40)
Match 28: Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) def. Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson (7) 21-16, 17-21, 18-16 (0:59)

Round 4
Match 29: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Michelle More / Suzanne Stonebarger (13) 21-14, 21-14 (0:35)
Match 30: Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) def. Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) 26-24, 21-19 (0:55)

Contender's Bracket
Round 1
Match 31: Courtney Guerra / Jenelle Koester (17) def. Dana Fiume / Jill Pickus (32) 21-11, 22-20 (0:35)
Match 32: Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) def. Suzana Manole / Krystal McFarland Jackson (24, Q4) 21-13, 21-11 (0:36)
Match 33: Sarah Straton / Brooke Hanson (12) def. Alicia Zamparelli / Dana Schilling (28, Q10) 21-7, 21-17 (0:34)
Match 34: Cinta Preston / Kelly Rowe (29, Q6) def. Stacy Rouwenhorst / Jennifer Fopma (20) 21-8, 16-21, 15-6 (0:40)
Match 35: Patti Cook / Ashley Ivy (19) def. Charnette Fair / Elsa Binder (30, Q14) 21-15, 21-13 (0:37)
Match 36: Jill Changaris / Diane Pascua (22) def. Meri-de Boyer / Amber Willey (27, Q9) 21-13, 21-19 (0:40)
Match 37: Claire Robertson / Julie Romias (23) def. Catie Vagneur / Beth Van Fleet (26, Q1) 21-14, 21-19 (0:45)
Match 38: Angela Lewis / Priscilla Lima (18) def. Jessie Cooper / Kristin Ursillo (31, Q12) 21-19, 21-18 (0:48)

Round 2
Match 39: Angie Akers / Heather Lowe (15) def. Courtney Guerra / Jenelle Koester (17) 21-17, 21-14 (0:36)
Match 40: Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) def. Jenny Pavley / Paula Roca (10) 21-16, 22-20 (0:48)
Match 41: Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (11) def. Sarah Straton / Brooke Hanson (12) 21-15, 21-13 (0:35)
Match 42: Alicia Polzin / Denise Johns (14) def. Cinta Preston / Kelly Rowe (29, Q6) 21-13, 21-13 (0:31)
Match 43: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Patti Cook / Ashley Ivy (19) 21-12, 21-12 (0:36)
Match 44: Dianne DeNecochea / Tammy Leibl (5) def. Jill Changaris / Diane Pascua (22) 21-16, 15-21, 16-14 (0:56)
Match 45: Janelle Ruen / Jennifer Snyder (25, Q2) def. Claire Robertson / Julie Romias (23) 18-21, 22-20, 15-13 (0:53)
Match 46: Angela Lewis / Priscilla Lima (18) def. Ann Windes / Saralyn Smith (16) 21-16, 19-21, 18-16 (1:04)

Round 3
Match 47: Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) def. Angie Akers / Heather Lowe (15) 21-15, 21-19 (0:38)
Match 48: Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (11) def. Alicia Polzin / Denise Johns (14) 21-13, 21-19 (0:37)
Match 49: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Dianne DeNecochea / Tammy Leibl (5) 21-18, 19-21, 17-15 (1:09)
Match 50: Angela Lewis / Priscilla Lima (18) def. Janelle Ruen / Jennifer Snyder (25, Q2) 21-11, 21-18 (0:37)

Round 4
Match 51: Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) def. Keao Burdine / April Ross (21) 21-14, 21-16 (0:35)
Match 52: Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) def. Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (11) 21-17, 18-21, 15-13 (0:55)
Match 53: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson (7) 21-14, 21-13 (0:32)
Match 54: Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) def. Angela Lewis / Priscilla Lima (18) 21-12, 21-13 (0:36)

Round 5
Match 55: Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) def. Tatiana Minello / Semirames Marins (8) 21-15, 21-16 (0:39)
Match 56: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) 21-17, 21-9 (0:40)

Round 6
Match 57: Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) def. Carrie Dodd / Barbra Fontana (9) 21-18, 21-18 (0:48)
Match 58: Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) def. Michelle More / Suzanne Stonebarger (13) 21-15, 21-16 (0:50)

Semifinals
Match 59: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Holly McPeak / Nicole Branagh (6) 21-17, 21-10 (0:40)
Match 60: Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) def. Nancy Mason / Jennifer Boss (4) 21-16, 23-21 (0:47)

Finals
Match 61: Misty May-Treanor / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder (2) 21-13, 21-18 (0:49)

2006 Seaside Heights,NJ Open Women's Tournament Champions >>Misty May / Kerrie Walsh

Kerrie Walsh & Misty May

Articles 2006:

AVP ANNOUNCES 2006 SCHEDULE
January 25, 2006
Courtesy Of AVP

LOS ANGELES - January 26, 2006 - AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, a wholly owned subsidiary of AVP, Inc. (OTC: AVPI.OB), a lifestyle sports entertainment company focused on professional beach volleyball, today officially announced its 2006 Tour season schedule, which includes two new events, five new cities, and a record $3.5 million in prize money. The prize money is split equally between the men and the women and represents a 17% increase from last year's purse of $3.0 million.

This season, the AVP Tour will visit 16 cities, including five new additions - Birmingham, Ala. Sacramento, Calif., Atlanta, Ga., Brooklyn, N.Y, and Lake Tahoe, Nev.:

March 31-April 2 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL
May 5-7 - Tempe, AZ
May 18-21 - Santa Barbara, CA
May 26-28 - Huntington Beach, CA
June 9-11 - Hermosa Beach, CA
June 15-18 - Sacramento, CA
June 29-July 2 - Seaside Heights, NJ
July 6-9 - Atlanta, GA
July 13-16 - Birmingham, AL
July 20-23 - Chicago, IL
August 10-13 - Manhattan Beach, CA
August 17-20 - Brooklyn (Coney Island), NY
August 25-27 - Boulder, CO
August 31-Sept 3 - Cincinnati, OH
September 6-9 - Las Vegas, NV
September 14-17 - Lake Tahoe, NV

Tickets will become available shortly

All events will be televised with coverage on NBC and FOX Sports Net (FSN). A detailed broadcast schedule will be released soon.

The expanded 2006 schedule comes on the heels of a very successful 2005 season. The AVP Tour experienced healthy growth last season, including a 48% increase in its fan base, according to Scarborough Sports Marketing, which compares favorably to the growth in other sports properties for the same time period.

In addition, AVP has developed several promoter relationships to help bring tournaments to cities that might not otherwise host such events. Local organizers are responsible for selling all local revenue for the tournament, including tickets, concessions, sponsorships and hospitality. Event cities with local promoters include: Sacramento (Sacramento Sports Commission), Atlanta (Atlanta Sports Council), Birmingham-Hoover (Bruno Event Team), Brooklyn (Brooklyn Sports and Entertainment) and Cincinnati (Reach Event Marketing). AVP's strategic alliances with top local promotion companies allows the AVP Tour to have a strong presence in new markets without the standard upfront capital resources as well as gaining year-round, aggressive marketing and outreach for each event.

"We are thrilled at the success and expansion of the AVP Tour and we are looking forward to coming into these new markets and returning to several of our 2005 Tour stops" said Leonard Armato, CEO and Tour Commissioner. "We are pleased that, through successful promoter alliances, we are able to bring the excitement of beach volleyball inland, expanding beach volleyball and reaching a larger audience. With our fan base continually growing and a record amount for prize money, this looks to be the best AVP season yet."

Volleyball event bypasses Belmar
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 01/26/06
BY FRED SIEGLE AND JOE PIKE
STAFF WRITERS

One of the Shore's top professional sports events is taking its ball and heading south — about 20 miles.
The Association of Volleyball Professionals, featuring beach volleyball stars and Olympic gold medalists Karch Kiraly, Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, is moving its annual New Jersey stop from Belmar to Seaside Heights this summer as part of its 16-city tour. The event will be held on the beach between Blaine and Sumner avenues on June 29-30 and July 1-2.
The AVP tour will include a Seaside Heights stop for the first time since 1995, when events were played in both Belmar and Seaside Heights. There was also a tour stop in Seaside Heights in 1993. The tour, which will feature more than $3 million in purses this year, has had an event in Belmar every year since 1991, but tour officials couldn't work out the logistics with borough officials to include the site on its 2006 schedule.
One stumbling block involved having the tournament over the busy weekend preceding July 4. Another concern was the introduction of nighttime competition under artificial lights. In addition, a new tour sponsor, liquor manufacturer Jose Cuervo, might not fit well under Belmar's strict policy of not allowing alcohol consumption on the beach.
AVP CEO Leonard Armato said the tour is looking forward to the new location.
"Having night sessions brings a whole new atmosphere to it," Armato said. "Being at the Jersey Shore in the summertime and playing at night, it's going to be great to watch.
"My understanding about why we couldn't work it out with Belmar involved scheduling. In Seaside Heights, we'll also have more flexibility involving concessions and things of that nature. We can grow the event to a level we'd like to grow to.
"We wish Belmar the best, and it's still possible we may be back there in the future," Armato said. The alcohol policy was not a key factor in moving from Belmar, he said.
Warm welcome in Seaside
Seaside Heights Police Chief Thomas Boyd said, as of now, alcohol consumption is not allowed on the beach. But he said that the mayor and council have the right to designate portions of the beach to permit it. "Whether it is (permitted) or not doesn't change how we feel about the event," Boyd said. "We don't anticipate it being a problem."
Belmar Mayor Ken Pringle was philosophical about the decision. The tournament — won last year by the Jake Gibb-Stein Metzger and Walsh-May-Treanor teams — draws up to 25,000 fans over a long weekend.
"It's a nice event, but our philosophy on special events is geared toward helping businesses," Pringle said. "Let's be honest, in July, things are booming, we really don't need events then."
Doug Thorn of Farmingdale, who has been to the tournament every year since 1991 and provided housing for player Paul Baxter the past two years, said he still expects to go, but not be as involved. "I'll still probably go for the event, but in the past I've taken a week vacation and got involved in the whole experience, setting up, the pre-tournament parties, and I probably won't do that," he said.
"It's not the same, but if Paul's here to play, I'll probably still go," Thorn said.
Revenue boost expected
Pete Smith, the Seaside Heights borough spokesman and events coordinator, said the long weekend event could generate a lot of revenue for the town and its businesses. But John Camera, borough administrator, said the money is not nearly as important as the publicity the event will bring to Seaside Heights.
"Not to say that we wouldn't like to bring in some money . . . but this event is not about being a money-maker," Camera said, anticipating that the longer-term influx of regular visitors would be the biggest benefit.
The town will endure some additional costs for extra police officers and public works employees, Smith said. Boyd said he expects boosting security from six, two-man foot patrols to 10 and also adding about eight to 10 undercover officers.
The amount of security will be the same whether or not alcohol consumption is allowed, Boyd said. "The cost is going to be minimal and a small price to pay for the AVP," he said.
The event will feature a main court with bleacher seating and up to 12 outer courts. Camera said that the portion of the beach the tournament will be on usually attracts about 30,000 people during the July 4 weekend, and Boyd said it can accommodate more than 100,000.
Municipal and meter parking will be available for spectators, Boyd said.
Although there is only a contract in place for this year, Camera said he expects the event to be a Seaside Heights fixture for years to come

TOUGH SHOT
Some businesses in Belmar will miss volleyball, but some won't, and July is the town's biggest month for tourism anyway
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 02/7/06
BY ERIK LARSEN
COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU
BELMAR — Restaurants, motels and bed-and-breakfasts will be the hardest hit when the borough loses one of the Jersey Shore's top professional sporting events to Seaside Heights in July, according to the Belmar Chamber of Commerce.
The Association of Volleyball Professionals, featuring beach volleyball stars and Olympic gold medalists such as Karch Kiraly, Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, is moving its annual New Jersey stop from Belmar to Seaside Heights in July as part of its 16-city tour. This will be the first time since 1991 that there won't be a weekend tour event in Belmar.
"The people who are going to be impacted are the accommodation groups: the bed-and-breakfasts, the restaurants, those catering the events, holding affairs for the players and management of the event," said Alice A. Farr-Leonard, the chamber president, who conducted an informal poll of members after she learned about the news.
"It's bad for the business," said Sheung Wong, owner of the Little Red Barn liquor store on Main Street and 16th Avenue. That weekend, his business typically sees a 25 percent increase in revenue.
"I was shocked. They were here for many years," Wong said. "I'm just sad; I'm not happy about it."
Mayor Kenneth E. Pringle said the event was becoming increasingly difficult to accommodate in July — the peak of the borough's summer season — when the town is "bursting at the seams as it is."
In leaving Belmar, the AVP cited that issue and the obstacle in getting permission to introduce nighttime competition under artificial lights. Moreover, a new tour sponsor, liquor manufacturer Jose Cuervo, would not have fit well under Belmar's strict policy of not permitting alcohol consumption on the beach.
Farr-Leonard said Belmar's municipal government essentially made it impossible for the AVP to continue doing business in town.
"I'm personally disappointed," Farr-Leonard said. "Last year, I went to bat, big time, because we have a certain faction of residents who were dead set against the tours. This faction thinks the town should be gated, that summer residents are merely to be put up with."
Seaside Heights officials, on the other hand, have expressed enthusiasm for the tournament's arrival in their borough.
In addition to an increase in tourism revenue, the borough is banking on renewed interest in Seaside Heights from the national exposure.
"There were people who lived for the volleyball tournament," said Tom Skentzos, owner of the Belmar Cafe on Main Street. "People loved that, but it actually took business away from me" because tour attendees seemed to gravitate toward businesses on Ocean Avenue.
At the same time, having the tournament in the borough had become a source of pride for the entire town, he said.
Bridget Moore, a surfing instructor for Eastern Lines Surf Shop on Ocean Avenue, said the tournament's loss will hurt her pocketbook.
During the event, she might do 10 to 12 lessons per day, up from as few as five lessons on any normal July day.
"It's sad; that's for sure," Moore said.
Pringle said his administration repeatedly analyzed the revenue figures from the tournament and determined that the borough actually was losing regular visitors who were put off by the crowds and increased traffic.
"So although the nearby businesses will lose revenue because of the event not being here this summer, it won't negatively impact broader businesses," Pringle said.
Fred Mastroli, owner of A+B Cleaners on Main Street, said the loss of the tournament is of no consequence to him. "I'm a dry cleaner . . . and the people there are hardly wearing any clothes at all," Mastroli said.
Pringle said he's hopeful the borough will be able to attract another professional volleyball tournament in the future, such as Olympic qualifying events, that better match the needs of the borough.
In the past, the tournament event was ideal when it was held in June or August. But it was switched to July two years ago, and that is the peak of the borough's summer season, when tourism doesn't require any additional help in Belmar, Pringle said.
During the tournament's weekend in 2005, the borough sold $135,303 in beach badges. However, the figure for the Fourth of July weekend one week earlier was about the same, according to Pat Zwirz, Belmar's purchasing agent.
"A lot of residents who are fans of volleyball like I am, will be impacted by the loss," Pringle said. "It's simply an issue of our special events working for the benefit of the borough. Fourth of July is a time when the town is bursting at the seams as it is."
But Farr-Leonard believes the borough is doing a disservice by sending the AVP packing.
"We're living in a beach town. Let's promote our beach, our county and state tourism," she said. "We shouldn't be butting heads with people over this."
Erik Larsen: (732) 643-4029 or elarsen@app.com

AVP signs Barefoot as official tournament wine and champagne
Los Angeles Business from bizjournals - 7:26 AM PDT Thursday
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AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour has signed a two-year deal making Barefoot the "official wine and champagne of the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour" the company announced Thursday.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Barefoot has the exclusive sponsorship in both categories. The partnership includes an interactive tent in the AVP exhibition village; an opportunity to challenge fans to play "Serve up Barefoot," a game where fans can serve volleyballs into wine barrels for prizes; host "foot-o-graphs," autograph signing sessions by barefoot AVP players; pouring rights to serve their beverages to event attendees over 21; and an event presence including signs on the court, public address announcements, and more.
Barefoot said it expects to use the partnership in national in-store marketing opportunities. AVP will also include Barefoot in AVP public relations and charity initiatives, while Baerfoot will host a sweepstakes on the AVP site.
Los Angeles-based AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour is a subsidary of AVP Inc. (OTCBB: AVPI).
Modesto-based Barefoot is a producer of 17 wines.

Seaside Heights Tourism Guide
click here
The AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour will be in Seaside Heights from June 29, 2006 to July 2, 2006, located on the Seaside Heights Beach between Sumner Avenue and Blaine Avenue. There will be more than 150 of the top professional beach volleyball athletes. The tournament will be televised on FOX Sports Net. The AVP Seaside Heights Open will be present by Bud Light and will start with a qualifier on Thursday, June 29 and continue through the weekend. The tournament will close with the men's and women's finals on Sunday, July 2.

Free parking and shuttle service will be available from Toms River High School East and from Seaside Heights municipal parking lot on Bay Boulevard.

Directions to High School East from the Garden State Parkway are as follows: By Car From the North and South: Garden State Parkway Exit 82 eastbound. Take Route 37 east. Take the jug handle for Coolidge Avenue. Take Coolidge Avenue and turn left onto Raider Way. Turn left into Toms River High School East at 1225 Raider Way.

The shuttle schedule is Friday 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. and Sunday 7:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Schedule of Events:
Thursday, June 29 – Qualifier from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Friday, June 30 – Main Draw Competition from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday, July 1 – Main Draw Competition from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday Night, July 1 - Main Draw Competition from 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday, July 2 – Men’s/Women’s Finals from 9:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

For AVP tickets please call 877-AVP-TIXX
For more information please visit www.AVPSeaside.com

Tickets are also on sale at the following locations:
Casino Pier, 800 Ocean Terrace, Seaside Heights
Garrow Family Chiropractic, 2176 Route 35, Sea Girt
Spicy, 715 Boardwalk, Seaside Heights
Coin Castle, 500 Boardwalk, Seaside Heights
Jimbo's, 715 Boardwalk, Seaside Heights
Toms River Diner, 445 Route 37E, Toms River

Peanut Butter Jelly Time is Spreading Across the AVP Landscape
By Colleen Murray
June 23, 2006
Regardless of what the clock reads or what the tournament board says, whenever Hans Stolfus and Aaron Wachtfogel play, it's "Peanut Butter Jelly Time." Aaron's roommate and AVP qualifier Jon Thompson heads the tour's newest fan club by bringing a stereo and blaring the song "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" by Chip-man and the Buckwheat Boyz when either Hans and Aaron or Aaron's former partner Jeff Minc and Ben Koski play.
"It's a merging of crews: the 805 (Minc's a Santa Barbara native) and the South Bay," explains Aaron, who is a Redondo Beach native. "We figured out that every time that song plays, we do well."
This was never more true than in the Hermosa Beach Open center-court showdown between Hans and Aaron and the defending champs Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers, who had put a stop to the former's incredible run in the Santa Barbara Open a few weeks earlier. Hans and Aaron's fan club came in full force, decked out in brown t-shirts with "It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time" printed in purple on the front. They sang and cheered as Aaron and Hans lost a close game one, but pulled out thrilling game two and game three victories (17-21, 30-28, 19-17).
"It felt ridiculously good [to win]. It was the biggest match of our career," Aaron said.
After Hans and Aaron had handed Phil and Todd only their second match loss in the past four tournaments, they jumped into their throng of fans and the PB & J crew responded by dousing Aaron's back with jelly.
"The fan club is awesome. We try to stay focused and acknowledge them at the same time," Aaron said. "We like the fire and energy they bring."
Hans and Aaron have been feeding off each other's energy ever since they became partners earlier this year. In their relatively short time together, the two have embarked on the fast track to success. The pair notched a third place finish in the Santa Barbara Open, only their third open together. In fact, in their first five opens, the fairly young partners (Hans is 29, Aaron is 24) have finished no lower than ninth.
Their prowess, thus far, has taken Hans slightly by surprise.
"I knew we had the ability to do so but we hadn't been there yet," said Hans, the 2005 AVP Rookie of the Year. "It's just a matter of capitalizing."
In Santa Barbara, the two came in as the 11th seed and ran off four straight victories to reach the semifinals.
The night before the semifinals, Aaron couldn't sleep. Like a kid on Christmas morning, he woke up at 5:30 am, antsy and waiting for Hans to wake up and share his excitement for the day's events.
"We were just happy to be there. That sounds bad, but we still wanted to win. We knew if we played well, we could go to the finals," Aaron said.
However, Hans and Aaron's fall in the semifinals to eventual Open winners Todd and Phil reminded them that with so many incredibly talented teams, winning will always be a battle.
"People say, 'So what's next, first [place]?'" Hans said. "It's not easy. We're very conscientious of that."
In light of the tough competition on the beach, when Aaron and Hans decided to be partners, they thought it would be best to make a commitment to each other to stay partners and to improve together.
"It's good when you don't have to worry about partner switching," Aaron said.
This commitment also involved a lifestyle change: getting more rest, changing diets, and just all-around dedication.
"If we continued to just go out and rage and just have a good time, we wouldn't be committed," Hans said.
However, the lifestyle and diet change still allows for both peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and the PB & J crew, which has snowballed into the hot new source for fun fanfare.
"I had an idea that for Hermosa Beach, [the fan club] would be a big deal," Aaron said. "What I didn't expect was that people I don't know would ask me for shirts and want to be a part of it."
With continued strong performances, it's easy to imagine that a lot more people will be wanting to jump on the sandwich spread bandwagon soon enough.

Click the Jelly to play the video...

Click the bananna to play the video...

THE BIG VOLLEY
Players to battle it out at Seaside Heights Open
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/23/06
BY CAROLYNNE VAN HOUTEN
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Olympic volleyball champion Eric Fonoimoana says the best thing about competing in beach volleyball on the East Coast is the welcome reception he receives from the crowds.
"In Southern California, people are pretty blase about beach volleyball,'' said Fonoimoana, 36, who grew up in Manhattan Beach, Calif., and currently resides in nearby Hermosa Beach. "Volleyball is everywhere out here but on the East Coast there aren't as many tournaments, so the crowds are more enthusiastic. And it's nice to hear the cheers coming from the crowd.''
From June 29 through July 2, Jersey Shore locals will have the opportunity to rally their favorite beach volleyball pros when the Association of Volleyball Professionals presents the AVP Seaside Heights Open.
The weekend marks the first time the Open will travel to Seaside Heights since 1995. The gates open for qualifying rounds at 8 a.m. June 29, with tournaments scheduled through July 2.
Among the competitors scheduled to appear are Fonoimoana, an Olympic gold medalist at the 2000 Olympic games in Sydney, volleyball legend Karch Kiraly, Stein Metzger, Mike Lambert and Dain Blanton. On the women's side, it's 2004 Olympic gold champions Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Holly McPeak … the women's champion when the Open last took place in 1995 … Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder.
Fonoimoana's practice schedule is typical of all beach volleyball professionals: Monday through Thursday, he works out three to five hours on the beach, doing volleyball drills, endurance runs and pool workouts as part of his training.
But competition comes naturally to Fonoimoana, who, as the youngest of six children, participated in baseball, soccer, surfing … "and any water sport'' … growing up in Southern California. His sister, Lelei, competed in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal in the 100-meter butterfly swimming event.
"We were always competitive with each other,'' Fonoimoana said of his siblings. "Even for food. But I think that's where I got my drive to succeed. We all basically grew up at the beach, surfing and enjoying the water.''
In high school, Fonoimoana got serious about a future in professional volleyball and focused exclusively on the sport.
"I used to sleep on the Manhattan Beach so I would have a good view of professional volleyball competitions,'' he said. "And I knew that was what I wanted to be doing. So I stepped up my training and went for it.''
Today, Fonoimoana's career winnings approach the million dollar
mark. And someone with his experience in the sport is an authority on even the most subtle changes in the game.
"Volleyball has evolved in a number of areas,'' he said. "The court itself is now more than a meter shorter than it was when I started out, and now there's the let serve. And the scoring system used now keeps games competitive. It seems like the guys on the tour are taller. But I still play the game the same way I always have, applying the knowledge I've gotten from playing the game over the years.''
Another pro volleyball player, AJ Mihalic, grew up in Wall and played volleyball at Belmar Beach. He now resides in Hermosa Beach, where he trains year-round on the beach. (When asked in an interview on the AVP Web site what he would be doing if he wasn't playing professional volleyball, Mihalic answered: "Playing beach volleyball recreationally.'')
The AVP tour requires a great deal of travel. McPeak will be traveling from a competition in Switzerland for the Seaside Heights Open, and events are scheduled throughout the country through mid-September.
"The constant travel can be very draining,'' said Fonoimoana, who now has a wife and 1-year-old son. "I'm at a place now where I've been traveling for the last eight years, and the plan is to take it year to year, see how I feel after the season's over and evaluate how I feel.''
In addition to great volleyball, sponsors such as Bud Light, Crocs AVP Serve, Jose Cuervo, Xbox, Paul Mitchell, Nature Valley and Wilson will be setting up booths for visitors throughout the competition.
The AVP Seaside Heights Open will be held between Blaine and Sumner avenues in Seaside Heights. Tickets are available by visiting www.avp.com on the Web.

Shore volleyball
The Star Ledger
By Steven Snyder/Aimee Mann
Friday, June 23, 2006
SEASIDE HEIGHTS Serves, sets and spikes will rule Fourth of July weekend in Seaside Heights, as AVP Pro Beach Volleyball and the 2006 CROCS Tour bring to town more than 150 of the game's top competitors to face off in a four-day tournament. Featuring Kerri Walsh, Misty May-Treanor, Rachel Wacholder and Sean Scott, the tournament -- to be televised on FOX Sports Net -- begins Thursday with a day of qualifying matches that are free and open to the public, and concludes July 2 with men's and women's finals. The tournament is held at the custom-built AVP volleyball court at Sumner Avenue and Boardwalk. $15-$30. Call (877) 287-8499 or visit www.avp.com.

Jenn has the Ultimate Fan Experience in Sacramento
By Colleen Murray
June 22, 2006

Do you want to have the Ultimate Fan Experience?
Then join the AVP E-Team
For your chance to Win

It may have been the 100-degree Sacramento weather, her nerves, or the combination of the two, but Jenn Estrada was sweating. At her first AVP tournament, she stood face-to-face--well, face-to-shoulder--with Kerri Walsh.
"It was great. She was really nice. I was really nervous, but she tried making me feel comfortable," Jenn said.
Kerri even gave Jenn a hug. Jenn, a member of the AVP E-Team, got to meet one of her favorite players because she won the AVP's Ultimate Fan Competition by completing a mission by getting the most people to watch an AVP video preview on FoxSports.com.
Jenn, a junior at Boston University but a native northern Californian, is used to introducing people to the sport she loves. She constantly pumps volleyball up at BU, and for her Ultimate Fan Experience, she brought her cousin Stephanie, who had never seen a beach volleyball match before, to the Open with her.
"Stephanie's been cheering so much right next to me for Holly McPeak and Nicole Branagh," Jenn said.
Both Holly and Nicole have Northern California connections, so that gave Jenn a common link. Nicole is from Orinda, Calif. Jenn is from Richmond, a town close to Berkeley, while Holly attended UC Berkeley for a few years. When Jenn met Holly as part of the Ultimate Fan Experience, the two talked about that--after Jenn got over the butterflies in her stomach.
"I was like, 'I'm a really big fan. I've been watching all your matches. I told her I was nervous. (Holly) said, 'Don't be nervous. We're just people,'" Jenn recalled.
People, yes, but very, very athletic people. Jenn saw their prowess close-up for the first time.
"On TV, it's like you can tell these people are really athletic. But in person, you can see how high they really jump," Jenn said.
She also got to experience her ideal finals match-up between her two favorite teams: Holly/Nicole and Misty/Kerri.
"I'm having so much fun," she said before the finals match. "This (finals match) is exactly what I wanted in my heart.
Jenn played volleyball when she was young and throughout high school, but BU doesn't have a volleyball team. She became an avid watcher on television.
"I was flipping through the channels and I saw the AVP and I thought, 'Cool, another way to watch volleyball!'"
From there, she was hooked. Jenn quickly fell in love with the players' athleticism.
"I can always enjoy watching it. I live vicarious through the players," she joked.
Her real-life experience this weekend was exciting on its own, though. She met not only Kerri and Holly, but also fellow pros Sarah Straton, Casey Jennings, and Eric Fonoimoana. She also came home with some coveted AVP Crocs.
In all, was the Ultimate Fan Experience what Jenn expected?
"It was better than I ever thought it was gonna be," Jenn gushed.

Join the AVP on MySpace to
Follow Ben in the AVP MySpace Blog
as he has the Ultimate Fan Experience in
Seaside Heights New Jersey

King of the beach
Mainland grad one of America's best pro volleyball players
By BRENT WORONOFF
Staff Writer
Phil Dalhausser had to be prodded to come out for the boys volleyball team his senior year at Mainland High.
"The first ball he hit was better than anyone on the team," former teammate Shawn Levoy says of his gangly friend.
Levoy and coach Todd White convinced Dalhausser to try the sport. It didn't take him long to become one of the best players in the area.
"I was kind of a natural at it," says the 6-foot-9 Dalhausser, who has grown into one of the most intimidating beach volleyball hitters in the world.
"You have to see him to get a feel for how dominating he is," says Levoy, who also plays on the beach in the East Coast's Bud Light Volleyball Tour. "He's virtually unstoppable."
Dalhausser had steadily moved up the rankings during his first two seasons on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour. But a change of partners this year has skyrocketed Dalhausser and defensive wizard Todd Rogers to the No. 1 ranking.
"I expected us to be a top-three team," Dalhausser said. "But we're basically the team to beat right now."
And few have been able to do it. After finishing ninth in the first tourney of the season -- on April 2 at Fort Lauderdale when Dalhausser was sick -- the duo won four consecutive AVP tournament championships. Their streak came to an end at the Sacramento Open last weekend when they lost to tourney winners Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger in the semifinals to finish third.
Dalhausser and Rogers also made a statement on June 4 when they finished second in a Federation Internationale de Volleyball tournament (FIVB) in Zagreb, Croatia. The Americans lost to the defending Olympic gold medalists, Ricardo Santos and Emanuel Rego of Brazil, 21-14, 21-17 in the final.
The international scene is the reason why Rogers, named AVP's Defensive Player of the Year the past two seasons, and Dalhausser, the Offensive Player of the Year last year, gravitated to each other.
Together they believe they not only will qualify for the 2008 U.S. Olympics but that they can bring home a beach volleyball medal from Beijing.
Rogers, a 10-year veteran who has won 15 tournaments and nearly $600,000 in prize money on the American AVP tour, dropped his former partner with an eye on FIVB matches and the Beijing Olympics.
"I thought that Phil would be the best blocker in the world by (the '08 Games)," Rogers said.
An assistant volleyball coach at the University of California Santa Barbara for six years, Rogers believed that Dalhausser had not even begun to realize his vast potential.
"I told some people last year that I thought Phil could become one of the best in the world, and they looked at me like I was smoking something," Rogers said. "But as a coach and recruiter I decided to trust my instincts."
Rogers saw an intimidating net player who was still playing with his first beach partner, Nick Lucena, whom Dalhausser had met playing club volleyball in college.
"They were buddies from Florida, and they didn't push each other because they had a buddy-buddy relationship," Rogers said. "When we teamed up, I told Phil, 'The knock on you is that you're lazy, and that has to stop.' "
Rogers and Dalhausser worked hard in the winter developing teamwork as well as a weightlifting and plyometrics program (to improve jumping and quickness). They also studied film of other top teams.
"Todd has been as much of a coach as he has been a player," Dalhausser said. "I had never really been coached on the highest level before. He's kind of fine-tuned my game."
But Rogers said Dalhausser didn't have to make many physical adjustments.
"He was a good passer, a good setter, a great attacker and a solid blocker," Rogers said. "What I did for him was more on the mental side. I asked him, 'Phil what are your expectations for this year and next?' He said he wanted us to make the Olympics and he wanted to make five finals this year. He had never made more than two finals in a season before.
"My reply was not only should we be looking at Beijing, but we should look to win gold, and not only should we make five finals, but we should win those five. Now he expects to win every time we go out there."
But he's still pinching himself. The day before the AVP tourney at Hermosa Beach, Calif., on June 10-11, Dalhausser looked at the seedings and saw his name listed at the top for the first time.
"Man, we're the No. 1 team in the tournament," he said. "That's crazy."

Phil Dalhausser File
HOMETOWN: Daytona Beach
RESIDENCE: Santa Barbara, Calif.
AGE: 26
HIGH SCHOOL: Mainland (played tennis and boys volleyball for one season)
COLLEGE: UCF (played on Golden Knights' club volleyball team)
PARTNERS: 2003-05, Nick Lucena; 2006, Todd Rogers.
Dalhausser Stats
AVP TOUR: 2006 -- Four
tourney titles (Tempe Open, Santa Barbara Open, Huntington Beach Open, Hermosa Beach Open); third place (Sacramento Open); ninth place (Fort Lauderdale Open) in five tourneys; 30-5 match record; winnings: $62,475. Career -- five tourney titles (including one in 2005), one second place, three thirds in 36 tourneys played; winnings: $123,940
INTERNATIONAL: Career -- Five tournaments played; one second-place finish ('06), one seventh-place ('05); winnings: $23,250.
ETC.: Third-place finish in Sacramento, Calif., last weekend ended a streak of four straight AVP championshipships for Dalhausser and Rogers . . . Dalhausser was first on the tour in blocks last season with 405. He was named the tour's best offensive player for 2005 and was voted the most popular player in the AVP Fantasy Beach Volleyball Contest of '05

Horizon Teaming With AVP Seaside Heights Event

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NJ – Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey (Horizon BCBSNJ) is once again going to the Jersey Shore this summer to spread its message of health and wellness.

For the fourth straight summer, Horizon BCBSNJ will sponsor the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour in New Jersey and this year the Tour returns to Seaside Heights for the first time since 1995. The 2006 AVP Seaside Heights Open will take place from June 29^th through July 2^nd on the beach between Blaine and Sumner Avenues.

“This is always a great event to get out our message to the public with literally thousands of people enjoying the Jersey Shore during the biggest weekend of the year,” explained Jonathan Pearson, Corporate Contributions Executive.. “As a company, we are firmly committed to the health and wellness of New Jerseyans and this is an opportunity to promote the various programs we have in place to help people.”

Horizon BCBSNJ is always one of the most popular exhibitors at the AVP event with its “Horizon Sunscreen Station” where fans can get a sample portion of sun screen for that extra protection from the sun’s fierce rays. Parents are quick to get their youngsters the extra sunscreen as they enjoy AVP’s Exhibitors’ Village and volleyball matches.

Horizon’s marketing area also features a wide variety of health care information for both non-subscribers and subscribers. The company offers health wellness information on topics such as diabetes, heart disease, pregnancy, plus numerous other issues.

The Horizon Blimp will also be flying over the beach and the AVP Stadium, where close to 150 volleyball players will be battling for the Seaside Heights title. Olympic medalist Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh will be the favorites in the women’s bracket after winning four of the first five AVP tournaments this season.

“We extremely pleased to have sponsors such as Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey supporting the AVP Seaside Heights Open,” said Maria Maruca, the Director of the Seaside Heights Business Improvement District. “This will give them another great opportunity to spread their message of health care and wellness.”

The Seaside Heights event will feature five sessions, including a special Saturday night program under the lights on Saturday, July 1, 2005. Fox Sports Net will cover the women’s finals on Sunday nationally. For additional information on the events, log onto www.AVPSeaside.com or call 1-877-AVP-TIXX.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, with headquarters in Newark, is New Jersey’s largest health insurer providing coverage to more that 3.3 million people. Horizon BCBSNJ’s company Web site is located at www.horizonblue.com. Horizon BCBSNJ is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Americans Net 23rd SWATCH-FIVB World Tour Gold Medal
USA's Kerri Walsh (left) and Misty May-Treanor after 27th-straight match win in Gstaad
Gstaad, Switzerland, June 24, 2006 - Top-seeded Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh evened their mark this season with Brazilians Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca here Saturday afternoon to capture the women’s gold medal at the US$580,000 1to1 energy Grand Slam.
With the 21-17 and 21-17 win in 37 minutes over the second-seeded Brazilians, May-Treanor and Walsh avenged a gold medal setback to Juliana and Larissa last month in the SWATCH season opener in Modena, Italy. For their 23rd international gold medal in 42 FIVB starts since forming their partnership in 2001, May-Treanor and Walsh shared the $42,300 first-place prize.
The win before a near-capacity crowd of 5,000 Beach Volleyball fans in the Swiss Alps was also May-Treanor and Walsh’s 27th-straight on the Gstaad sand. The Americans have now won four 1to1 energy Grand Slam gold medals after placing third in 2001. Overall, May-Treanor and Walsh have a 32-2 match record in the Swiss Alps with $127,800 in Gstaad winnings.
"We played Juliana and Larissa a lot better today than last month in Italy,” said Walsh about the 21-19 and 27-25 setback to the Brazilians in Modena. “They had a tough semi-final match (85 minutes) earlier today against the Chinese as compared to our 40-minute win. Despite trailing in both sets early, we were able to put together some runs at the end of each set to secure the win.”
May-Treanor, who placed second in the inaugural 1to1 energy Grand Slam in 2000 with Holly McPeak, “loves playing in Gstaad. The fans are great here and we are treated well. Obviously, winning four titles here makes this place special. Juliana and Larissa are great players. We took advantage of their mistakes and Kerri made several key plays.”
Walsh was named the SWATCH most outstanding player as she and May-Treanor have won two of their three FIVB starts this season. With a 17-1 match mark this season, the Americans have amassed $96,300 in winnings to increase their career SWATCH total $995,440. Only Brazilians Adriana Behar and Shelda Bede have won more international dollars ($2,005,015) than May-Treanor and Walsh.
“They play at a different level than any other team in the world,” said Juliana after the match. “Kerri plays so big at the net (191 cm) and Misty is a great defender behind that block. I think we played tired in the final. The semi-final was like playing two matches. We had to extend a lot of energy to comeback and beat the Chinese.
While May-Treanor and Walsh advanced to the finals by defeating 21st-seeded Xue Chen and Zhang Xi 21-14 and 23-21 in 40 minutes Sunday morning, Juliana and Larissa advanced to their 16th SWATCH gold medal match by posting an 18-21, 30-28 and 16-14 win over fourth-seeded Wang Jie and Tian Jia.
For their second-place finish, Juliana and Larissa shared the $28,300 silver medal prize. The Brazilians won the 2005 1to1 energy Grand Slam gold medal when they defeated Tian Jia and her Olympic partner Wang Fei for the Gstaad title. Against May-Treanor and Walsh, Juliana and Larissa have a 2-7 record with both of their victories coming in gold medal matches.
Saturday’s gold medal meeting was the 65th-time in 138 women’s SWATCH-FIVB World Tour events that Brazil and the United States have competed for an international title. With May-Treanor and Walsh leading the way, the Americans now hold a 38-27 lead. May-Treanor and Walsh have a 23-8 SWATCH gold medal match mark, including 18-6 against Brazilian teams. Juliana and Larissa have an 8-8 FIVB title match mark.
In the bronze medal match, Wang Jie and Tian Jia shared the $22,100 third-place prize by defeating Xue Chen and Zhang Xi 21-19 and 21-14 in 45 minutes. Xue Chen and Zhang Xi, who left the Alps with $17,000 for fourth-place, had previously defeated their Chinese rivals last month in the Shanghai final.
The first of seven-straight double gender events on the SWATCH-FIVB World Tour schedule, the men’s double-elimination event ends Sunday with the semi-final and medal matches. Brazil has advanced two teams to the “final four”, including 2005 1to1 energy Grand Slam Emanuel Rego and Ricardo Santos.

AVP Women's Tour seeks rising stars
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/25/06
BY SCOTT CLAYTON
STAFF WRITER
The Association of Volleyball Professionals Women's Tour has seen its popularity rise to unprecedented levels in the two years since Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh won gold medals in the beach volleyball tournament at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
Even with the success of May-Treanor and Walsh, who remain in a class by themselves on the women's AVP Tour, it's never too early to start looking for the next big thing. After a miracle run from 15th-seeded qualifier to a quarterfinal berth across the net from May-Treanor and Walsh at the Sacramento Open on the weekend of June 10, the Southern California duo of April Ross and Keao Burdine hope to open a few more eyes when the AVP comes to Seaside Heights on Thursday.
A pair of former teammates who won back-to-back national titles together at the University of Southern California, Ross and Burdine are coming off their most successful professional stop yet. Ross and Burdine cruised through three two-game wins in qualifying to earn a spot in the draw in Sacramento, then knocked off the ninth and eighth seeds before finishing ninth.
Ross, 24, and Burdine, 23, became the youngest team to earn a top 10 finish on the tour this year. Prior to their five-win run at Sacramento, which ended with a three-game loss in the contender's bracket after falling to May-Treanor and Walsh in the quarterfinals, the highest finish of the season for any qualifier had been 17th.
"I think it kind of surprised us a little bit," said Ross. "We knew we were capable so it was like, "Cool, let's roll with it.' It's hard to expect that from ourselves again because it was such a jump from the last tournament."
"I watched them play in Sacramento and they're really solid," AVP commissioner Leonard Armato said. "They certainly showed some long-term potential."
"Everyone I've heard says it takes about three years to really get used to the beach coming from indoor," Burdine said. "I think that as a team, we're already ahead of that."
Before teaming with Ross, Burdine had played in nine events over the past three seasons with a host of different partners, but qualified for the main draw just once. The reunited teammates have finished in the money on two of the last three stops.
"I always hoped I would play with April," Burdine said. "I wanted her to play before, but she was always doing different things."
"I grew up at the beach, but actually I didn't really like playing on the beach," Ross said. "Now I think it's awesome. Just the lifestyle and the traveling and the competition, it's so much fun."
The purse of $2,875 that Ross and Burdine took home from Sacramento marked their biggest payday thus far. Still, boarding a plane from California to New Jersey this weekend without the guarantee of a pay day can be a scary proposition. Whether they need to qualify again or not, Ross and Burdine agree that they must go full steam ahead in pursuit of their dreams.
"There's a possibility we'll get put into the main draw," Ross said. "Keao and I think we need about 50 more points, though. We won't find out until Monday."
"I think we need to take every opportunity to play together and get better," Burdine said. "We need to compete in those tournaments to maintain our level of play."
Men's preview
Since the emergence of May-Treanor and Walsh as a dominant team on the women's tour, the men's AVP events have been just the opposite: a wide-open field with no true favorite from week to week.
That is, until Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers ripped off a string of four straight tournament wins that was halted by Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger in the semifinals in Sacramento. Dalhausser and Rogers will be looking to get back on top in Seaside Heights, and add to their seasonal purse that has already surpassed $75,000 apiece.

Stands in sand will seat 5,000
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/25/06
BY JOE ZEDALIS
TOMS RIVER BUREAU
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — If you build it, they will come.
The Association of Volleyball Professionals and the borough hope that is the case.
On Friday, seven members of a Canadian crew began assembling the 5,000-seat stadium between Grant and Blaine Avenues for the four-day event from Thursday through July 2.
Qualifying for the $183,000 Seaside Heights Open begins Thursday. The touring professionals begin play Friday. Two sessions, including a nighttime round, will be held Saturday and the men's and women's finals next Sunday.
Workers unloaded eight trailers full of planking, steps and steel rails at the corner of Grant Avenue and Ocean Terrace Friday.
A heavy-duty forklift carried the stacks from the street, over the boardwalk and onto the sand. Some of the thousands of pieces of metal have been stacked on pallets on the beach since before Memorial Day.
"It will take six days but we should have everything completed by sometime Wednesday night," said Jim Allen, production manager for Optex Staging and Services of Toronto. Their work day is from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. The crew grew to its full size of 12 on Saturday.
Everything includes assembling 3,500 bleacher seats, 1,000 chairs, eight sky boxes, two 30-foot towers, a video wall, sponsor and events tents, and six outer courts.
Another group of specialists will install lights on the stadium allowing for after-dark play.
"This is a tremendous location," said Allen, who assembled the stadium on Belmar's beaches last year. "The access for our equipment is great.
"The sand here (in Seaside Heights) is better than it was in Belmar . . . a little more firm. It was sifted very deep in Belmar."
Once completed, the stadium will be surrounded by a compound for players, spectators and sponsors. Within the compound, alcohol may be consumed and sold — but not elsewhere on the beach or boardwalk. There will also be everything from fashion shows to autograph sessions.
Under the lights
Installation of the portable lighting system will also allow people to be on the beach after dark — something normally not permitted during the summer.
"The idea of volleyball under the lights is something we saw during the Olympics in Athens," said Leonard Armato, AVP commissioner. "It was a wonderful environment to watch.
"We'll be on the Jersey Shore, it will be balmy, people will be out of the heat and the sun and watching volleyball. We think the fans will enjoy it."
The AVP has experimented with lights in the past, and used them for the first time this season during a stop last week in Sacramento, Calif.
"It's an interesting element for the event," Armato said. "We talked about playing under the lights, we experimented and when we saw how well the games worked in that environment we decided to use it at some of the stops."
Allen said his crew will have 24 hours to disassemble the stadium and pack it back on trucks, then ship it to a tour stop in Atlanta and reassemble it in 48 hours.

Tournament serves up drinks on the beach along with volleyballs
It'll be under control, authorities say
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/25/06
BY JOE ZEDALIS
TOMS RIVER BUREAU
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — The commissioner of the Association of Volleyball Professionals said the sale of alcoholic beverages at its tournaments is no different than alcohol being offered at any other sporting event.
When the AVP/CROCS (CROCS is an Australian shoe brand) Seaside Open is played from Thursday to July 2, alcohol will be permitted in designated beachfront areas. Normally, alcohol is prohibited on the beaches in Seaside Heights.
Although the borough has several bars on its boardwalk, liquor or beer is a no-no on the sand.
"We encourage responsibility and have strict supervision," said Leonard Armato, the AVP commissioner. "We stand for a healthy and active lifestyle."
No different than sponsorship in professional football, baseball and basketball, the AVP tour has numerous producers of alcoholic beverages as major sponsors: Bud Light, Jose Cuervo and Barefoot Wine, which is owned by Ernest & Julio Gallo, are heavily involved in the AVP tour.
Members of the Borough Council said they had concerns about serving alcohol on the beach, but were sold after seeing the safety record of the AVP.
"You're always concerned any time there's a mix of large crowds and alcohol," said Councilman William Akers. "But the AVP has an outstanding track record at its events, and the sale and consumption of alcohol will be limited to a managed area."
Councilman Richard Tompkins said he checked with Belmar, where this AVP tour event played previously.
"The information I received was there were few or no problems," Tompkins said. "It is well regulated by the AVP. The AVP appears to attract a mature and sophisticated audience."
Armato said it stresses the prominence of all its sponsors, not just the makers of alcohol.
"Our target is a core group of fans between 21 and 34 years of age," Armato said. "We have younger fans too, but we use the X-Box side of our sponsorship to reach them.
"You can take a family to a baseball game, and the adults can have a beer," he said. "Our tournaments are no different."
Seaside Heights police Capt. David Szalkowski noted there have been few or no problems with alcohol at other AVP events.
"The distributor or the person holding the liquor license is responsible for making sure there is no underage drinking," Szalkowski said. "And the AVP provides its own security to make certain no alcohol leaves the tournament area."
Szalkowski also stressed that alcohol will not be allowed on the boardwalk or on the beach other than in designated areas.
"There's always some risk with hosting a new event," Akers said. "We just need to see how it plays out."

Town braces for spike in business: Touring professional volleyball players hit the beach this week
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/25/06
BY JOE ZEDALIS
TOMS RIVER BUREAU
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — There are more high-profile stops on the tour — Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe — but to hear the decision-makers at the Association of Volleyball Professionals tell it, none is more important than the four-day event here.
The AVP makes no bones it could have gone elsewhere in New Jersey — Atlantic City, Ocean City, Wildwood — but it wanted Seaside Heights.
"We believe the stop in Seaside Heights could become the crown jewel of the AVP/CROCS Tour,"
said Leonard Armato, the CEO and commissioner of the tour.
"I think there's a terrific synergy between our tour and the character of Seaside Heights."
The Seaside Open's qualifying rounds are Thursday, with match play from Friday through next Sunday. Some of the biggest names in the sport will compete for $183,000 in prize money.
A veteran of the sports marketing world, Armato has represented the likes of basketball stars Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O'Neal and boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya. He helped turn L.A. Gear into the the No. 2 shoe company in the world at one point.
And he already has the borough and the borough's business owners giddy with possibility — and a single spike has yet to be recorded.
"The simple fact that the borough is hosting the tournament on (the weekend before) July 4 shows what a big-time event it is," Councilman William Akers said.
Noting Seaside Heights' midway location between the big-bucks markets of New York and Philadelphia, Armato said Seaside Heights gives the AVP a great opportunity for growth on the New Jersey Shore.
"Seaside Heights is the epitome of the Jersey Shore in the summertime," said Armato, who was born in Brooklyn and lives in California.
"Investment in our future"
The sales pitch was so good, Seaside Heights offered up its beaches and boardwalk at no charge on the July Fourth weekend — when good weather, wide beaches and the magic of the boardwalk are already enough of a draw.
"The AVP stop is an investment in our future," Seaside Heights Administrator John C. Camera said. "It's worth it simply from the promotional aspect."
Akers added the publicity for the borough is priceless.
"The national television exposure alone makes this event worth taking a chance on," Akers said. "The people who come to this event will be introduced to Seaside Heights and hopefully will come back for years to come."
According to the Sacramento Bee newspaper, the tournament at the fair grounds on the man-made courts in California's capital drew between 10,000 and 12,000 fans over three days June 16-18. The men's final half-filled the stadium. The woman's final filled the arena, according to published reports.
Camera admits the borough itself stands to make little on the event — with the exception of beach badge sales, parking money and summonses.
"To be honest, if the weather is good and the crowds come and our police and public works departments are maxed out, the overtime will end up costing us money," Camera said.
"We look at it as an investment," Camera said. "If the people the AVP tour attracts like what they see and enjoy all we have to offer, maybe they come back for another stay or a longer stay.
"The television coverage, the radio and television commercials, the newspaper and Internet advertising are all calling attention to Seaside Heights," Camera said. "In the grand scheme of things, it isn't going to cost much at all for the publicity we get."
Camera admits there will be challenges for the borough — parking being first and foremost. Anticipating a lack of parking spaces close to the volleyball compound, an arrangement has been made with the Toms River Regional School District to provide busing to and from the event.
According to Seaside Heights police Capt. David Szalkowski, buses will stop at the borough's bayfront, where parking is free. They also will shuttle volleyball patrons and other beachgoers from Toms River High School East on Raider Way in Dover Township to Grant Avenue and the Boulevard.
"And people are always welcome to use private lots and metered lots if they can find an open space," Szalkowski said.
Influx anticipated
Maria Maruca, executive director of the Seaside Heights Business Improvement District, said the stadium that will be built for the tournament will hold between 4,000 and 5,000 people.
"Based on the AVP numbers, we're estimating 5,000 additional visitors on the Thursday of the tournament, 10,000 Friday, and as many as 15,000 on Saturday and Sunday," Maruca said.
"We really don't think the crowds will keep anyone away," she said. "The AVP tour has a core following, and based on the calls we've been getting, they are prepared to follow the event no matter where it is."
Tickets sell for $15, $30 and $50, and a borough beach badge is also required to get into the tournament compound. Thursday is a free beach day in the borough, sponsored by Coke; no tickets are needed to watch the qualifying rounds.
The daily beach badge sells for $5. The ticket and the badge are good all day — except July 1.
"There will be a day session and a night session on July 1," Maruca said. "The compound will be cleared after the day session. The night session, using portable lights flown in from Sacramento, will go until about 11 p.m."
No beach badges are needed for the nighttime session Saturday.
David Popkin, vice president of Impact Partners of East Rutherford, one of the event promoters, said tickets cost less than those for other professional sporting events.
"And you get a beach party with it," Popkin said.
The condition of the sand on the Seaside Heights beaches was something that sold the AVP on the borough.
"A natural footprint for a volleyball tournament," Armato said. "Good sand. A good stretch of beach."
The tournament stadium and outer courts will be erected on the beach between Grant and Webster avenues.
"We are ready for the influx," Police Chief Thomas Boyd said. "We will have State Police, Ocean County sheriff's deputies and investigators from the Prosecutor's Office in town anyway. All our security measures are in place, but we feel the AVP is going to bring nothing but quality people to the town."
Armato said the tour brings something for everyone. Younger fans will be interested in the X-Box gaming center, and there are fashion shows.
"A festive environment," Armato said. "We believe it's going to be a huge event, and we can't wait."

Misty still best on beach
Doug Krikorian, Columnist
Press Telegram
On a recent early afternoon, Misty May-Treanor is seated with her father, Butch May, at a local hangout, Tracy's, munching on lunch while gazing up at a replay of a volleyball match that was being shown on one of the TV sets.
"Darned!" she says, as she watches herself and her partner, Kerri Walsh, in a most unusual posture, getting beat in the AVP Toyota Hermosa Beach Open finals by Rachel Wacholder and Elaine Youngs. "We could have done so much better. Our defense wasn't very good."
It is the day after that June 11 upset loss and May-Treanor, one of the most decorated athletes ever to come out of Long Beach State and a beach volleyball gold medal winner along with Walsh in the 2004 Athens Olympics, is in a surprisingly upbeat mood.
"Listen, you can't win 'em all," she says with a smile. "We just got beat. No excuses. Rachel and Elaine just played better than we did. Hopefully, we'll play better the next time we meet them.
"It's tough when you're on top. Everyone is shooting at you. Everyone comes with their 'A' game. Kerri and I just have to keep plugging away and have to keep improving."
"You don't seem that disappointed," I say.
Misty May shakes her head in disagreement.
"Oh, I'm disappointed for sure," she says. "I don't like losing any time I play. But I won't lose any sleep over it. After the Olympic success in Greece, I feel I've accomplished everything I've set out to do, and anything I accomplish from now will be frosting on the cake.
"Of course, I want to win another gold in 2008 in Beijing. But it won't be the end of the world if I don't. One thing no one will ever be able to take away from me is that gold medal we won in Athens."
At the Sacramento Open last weekend, the May-Treanor-Walsh team reverted to form, although it didn't have the opportunity to avenge its loss to Wacholder and Youngs.
Instead, in the championship match, May-Treanor and Walsh swept past Holly McPeak and Nicole Branagh, who had eliminated Wacholder and Youngs the previous day.
And on Sunday evening, Misty May flew from San Francisco to Switzerland where she and Walsh were scheduled to compete this weekend in a tournament in the luxurious Swiss Alps resort of Gstaad.
"Always on the go," says May-Treanor. "From late March through November, we have all the AVP tournaments. And during this time, we also compete in events in foreign countries. Already, we've been to Italy and Greece. And now Switzerland. And, after that, we'll be going to France, Austria, Brazil, Acapulco and Thailand. We're definitely piling up the frequent-flier mileage."
And Misty Treanor-May also is piling up the money, as her earnings just from her AVP accomplishments have exceeded $1 million, and that doesn't even count the monetary goodies she's receiving from such sponsors as Nautica, Mikasa, Oakley, Gatorade and Xbox video games.
"I just don't see a lot of the money," she says impishly.
She also doesn't see a lot of her husband, Florida Marlins
reserve catcher Matt Treanor, although she does speak to him at least five times a day on the phone no matter where she is ensconced.
May-Treanor has owned a home in Long Beach for several years, and she and her husband also have a residence in Corral Springs, Fla., where they spend most of the off-season.
At the moment, at 28, she is in her athletic prime, even, she says, in the best shape of her life after an off-season of strenuous training in Florida in which she dropped 15 pounds.
But she concedes it might be difficult for her and Walsh ever to duplicate their record 89-match winning streak that Wacholder and Youngs ended in 2005.
"Everyone is getting better," she says. "I think we are, too. But the competition is tough out there."
After Beijing, May-Treanor will give serious consideration to retiring from her sport and starting a family.
"I know I can't go on forever," she says.
With AVP tournaments now being shown on national television, Misty May-Treanor's fame has become even more widespread in recent times, but her head size has remained exactly the same.
She's the same sweet, appealing, down-to-earth person she was when she was setting all those artful passes for Brian Gimmillaro's team at Long Beach State and triggering the 49ers to the NCAA title in 1998.
"My daughter's never going to change," says Butch May. "She'll never take herself too seriously."
May-Treanor also never complains, although she does concede that her lengthy volleyball schedule is grueling.
"We will be playing every week until November 5 when we close it out in Thailand," she says. "This is what I now do for a living, and I love it. But it's not easy. It takes a lot out of you."
She is able to see her husband on occasion during her season.
"The Marlins had a series in San Francisco recently, and I was able to stay with him up there," she says. "And when I get back from Switzerland, I'm going to stay a few days in Florida."
She and her husband plan to take several family members on a Caribbean cruise on November 11-18.
"It was going to be a surprise birthday gift for my father, but we had to make plans ahead of time so we had to tell him about it," says May-Treanor. "I'm really looking forward to the vacation. It'll be nice just to just relax for seven days with nothing to do but have fun …"

Legends converge upon Seaside for AVP Volleyball
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/25/06
STAFF REPORT
The AVP Seaside Heights Open, presented by AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, Inc., and Bud Light, will take place Thursday through July 2 on the beach between Blaine and Sumner Avenue.
According to tournament officials, beach volleyball legend Karch Kiraly, Stein Metzger, Mike Lambert, Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana are among those expected to participate in the men's tournament and Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Holly McPeak, Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder are among those expected to participate in the women's draw.
The tournament begins with qualifier matches Thursday from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. The main draw of the tournament will begin Friday when action takes place between 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday matches will take place between 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.-10 p.m. and July 2 from 9:45 a.m.-2:30 p.m. The men's final will be July 2 at 2:30 p.m. and the women's final will be July 2 at 4 p.m.
Fox Sports Net will broadcast the women's final July 8 at 1 p.m. and the men's final July 29 at 1 p.m.
It is AVP's first tournament in Seaside Heights since 1995, when as a men's-only tournament, Adam Johnson and Jose Loiola took home the first-place prize.
Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes won the men's event and Nancy Reno and Holly McPeak won the women's tournament when AVP made its first stop in Seaside Heights in 1993.
Tickets are available by logging on to www.avp.com.

AVP ANNOUNCES DEBUT OF LAKE TAHOE EVENT (SEPT. 14-17)
June 26, 2006

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AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of AVP, Inc. (OTC: AVPI.OB), a lifestyle sports entertainment company focused on professional beach volleyball, announced they are joining forces with MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa to bring the fast-growing AVP Tour to Lake Tahoe this summer for the AVP Lake Tahoe Best of the Beach, Sept. 14-17, 2006.
The top professional beach volleyball athletes will be competing for the title of AVP Best of the Beach in the final event of the 2006 AVP Crocs Tour. The double-elimination invitational is an opportunity for eight of the top men's and women's teams to compete. The tournament will be televised on FOX Sports Net. The AVP Lake Tahoe Best of the Beach will kick off on Thursday, Sept. 14 and continue through the weekend with the men's and women's finals on Sunday, Sept. 17.
It marks the first time the AVP will stop in Lake Tahoe. It also features a promoter partnership with MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa in which MontBleu will be responsible for selling all local inventory for the tournament, including tickets, concessions and hospitality.
"We are excited to bring the AVP Tour to Northern Nevada, especially the beautiful city of Lake Tahoe," said Leonard Armato, CEO and Tour Commissioner. "We realize that the sport of volleyball is highly regarded in this area and we feel Lake Tahoe is the perfect setting to culminate a great season. We are thrilled to be partnering with the terrific MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa. It is through successful promoter partnerships like this that we are able to bring the sport and entertainment of beach volleyball to many cities; thus, reaching a larger audience."
The four-day event will take place at the new MontBleu Sports Pavilion, which will be configured to accommodate more than 4,000 people.
"We are honored that AVP has chosen MontBleu to host the Lake Tahoe debut of this incredibly successful tour," said Joe Yung, director of development for Columbia Sussex, MontBleu's parent company. "Having just recently celebrated our grand opening, we are already seeing MontBleu becoming one of the hottest and hippest destinations in the area, making the partnership with the AVP Tour a perfect fit not only for us but also for our guests."

Women's Preview: AVP Seaside Heights Open Presented by Bud Light
By Doug Strauss
June 26, 2006
Elaine Youngs is a competitor -- growing up in a household with four brothers might have something to do with that. And while she strives to win every tournament, the AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light is one event that could offer a suitable consolation if she doesn't win. With a third-place finish or better, Youngs will eclipse the $1 million mark in career earnings.
Youngs would join all-time leader Holly McPeak, two Brazilian players, and Misty May-Treanor, who achieved the mark earlier this season, as the female members of the $1 million prize money club. While no finish is guaranteed, Youngs and partner Rachel Wacholder have finished no lower than third place in every AVP event they have played together, dating back to the start of 2005.
Youngs, a 1996 indoor Olympian, took up the beach game right after leaving the U.S. National Team following the Atlanta Olympics. Now in her 10th season, she has won a tournament every year except her second season, and she has been on a top-three ranked team every year on the AVP since the reorganization in 2001. Additionally, three of the 10 most prolific women's partnerships in terms of money won include Youngs. She is on the list with Holly McPeak, whom she won the 2004 Bronze Medal with, Wacholder, and Liz Masakayan, who currently coaches her team.
One of the most glaring obstacles in Youngs' path to $1 million is the team of May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh, who is closing on that mark herself. The winners of five of the six events on the AVP Crocs Tour so far, they appear more determined after losing in the finals in Hermosa Beach. The duo has lost just one game in their two tournaments, including an international event, since.
Another potential stumbling block is the team of Nicole Branagh and McPeak, who in the last two weeks have had finishes that were career bests for Branagh. Following a second-place finish in Sacramento, Branagh's first championship match, the duo placed fifth in an international grand slam event, marking Branagh's best finish overseas. In both of those tournaments, Branagh and McPeak defeated Wacholder and Youngs.
McPeak is the defending Seaside Heights champion, having won with Nancy Reno in 1993, the last time the AVP women played here. This will be her 10th tournament in the Garden State, and she has made the semifinals every single time.
Throw in two more teams who are in the Final Four more often than not, Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson Jordan, and Jennifer Boss and Nancy Mason, and Youngs will find it is not a cakewalk in getting to the million dollar mark this week.
Besides the aforementioned teams, only two other duos have advanced to the semifinals this year. Brazilians Semirames Marins and Tatiana Marins, along with Dianne DeNecochea and Tammy Leibl, have both made one Final Four appearance this season.
Returning to action after missing the AVP Sacramento Open are Tyra Turner and Makare Wilson as the seventh seeds.
In Sacramento, the last AVP event, Keao Burdine and April Ross went through the qualifier unscathed and finished in ninth place. That finish was the best for these former teammates on USC's back to back national championship teams. The finish in Sacramento gave the duo just enough points to earn a main draw spot and teams had better be on the lookout for these transitioning indoor stars.
Eight teams will earn a place in the main draw after fighting their way out of Thursday's qualifier bracket. With several new partnerships in the qualifier, the composition of the main draw is sure to have different look. Half of participants in qualifier have made a main draw this year.
While Youngs focuses on hoisting the oversized check on Sunday evening, accomplishing the million dollar mark is not to be overlooked, as it is quite a testament to her consistent level of play for the past 10 years.

AVP clinic to take place
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/27/06
STAFF REPORT
The 2006 Hilton Garden Inn AVP Youth Volleyball Clinic will take place Thursday at 5 p.m. at 500 Boardwalk, Seaside Heights, on the east side of the boardwalk.
More than 30 members of youth volleyball clubs will learn from top pro beach players in a free event.
AVP Tour sponsor Hilton Garden Inn has enlisted 2004 Olympic medalist Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder, the circuit's reigning Defensive Player of the Year, for the clinic.
The Hilton Garden Inn will host a reception for participants, town dignitaries, tour sponsors and media members in the Hilton Family Hospitality Tent overlooking Center Court. The AVP players will conduct a free autograph session and meet and greet following the youth clinic.
The AVP will put on a tournament in Seaside Heights on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

LET'S TALK ABOUT SETS
Volleyball pros help teens work on game
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/30/06
BY EDDIE HOLLOWELL
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — About a dozen teen volleyball players from Toms River got a chance to work on their games alongside their role models during a youth volleyball clinic held yesterday at the AVP/CROCS Seaside Open stadium on the beach.
For the hour-long clinic the girls' teachers were 2004 Olympic medalist Elaine "EY" Youngs, her partner and the AVP's reigning defensive player of the year Rachel Wacholder and their coach, a pro beach volleyball legend herself, Liz Masakayan.
"To get instruction from one of the top teams in the world and their coach, to learn from them the proper mechanics and of course the confidence that comes along with that, this is a rare opportunity," said Gregg Maskale, director of the Jersey Shore Volleyball Club and head volleyball coach at Toms River High School East.
Local volleyball clubs from around the state were invited to attend the clinic. The local volleyball enthusiasts who took part included student athletes from Toms River High Schools East and South. Many of them also play during the off-season for the Jersey Shore Volleyball Club, Maskale said.
"They're really good," said Stephanie Brzozowski, 16, who is going to be a junior at High School East. "After watching them I so want to keep doing this when I get older."
In the stadium, which seats 5,000, the young players had the opportunity to serve to and take serves from Youngs and Wacholder. They also ran several drills that tested their passing, digging and setting skills.
Spokespersons for the Hilton Garden Inn, which sponsored the clinic, said the clinic is held at each of the stops on the professional volleyball tour.
"I wish I would have been able to have an opportunity like this when I was a kid," Wacholder said.
Wacholder said the best way for the youths to get to be in her position is to practice as much as possible.
"They just have to play more," she said. "That's the best way to do it."
For some of the players, yesterday was the first time they played the sport on the beach.
"It's a lot harder than indoors," said Tara Hansen, 18, noting that when running for the ball it felt as if she were walking on quick sand.
Hansen, a recent graduate of High School South, will attend Rider University in the fall where she plans to try out for their volleyball team.
Many of the young athletes said they plan to stick around for the entire weekend volunteering their time to help out during the tournament. Brzozowski said that may be easier said than done.
"Watching them really makes me want to play," Brzozowski said.

AVP/CROCS SEASIDE HEIGHTS OPEN
DYNAMIC DUO
Rogers, Dalhausser perfect together
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/27/06
BY BOB BADDERS
STAFF WRITER
Throughout the off-season, Todd Rogers was bombarded with questions asking why.
His peers on the Association of Volleyball Professionals Tour wanted to know why Rogers would enlist the services on a new partner after he and Sean Scott closed out 2005 by winning the last three tournaments.
Rogers' answer wasn't about what he didn't have with Scott; it was about what he could have with Phil Dalhausser at his side.
"I looked at the big picture," Rogers said. "Sean and I had been playing together for four years and had improved each year, but we had only won four events. I felt that Phil could take us as a team to the next level."
His feeling could not have been more correct. Through the first six events of the 2006 AVP Tour, Rogers and Dalhausser have won four, a career season-high for both players. They will look to rebound from a third-place finish at Sacramento, Calif., when the AVP makes its first stop in Seaside Heights (accessible from Blaine and Sumner avenues) since 1995 beginning on Thursday.
It all began when Rogers and Dalhausser teamed up at a Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB, volleyball's world tour) last June. The new tandem, playing together by virtue of Scott's injured finger, went from 26th seed to seventh-place finishers at the Swatch World Championships in Germany.
That's when the light went on, Rogers said.
"We hadn't even had a practice together but we ended up placing seventh," Rogers said. "In November, we made the decision to play together and have been going hard ever since."
Rogers and Dalhausser started the season with a ninth-place finish at the Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Open. The next week at the Tempe (Ariz.) Open, the pair put it all together to win the championship.
The defining moment came in the first game of the final against Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal. Down 17-11, Rogers and Dalhausser battled back to tie the game at 20. After denying Gibb and Rosenthal on six straight game points, Rogers and Dalhausser won the match on their third game-point try, 28-26.
''That was a huge momentum boost for us," Rogers said.
Rogers and Dalhausser kept things going from there, winning the Santa Barbara Open and Huntington Beach Open, both in California, to become the first team to win three straight open titles since 1998. A week later, at the Hermosa Beach Open in California, Rogers and Dalhausser defeated Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger, 19-2, 21-12, 17-15, in the final for their fourth consecutive win, a mark last set by beach volleyball legend Karch Kiraly and Adam Johnson in 1997.
At Hermosa, the Tour's No. 1 team showed they can handle adversity. After being knocked to the contenders' bracket after a third-round loss, Rogers and Dalhausser went on to down the tournament's fifth, fourth- and third-seeded pairs to reach the final.
"I'm really proud of the win at Hermosa," Rogers said. "We lost a tough one but came back to beat all the top teams. It shows we have mental toughness and in my opinion that counts for more than physical ability."
Before 2006, Dalhausser had only one win under his belt in three years on the Tour. On the other hand, Rogers, a 12-year veteran of the Tour has played in 120 matches and won 15 titles. 2006, however, is shaping up to be Rogers most successful yet, with the four titles already more than last year's three and his $62,745 in earnings poised to top last year's purse of $81,150.
"I didn't have overly high expectations going into the year," Rogers said. "I always thought we would win some tournaments but not four in a row and certainly not four out of the first six."
If analyzed purely on statistics, Rogers and Dalhausser's partnership makes perfect sense. Dalhausser, nicknamed the "Thin Beast," uses all of his 6-foot-9 frame to wreak havoc at the net. The 26-year-old Florida native who was born in Switzerland led the AVP with 405 blocks in 2005 and currently leads the Tour with 190.
In 2005, he was named the AVP Offensive Player of the Year.
Rogers, a cagey veteran dubbed "The Professor" by his opponents, has emerged as the AVP's best defensive player. Rogers currently leads the Tour with 396 digs and has been named the Defensive Player of the Year in each of the past two campaigns.
The pair has followed different paths to volleyball success. Dalhausser only began playing volleyball in his senior year of high school before playing on the club team at the University of Central Florida. Rogers was an All-American at the University of California-Santa Barbara and was an assistant coach for the Gauchos from 1999-2005.
Both Rogers and Dalhausser will be playing in Seaside Heights for the first time but have plenty of experience at the Jersey Shore, participating when the event was held in Belmar.
Rogers said only three people on the Tour have any memory of playing in Seaside Heights. If Rogers and Dalhausser can come up with another win on Sunday, they can link the local summer hot spot with one of the most successful AVP seasons ever.
And that's a moment they won't forget.

Men's Preview: AVP Seaside Heights Open Presented by Bud Light
June 27, 2006
Whew! That big collective sigh of relief was from all the men's players on the AVP Crocs Tour, save for two, who are hoping that the blistering team of Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers has cooled off. After all, the rest of the field wants a shot at winning a title as well.
At the last AVP event in Sacramento, Dalhausser and Rogers finally lost a match that took them out of contention for the championship, after winning the previous 12 times their "backs were against the wall." The newly-formed duo had gone 8-0 in matches once they got to the Final Four, and were looking nearly invincible.
However with that semifinal loss to Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger, coupled with a 17th-place showing at the international grand slam event last weekend, there is hope the tides have changed. Just ask Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings, the veteran team who had lost five times on the AVP Crocs Tour to Dalhausser and Rogers before eliminating them overseas last weekend. Or ask the team who went on to win the Sacramento event after ousting the top seeds.
"It's tough to play internationally," Metzger said after he and Lambert won for the first time, perhaps foreshadowing the upcoming troubles for Dalhausser and Rogers. "You have to spend a lot of time on planes and when you get off you are swollen and cramping. It's difficult to get back to where you were."
The 31 main draw teams besides top-seeded Dalhausser and Rogers hope that the number one team struggles some more this weekend. Because while there are only five teams entered that have won a tournament, certainly there are plenty more that are capable of winning one.
Long-standing partners Fuerbringer and Jennings have chalked up three wins in their career together, and Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana have five titles to their credit. No other team had won together prior to this season, which has now featured three unique winners. The other team making it to the winner's circle this year is the tandem of Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal, winners of the first event and challengers in two other finals.
Several teams have come close to hoisting the big check overhead in 2006. Each of these teams hopes to accomplish that this weekend at the AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light. Favorites to join Rogers / Dalhausser, Gibb / Rosenthal and Lambert / Metzger as champions in 2006 include several teams that have already made final four appearances on the 2006 AVP Crocs Tour.
John Hyden and Jeff Nygaard have been in a pair of Final Fours and one championship match. Hans Stolfus and Aaron Wachtfogel will look to ride the momentum of the "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" which has netted two fifths and a third. While Brad Keenan and John Mayer reunite for their first tournament since storming all the way from the qualifier to a third place finish in Hermosa Beach.
Huntington Beach finalists Brent Doble, who ranks in the top 10 on the Tour in both kills and blocks, and Ryan Mariano, who ranks in the top four in aces and digs, combine to form another potent team. Tour veterans Dax Holdren and Sean Scott who combined 11 finals appearance and four victories in 2005 are coming off a fifth in Sacramento and are hungry for their first finals appearance of the young season.
Among the 24 teams already seeded into the main draw are five brand new partnerships which are playing together for the first time. Larry Witt and Kevin Wong form the tallest team in the tournament, edging out the east coast-west coast connection of Matt Heath and Jason Lee. Witt / Wong are playing together due to the injury Karch Kiraly suffered in the shallow sands of Sacramento. Eduardo Bacil teams with Mike Morrison, matching experience with inexperience as Bacil has appeared in more final fours than Morrison's total tournament appearances.
Jeff Carlucci and Albert Hannemann as well as wildcard entrants Mike Salak and Amaury Velasco will be playing their first AVP event as partners. Aaron Boss will play with his fifth different partner this season with the high-flying Jason Ring. And while all those teams are already in the main draw, a notable new partnership in the qualifier is the wily veteran Jim Nichols, who will play with his 46th different career partner, Dane Jensen.
Nichols is one of the four players who also played in the 1993 and 1995 Seaside Heights events the AVP's two other Seaside Heights visits. Nichols is joined by Bacil, Fonoimoana and Hannemann as the only players to appear in all three events. Kiraly, who won his 73rd career title in Seaside Heights in 1993, sat out the 1995 event with a back injury.
So whether it's a new team or a veteran team, Dalhausser and Rogers say "bring it on."

AVP tour returns to Seaside Heights
Holmdel Independent
AVP legend and three-time Olympic Gold Medalist Karch Kiraly is synonymous with the sport of Pro Beach Volleyball. He has earned over $3million in prize money in 27 seasons.
Beach volleyball fans will get to see some of the top players in the world in action this weekend as the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour Inc. makes its return to Seaside Heights.
More than 150 of the top professional beach volleyball athletes, including Kerri Walsh, Misty May-Treanor, Rachel Wacholder, Sean Scott, Stein Metzger and Karch Kiraly, will compete in The AVP Seaside Heights Open, presented by Bud Light, which will kick off with a qualifier on Thursday and continue through the weekend with the men's and women's finals on Sunday.
The AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light marks AVP's first return to Seaside Heights since 1995.Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes won the men's event in 1993, while Nancy Reno and Holly McPeak won the women's tournament. As a men's-only event in 1995, Adam Johnson and Jose Loiola took first place.
"We are thrilled to bring the excitement of AVP back to Seaside Heights," said Leonard Armato, CEO and tour commissioner. "Since our first appearance there in the early '90s, the loyal and enthusiastic fan base in Seaside Heights has continued to grow and we look forward to bringing the sport of beach volleyball back to their beach. Together with Positive Impact Partners, a great partner of the Tour, we will work hard to again make Seaside Heights one of the premier stops on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour."
Through its partnership with AVP, the New Jersey-based Positive Impact Partners will be responsible for generating all local revenue for the tournament including tickets, concessions, sponsorships and hospitality. The company has been involved with AVP for the past three years as its partner in the former Belmar Open.
Tickets for all 2006 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour events are now available for purchase through AVP's Web site, www.avp.com/tickets. Fans can also purchase tickets to the AVP Seaside Heights Open by calling 1-877-AVP-TIXX.

TOURNEY SET TO BUMP UP ATTENDANCE: Volleyball seen as boon for boardwalk
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/28/06
BY EDDIE HOLLOWELL
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Lifeguards Nick Casper and Rand Skopas, both of Toms River, were on duty yesterday afternoon on the beach near Webster Avenue, but they found it hard to keep their eyes on the ocean.
Behind them workers put the finishing touches on a 5,000-seat stadium, amateur beach volleyball players practiced and summer beachgoers weaved through already-assembled beach volleyball courts to get near the ocean.
Days before the Jersey Shore's busiest weekend, it was already obvious this Fourth of July weekend will not be a typical one in Seaside Heights.
Professional volleyball players are expected to attract tens of thousands of fans in addition to the usual vacationing crowds when the AVP/CROCS Seaside Open is held tomorrow through Sunday.
"There's going to be so many people. It's going to be awesome," Skopas, 18, said.
More than 150 of the top professional beach volleyball athletes will compete in the four-day Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) tournament, which will be televised on FOX Sports Net. Professional volleyball has not been held in Seaside Heights since 1995.
"We are thrilled to bring the excitement of AVP back to Seaside Heights," said Leonard Armato, the CEO and commissioner of the tour. "Since our first appearance there in the early '90s, the loyal and enthusiastic fan base in Seaside Heights has continued to grow and we look forward to bringing the sport of beach volleyball back to their beach."
Seaside Heights public officials, visitors and residents seem to be just as excited.
"Everyone has rolled out the red carpet to provide the best experience that our visitors and also the players can enjoy," said Maria Lynn Maruca, executive director for the Seaside Heights Business Improvement District.
Volleyballs hang from the bar ceiling at Spicy, a two-story bar and Mexican restaurant located along the boardwalk just south of the stadium.
For now, those dining on the second floor have a view of some of the volleyball courts, but manager Artie Perez said tournament officials have said they will put up a screen along the boardwalk since admission is required to check out the action.
Either way, Perez said he expects Spicy and other businesses to be packed all weekend.
"I think it's going to work out very well for everybody," Perez said.
Maruca said the tournament is expected to draw 40,000-75,000 people over the four days and give the borough national television exposure.
"We just think it's a monster event for the borough," Borough Administrator John A. Camera said.
With the extra police and public works enforcement needed for the weekend, Camera said the borough may not come out financially ahead, but the exposure is worth it.
"All in all, it's a really good investment for Seaside Heights," Camera said.
The Seaside Heights Open qualifying rounds begin at 8 a.m. tomorrow, and the touring professionals start Friday. Main draw will be held Friday through Sunday afternoon with the final rounds scheduled for late Sunday afternoon.
Tickets are available on site for $15, $30 and $50. A $5 borough beach badge is also required.
No beach badges or admission is required tomor-row.
"Thursday is the day to come on down, take a look and decide when you're coming back," Maruca said. "Whoever comes on Thursday is definitely going to come back."
Starting Friday, free parking and shuttle service will be available from Toms River High School East on Raider Way off Bay Avenue in Toms River, and from the Seaside Heights Municipal Parking Lot on Bay Boulevard.
More than 30 youths from local volleyball clubs from around the state, including Toms River East, will take part in a youth volleyball clinic tomorrow, run by 2004 Olympic medalist Elaine Youngs and AVP's reigning defensive player of the year Rachel Wacholder.
Skopas and Casper, the lifeguards on duty yesterday, said they are looking forward to working this weekend. Casper has off tomorrow, but expects to come to the beach to see the tournament.
"I'm working until Monday," Skopas said. "It's going to be so much fun."
For more information visit the tournament Web site www.avpseaside.com, or the borough's Web site www.seasideheightstourism.com.

Take some body sculpting advice from the pros
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/25/06
FITNESS MAGAZINE
If you want to get the lean legs of a triathlete, the ripped abs of a volleyball player or the super-toned arms of a swimmer, try these moves.

Six-pack abs
From Nancy Mason, member of the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour:
A strong core is mandatory to power the ball over the net. Plus, I need to look great in my swimsuit because the games are televised.
Ball V-Up: Sit on the floor with a volleyball between your ankles. Contract abs and thighs and lay back with knees slightly bent. Extend your arms overhead, keeping elbows next to ears, palms facing each other. Lift legs perpendicular to floor while curling torso up. Take hold of the ball with hands, then lower arms and legs two inches from the floor. Without resting, curl torso up again to place ball between ankles. Repeat for two sets of 15 to 20 repetitions.

Buff arms
Amanda Beard, seven-time Olympic medalist swimmer:
Strong biceps and triceps help me slice through the water's resistance and swim more efficiently.
Military Pull-Up: Place a bench under an overhead bar. Stand on the bench and take hold of the bar, hands a little wider than shoulder-width apart, palms facing away. Curl your knees into your abs, then bend your arms and lift your chin over the bar. Release your feet back to the bench, extend your arms, and repeat. If this is too difficult, keep your feet on the bench and lift your chin over the bar, trying not to support your weight with your feet. Work up to 12 reps.

Lean, sculpted legs
Heather Fuhr, professional triathlete:
The athlete with the strongest legs is the one who always wins the race.
Dumbbell Reverse Lunge: Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a 5- to 10-pound dumbbell in each hand. Take one large step back with right leg and bend left knee 90 degrees. Keep torso lifted, tighten abs and lightly touch right knee to the floor. Hold for two counts. Stand and return right leg to starting position; repeat with left leg. Alternate for 20 controlled reps per side.
Strong, firm glutes

Kendra Wenzel, former member of the U.S. National Cycling Team:
The key to high-performance cycling is mastering hill work, which requires extra butt and hip strength.
Partial Squats: Place a 20-pound barbell across upper back and stand with feet hip-width apart. Take 2 counts to lower your hips until knees bend 90 degrees, making sure knees don't move past toes. Return to the starting position in one count and repeat. Work up to four sets of 30 reps.

Mihalic, Mowrey will have to earn way into main bracket
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/29/06
BY SCOTT CLAYTON
STAFF WRITER
It was not good news to receive, but it was not exactly unexpected, either. When the draw for the AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open was released on Tuesday, former Wall resident A.J. Mihalic and teammate Chad Mowrey were relegated to the qualifiers bracket for the second straight event.
Qualifying action starts at 8 a.m. today, the first of four days the pros will be spending on the beaches adjacent to Blaine Ave. and Sumner Ave.
Mihalic and Mowrey did however get the booby prize of the top-seeded team in the qualifying bracket. So if the Seaside Heights Open had not committed two of its spots in the main draw with wild-card teams, Mihalic and Mowrey would be spending today relaxing on the beach, rather than chasing down spikes.
"Chad and I have routinely been a main draw team, but we've had two pretty bad finishes in a row," Mihalic said. "I kind of wish they didn't have the wild cards, but this might help us get on a roll."
Mihalic and Mowrey had limited success after earning seeds in California stops in Santa Barbara, Huntington Beach, and Hermosa Beach, but the team hopes its low point came at the Sacramento Open on June 15. There, Mihalic and Mowrey failed to make it out of qualifying despite being the top seed.
Since moving to Redondo Beach, Calif., in 2001, the New Jersey stop on the AVP Tour has literally been a homecoming for Mihalic, who will be staying through July 5 with parents Anthony and Marilyn.
"The first year I came back there were a few other East Coast guys on the tour, and I think I was getting cheered against because I had moved away," Mihalic said. "Now most of the guys I know are actually hoping I play pretty well, as weird as that sounds.
"It's a little bit of a bummer that it's not in Belmar. I happen to think Belmar is a little nicer, but I'm still going to have tons of fans — so I'm happy."
Jeff Wentworth of Monmouth Beach and Jim Walls will attempt to qualify today as the No. 18 seed. Wentworth's wife, Sharon, will team with New Yorker Beth Kennedy and try to play her way into the women's draw.
Other locals that will take to the sand will be Fred Fauhl Jr. of Seaside Heights, Kris Fraser of Lakewood, and Wes Moore of Rumson.

AVP set to invade Seaside
Posted by the Ocean County Observer on 06/29/06
BY MATT UNDERWOOD
STAFF WRITER
The AVP Seaside Heights Open Presented by Bud Light hits the beach today to begin the qualifying portion of the tournament, with 51 men's and 24 women's teams vying for the final eight spots in each main draw, and a shot at a piece of the $183,000 in prize money.
The tournament returns to Seaside for the first time since 1995 (when just a men's event was held), and the first time both genders will participate since 1992, returning after a 15-year stay in Belmar.
A number of local players will take their shot at qualifying for tomorrow's main draw.
Ocean County's top seeded team in the single-elimination qualifying tournament comes in at No. 26, with Lakewood's Kristopher Fraser and his San Diego-based partner Jon Barnes taking on No. 39 Jason Buckwalter and Gabe Sweeney of Pennsylvania.
Fred Fauhl Jr., Toms River, will team up with Tony Yates, East Brunswick. The team drew the 45th seed in the qualifying round and will face No. 20 Scott Kiedaisch and Daniel Skins this morning at 8:30.
Fauhl and Yates have played together for the past two years, winning a few tournaments locally over that span.
"We'd like to get to the main draw, but we just want to go out there and win as many matches as possible," said the 5-foot-11 Fauhl, 31, who got his start in volleyball on the sand 10 years ago. "I've been playing a lot. I'm ready to go against the best. It's going to be an interesting day."
Fauhl grew up in Brick and has lived in different parts of Ocean and Monmouth counties for his entire life before settling in Toms River.
"I'm going to have some good friends coming out tomorrow," Fauhl said. "We're not quite sure what to expect from our opponents. They're from California, so we haven't seen them before. I think we're ready to go, though."
Another Toms River resident, Brian Reiner, and partner Justin Ridgway, Cape May, are ranked 47th and open with two other New Jersey natives — 18th-seeded Jim Walls, Cape May, and Jeff Wentworth, Brielle.
"I look at this as a challenge, just a chance to go out there and give it my all," said the 6-foot Reiner, who used to coach Ridgway at the College of New Jersey. "I don't travel with the tour. I'm into the training and competing and seeing what I can do. You just try to do the best you can. When you have nothing to lose, sometimes you can surprise yourself."
Reiner plays in the Great American Volleyball Tour, which competes on Saturdays starting in May from Point Pleasant to Bradley Beach. His company, Sea Coast Family Chiropractic, is one of the sponsors of the tour.
"It (Great American Volleyball Tour) gives us a chance to play for a little bit of money and play in a competitive atmosphere," Reiner said. "I just like to play. I don't take it overly serious. I just want to play well. If I play well and win, that's even better."
A.J. Mihalic, formerly of Wall Township and now of Hermosa Beach, Calif., and partner Chad Mowrey drew the top seed in the men's qualifying bracket.
Only two women's teams have a New Jersey connection — both in the qualifying round — Agnieszka Pregowska, Bridgewater, drew the 18th seed along with partner Alexsandra Wolak, New York. Sharon Wentworth of Bradley Beach and Beth Kennedy come in with the 24th seed.
The main draw will begin tomorrow with the first two rounds on both the men's and women's brackets taking place.
The top-seeded men's team of Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers will look to rebound after losing for just the second time this season two weeks ago in Sacramento. The duo had won the previous four tournaments, before Stein Metzger and Mike Lambert broke through for a win.
Metzger and Lambert could be the favorite for this event even as the No. 2 seed, as the second-seeded team has won 12 of 39 events since the start of the 2003 season.
On the women's side, the top-seeded team of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh will be two of the more recognizable figures participating in the seventh of 16 tour events this season. They are the defending Olympic champions.
The tandem have won five of the first six events and have won $100,000 more than second place Rachel Wacholder and Elaine Youngs.
Youngs has a chance to make a bit of history on Sunday, as a third place finish would put her over the $1 million mark for her career, only the 16th player of either gender to reach the milestone. She would be the oldest woman to reach the mark, at 36.
Volleyball legend Holly McPeak — the champion last time a women's event was held in Seaside (1993) — is seeded sixth with partner Nicole Branagh.
Since her last appearance in Seaside, McPeak has stood atop the podium in 68 tournaments, pushing her into first place all-time.
The tournament will take place between Sumner and Blaine avenues beginning at 8:30 a.m. The main draw begins tomorrow, followed by quarterfinals on Saturday and semifinals on Sunday morning.
The men's final is at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, with the women taking the court at 4 p.m.
The finals will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net — women's July 8th at 1 p.m., and men's July 29th at 1 p.m.
There will be a multitude of activities, including a Crocs AVP Serve, Pass and Hit Interactive area as well as Xbox Gaming Oasis, among other things.
Admission to today's qualifier is free. During the main draw, there will be a $15 per session admission fee, while courtside seats go for $30 and Skybox for $50.

The Backstretch
posted by Scott Clayton
Asbury Park Press
Thursday, June 29, 2006
AVP Estimates
In the past 7 days I've upped the hit count on www.avp.com approximately 6,327 times.
That's a testament not only to the amount of research that I need to do to cover volleyball while sounding like I know what I'm talking about, but also to the amount of information that can be found on said website. Good work, folks. I can't get enough of the personal tidbits, like the names of Elaine Youngs' dogs, that A.J. Mihalic considers Charles Barkley his hero, and that fellow players call Phil Dalhausser "Federalie."
Well, for the time being, I'm tired of www.avp.com and looking forward to actually seeing people play volleyball rather than just talk about it. With that in mind, whatever follows in this blog update will possess no facts. Writing is much more fun without the encumberance of accuracy.
So let's guess that during the last two years approximately 95% of the women's AVP finals have pitted Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh (who apparently is anti-hyphen despite becoming Mrs. Casey Jennings in the past year) against Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder. Of those finals, somewhere in the neighborhood of 85% have gone to MM-T and KW.
So if you're too cheap to buy a ticket to Sunday's Seaside Heights Open finals and somehow manage to crane your head and peer through the flags and banners of the 15 different sponsors that line the temporary stadium, the chances are pretty good that those four players are going to be fighting for the big prize.
You'd think that maybe the players might get tired of the redundancy of the 16 tour stops (not to mention the times they meet up overseas). You wouldn't be more wrong.
For the 36-year-old Youngs it's obvious that winning it what has kept her going as she approaches $1 million in career earnings.
Asked if certain meetings with MM-T and KW stand out, Youngs was quick to reply..."Yeah the ones we win. I remember them because they don't come often enough." Some losses stand out too and last year's final at Belmar (after leading 13-10 in the third game) was a stinger... "I do remember that one. That was a bitter pill to swallow because it would have been two in a row for us. It does legitimize us to beat them."
As for the Seaside Heights versus Belmar stand-off, Wacholder casts her vote to SH. "There's just so much more here. I've never seen anything like it. I guess it's like a movie, but I can't think of which one. Maybe "Big". Thanks to www.imdb.com I learned that the carnival scenes in Big were filmed in Rye, N.Y. If Wacholder is able to track down an old Zoltar machine, there's a chance we could see the AVP Rye Open next year.
We'll be updating the blogs the next three days from courtside, but thanks to the wonders (as in, hmmm I wonder) of technology I can't access my app.com e-mail from outside my office. Soooo, if there is anything inquiring minds want to know, send it along HERE.
By the way, I don't mention Crocs enough. Crocs came on board as the primary sponsor of the AVP Tour this year. (this kindness has nothing to do with the pair of Crocs I've been promised)
I'd also like to say that the second the action ends on Friday, I'm going to jet off to find a Hilton with a McDonalds in the lobby. Preferably one that serves Bud Light and Gatorade. Once I get some Nature Valley Granola Bars in me, it'll be up to my room where I can relax playing my XBox 360 while doing shots of Jose Cuervo and conditioning my hair with some Paul Mitchell products. Sounds like a good time, right?

Volleyball Players From Calif. Check out the Jersey Shore
Web Extras Photo Galleries
Volleyball Players From Calf. Check Out the Jersey Shore
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 06/29/06

Top Seeds Misty May-Treanor & Kerri Walsh and Phil Dalhausser & Todd Rogers advance undefeated
June 30, 2006
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NJ - June 30, 2006 - Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh, the top-seeded women's team on 2006 AVP Crocs Tour, advanced undefeated to Saturday play at the AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light, the seventh Tour stop this season. May-Treanor and Walsh defeated Dana Fiume and Jill Pickus 21-17, 21-8 and Saralyn Smith and Ann Windes 21-12, 21-13. May-Treanor and Walsh play on Stadium Court 9:30 a.m. on Saturday and will face Carrie Dodd and Barbra Fontana.
Holly McPeak, who won the 1993 Seaside Heights Open tournament with then-partner Nancy Reno, is seeded sixth with new partner Nicole Branagh. McPeak and Branagh also advanced to Saturday play undefeated with wins over Meri-De Boyer and Amber Willey 21-16, 21-9 and Katie Lindquist and Tracy Lindquist 21-11, 21-13.
Elaine Youngs continues her history-making run in Seaside this weekend as she and partner Rachel Wacholder advanced to the third round with wins over Jessie Cooper and Kristin Ursillo 21-11, 21-7 and Angie Akers and Heather Lowe 21-16, 21-18 on Friday. A third place finish at this event would make Youngs the third American woman to surpass the one million dollar mark in prize money earned. McPeak, the winningest female beach volleyball player of all time, and May-Treanor are the only other two female players to accomplish the feat.
No. 4 seed Jen Kessy Boss and Nancy Mason were bumped to the contender's bracket of play by 13th seed Michelle More and Suzanne Stonebarger. More and Stonebarger will meet April Ross and Keao Burdine in the next round following Ross and Burdine's upset over fifth seed Dianne DeNecochea and Tammy Leibl.
On the men's side, top seed Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers advanced undefeated to Saturday play with a 21-15, 21-15 wins over no. 32 seed Mike Salak and Amaury Velasco and no. 17 seed Matt Heath and Jason Lee. Dalhausser and Rogers look to win their fifth tournament title of the season in Seaside; they meet ninth seed Ty Loomis and Ed Ratledge in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Second seed Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger were pushed to three games in their first round match against qualifiers Casey Brewer and Danko Iordanov, a former Rutgers University star player, before winning 15-21, 21-9, 15-12. They beat Ben Koski and Jeff Minc 21-12, 21-13 in the second round to advance to Saturday play.
In an upset, no. 3 seed Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal were knocked into the contender's bracket by 13th seed Sean Rooney and Nick Lucena who won the match 21-19, 18-21, 27-25. Rooney is now one win away from a career-best finish.
Local favorite AJ Mihalic, a Wall Township, NJ native, and partner Chad Mowrey were pushed to the contender's bracket after an 18-21, 16-21 loss to 10 th seed Paul Baxter and Fred Souza. They are still alive following a 21-16, 24-26, 20-18 win over Austin Rester and Adam Roberts in the contender's bracket.
Main draw competition continues Saturday, July 1st from 9:30-6:00 p.m. An evening session will be held on Saturday from 7:30-10:00 p.m. The finals for the men and women are on Sunday, July 2nd at 2:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. respectively; both will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net. Tickets are available for purchase at www.avp.com.

Ursillo Enjoys Professional Success
June 30, 2006
Former Northeastern volleyball standout Kristin Ursillo is now enjoying success in her second season on the Professional Beach Volleyball Circuit. Ursillo and her partner, Jessie Cooper, formerly of Brown University, have advanced to the main draw of this weekend’s Women’s AVP $183,000 Seaside Heights Open in New Jersey.
After her first year on the tour, Ursillo spent the off-season training to help achieve this breakthrough. “The tour is set up to accommodate the established teams,” said NU volleyball head coach Ken Nichols. “It makes sense to ensure their products to the fans, but makes qualifying for the main draw extremely difficult for the new players. I am not surprised that Kristin has accomplished this in the beginning of just her second season on the Tour. Her talent for the beach arguably exceeds her indoor play which was, of course, so exceptional.”
After making the Seaside Heights Open Main Draw, Ursillo and Cooper will be tested early as they face off against Rachel Wacholder and 2004 Olympic bronze medalist, Elaine Youngs. Wacholder and Youngs have finished no lower than fifth in their three starts this year.
Ursillo is Northeastern’s career leader in both assists (4,582) and service aces (208). She was America East Setter of the Year for three consecutive seasons for Nichols’ Huskies. She was an under-18 beach national champion and a junior Olympic gold medal winner. She also represented the U.S. in the World Under-21 Beach Championship with UCLA star Chrissy Zartman, who she and Cooper defeated to reach the Seaside Heights Open Main Draw.

Elaine Youngs Makes History becoming the third American female in history to surpass $1 million in career earnings
July 1, 2006
SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NJ - July 1, 2006 - Elaine Youngs made history at the 2006 AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light on Saturday becoming the third American female beach volleyball player to surpass the one million dollar mark in prize money earned. Her 26-24, 21-19 quarterfinal win with partner Rachel Wacholder over sixth seed Nicole Branagh and Holly McPeak guaranteed Youngs at least a third place finish securing the prize money to propel her over the million dollar mark. Youngs and Wacholder move on to Sunday's semifinals.
"This accomplishment is great for women's sports," said Youngs following her history-making match. "I'm proud to be a part of anything that can bring positive attention to the AVP."
Youngs joins Holly McPeak, the winningest player in beach volleyball history, and 2005 AVP MVP Misty May-Treanor in reaching the million dollar plateau. Kerri Walsh could potentially become the fourth American woman to reach this mark later this month at the AVP McDonalds Chicago Open presented by Toyota.
"She deserves to be in the club," said McPeak about Youngs. "The AVP Crocs Tour just keeps getting better every stop. I'm excited to be a part of it."
May-Treanor and Walsh, the top-seeded women's team, advanced undefeated to the fourth round in Seaside to be played at 8:30 p.m. Saturday night. May-Treanor and Walsh defeated ninth seed Carrie Dodd and Barbra Fontana 21-16, 21-18 on Saturday afternoon en route to Saturday night play. They meet no. 13 seed Michelle More and Suzanne Stonebarger, who defeated no. 21 seed Keao Burdine and April Ross 23-21, 13-21, 15-7 in a hard-fought match to reach the fourth round.
McPeak, champion of the 1993 Seaside Heights Open tournament with then-partner Nancy Reno, was knocked into the contender's bracket following the fourth round loss to Wacholder and Youngs. McPeak and partner Nicole Branagh will play Sunday morning against Dodd and Fontana.
On the men's side, top seed Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers advanced to Saturday night play with a 15-21, 21-18, 15-13 win over ninth seed Ty Loomis and Ed Ratledge. Dalhausser and Rogers meet Jeff Nygaard and John Hyden in fourth round action Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. with the winner advancing to Sunday's semifinals. The loser will face seventh seeded Dax Holdren and Sean Scott Sunday morning at 9:45 a.m.
Second seed Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger continued a strong run in Seaside advancing to the semifinals after defeating Holdren and Scott 21-17, 21-17 in the third round and no. 14 seed Nick Lucena and Sean Rooney 21-15, 21-14 in fourth round on Saturday. Lambert and Metzger are the only team to reach the semifinals at every event on the AVP Crocs Tour this season.
In an upset, no. 3 seed Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal were knocked out of competition following a 18-21, 21-15, 12-15 loss to no. 4 seed Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings. Fuerbringer and Jennings will meet Lucena and Rooney in the semifinals Sunday morning at 9:45 a.m.
Main draw competition continues Sunday, July 2nd from 9:45 a.m - 2:30 p.m.. The men's finals will be played on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. followed by the women's finals at 4:00 p.m. respectively; both will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net. Tickets are available for purchase at www.avp.com.

Volleyball: Youngs is a money player
Sunday, July 02, 2006
BY MEREDITH GALANTE
Star-Ledger Staff
Professional volleyball player Elaine Youngs started her weekend at the Jersey Shore instructing high school volleyball players on the technical aspects of the game.
She will end it today as a millionaire.
With at least a third-place finish at the AVP Seaside Heights Open already guaranteed, Youngs will surpass the $1 million mark in her career earnings as a pro. She will become the third American woman -- joining Holly McPeak and Misty May-Treanor -- to earn more than $1 million playing the sport.
"This will be a very nice accomplishment for me," said Youngs, a 2004 Olympic bronze medalist. "It shows I have had a long successful career and that I'm a winner. It is important to me that I've had such a steady career. However, earning $1 million doesn't make or break my career because I plan on playing for a long time to come, and I hope to make it to the $2 million mark."
The tournament, which began Friday, returned to Seaside Heights for the first time since 1995. Roughly 150 of the top players are participating.
Youngs and her partner, Rachel Wacholder, cruised through their first two rounds on Friday and won both their matches yesterday.
The Youngs-Wacholder duo has won one tournament, at Hermosa Beach, Calif., this year. The duo is seeded second in this weekend's event behind first seeded May-Treanor and partner Kerri Walsh.
"It's great playing with EY (Youngs)," Wacholder said. "She is one of the best athletes and she has given me the most success I've ever experienced. She has worked so hard, and it has been so good for me as an athlete to play with her. She deserves this so much."
Youngs, 36, and Wacholder, 31, have been playing together for two years and currently are No. 2 in women's team point leaders. They are both natives of California.
"Chemistry with your partner is important to winning," McPeak said. "Good energy needs to be flowing between the two players. You need to have the same goals and work hard together to reach those goals, that's everything."
Youngs has won at least one title in nine of the 10 seasons she has played. She is currently ranked fourth among U.S. women in international victories. The Durango, Calif., resident graduated from UCLA in 1993 with a degree in history. While at UCLA, she was a four-time All-American.
Now, she's on the verge of another milestone.
"We didn't go into this weekend with a different frame of mind just because Elaine is approaching the $1 million mark," Wacholder said. "We work hard and try to play well regardless of the occasion, we don't do it for the money."
To win, they'll have to get past their chief rivals. McPeak returns to Seaside as defending champion, having won the last AVP event in Seaside in June 1993. She has earned more than $1,350,000 in beach volleyball prize money.
"We have mini-goals for every tournament," Youngs said. "We want to be the top team in this one. Kerri and Misty set the bar really high and we want to compete at that level."

A rich reward for Youngs
AVP star set to jump serve her way to $1-million mark in career earnings
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/2/06
BY SCOTT CLAYTON
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — For years, Elaine Youngs has boasted the premier jump serve on the women's AVP Tour. It was on the strength of that time-tested weapon that Youngs and partner Rachel Wacholder were able to advance past Holly McPeak and Nicole Branagh in Saturday's winner's bracket semifinals of the AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open.
Youngs closed out a 26-24, 21-19 win with the final two service points. The duo will face a team out of the contender's bracket early Sunday with the hopes of advancing to the 4 p.m. final. The victory assured the players of a top-four finish and enough of a pay day to put Youngs over the $1-million mark in career earnings. Youngs hopes to cap the weekend with the 35th win of her 10-year career.
"I didn't even realize it until sometime in the last couple of days," Youngs said. "I'm really happy and I thanked Holly after the match."
Youngs had her greatest successes alongside McPeak, including 16 wins from 2002-04. The pair also earned the bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
"She deserves to be in that club for sure," said McPeak, the all-time leader in earnings at more than $1.4 million. "She's one of the best players in the world. It says a lot about where our tour is going. For a female athlete now the opportunities are incredible.
"I've been groveling for 17 years to get beach volleyball on the map."
In the midst of a swing that is going to have Youngs and Wacholder playing events on 21 straight weekends, the duo is experimenting with different approaches. As a result, the 5-foot-9 Wacholder spent time at the net on defense, typically the sole domain of the 6-foot Youngs, whose 20 blocks are tops in the tournament thus far.
"We mapped out the season and we're doing a lot of different things to get our minds fresh and play freer," Youngs said. "Rachel's actually a decent blocker and she's really quick when she drops off the net."
If Youngs and Wacholder advance to the final, it would be a shock if they were to face anyone other than top-seeded Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh. The reigning Olympic gold medalists have stormed through their first four matches, topping Michelle More and Suzanne Stonebarger in Saturday night action, 21-14, 21-14, to extend their winning streaks to 26 games and 15 matches.
The top-seeded men's duo of Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhauser also rolled into today's action. After overcoming an upset bid by ninth-seeded Ty Loomis and Ed Ratledge, 15-21, 21-18, 15-13, Rogers and Dalhauser had to claw their way out of a 16-12 hole in the second game to triumph, 22-20, 23-21, over John Hyden and Jeff Nygaard in a wind-riddled night match.
"It was pretty tough conditions," Rogers said. "The ball was moving around a lot on the sets. John sets a flat ball so instead of a nice spinning motion it was just floating. Jeff was trying to deal as best he could, I give him credit."
After the trials of a three-game match in Friday's round, the second-seeded men's team of Stein Metzger and Mike Lambert cruised to a pair of decisive winners' bracket victories. With a break of barely an hour after their quarterfinal win, Metzger and Lambert advanced into the tournament's final four with a 21-15, 21-14 win over 14th-seeded Nick Lucena and Sean Rooney.
"It's all about staying in the winners' (bracket)," Metzger said. "Our motto is, "Have to do without.' Whether it's food, sleep, a clean shirt, we just do without."

Lookin' goodVolleyball tour uses sex appeal as selling point
By SUSAN LULGJURAJ Staff Writer, (609) 272-7187
Published: Sunday, July 2, 2006
Updated: Sunday, July 2, 2006
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Throngs of fans surrounded Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder's match. They didn't want to miss the second-seeded women's team in action.
A group of young, bronzed, testosterone-charged men stood in one corner with beers in hand.
“They're pretty good, huh?”
“Who?”
“Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder.”
“Oh, is that who it is?”
Getting lost in a player's looks is not uncommon at professional beach volleyball tournaments. There is more skin than clothing and the Seaside Heights Open, an Association for Volleyball Professionals event, is no exception.
The women are wearing the skimpiest bikinis, leaving nothing to the imagination. By the end of their matches they are covered in sweat and sand, then, douse themselves in water for a bit of celebration.
How can someone not get turned on?
“We have beautiful athletes and the sex appeal of the sport is a selling point,” AVP CEO and Tour commissioner Leonard Armato said. “The beach environment is always a great place to hold an event. We just juice it up with eye candy and interactivity.”
But it isn't just the players who are getting the cat calls. Spectators walk the tour grounds in their bathing suits, drawing attention from both the athletes and fans. A barely there bikini on a toned, tanned body made more than one onlooker wipe the drool from his face.
“Everything about this place is sexy,” said Janet Fitzsimmons, of Long Beach Island. “From the guys with their chiseled bodies to the women who don't have an ounce of fat on them. You have to appreciate everything walking around out here.”
But it isn't just the women who are ogled at. Men feel the other end of gazing eyes.
Shay Aaron, of Moorestown, had one of the best views on the beach. She was a ball shagger on court No. 1, where top men and women compete.
Aaron, who is a 6-foot indoor volleyball player going to Gywnedd-Mercy on a scholarship, took time out to appreciate her surroundings.
“I really wanted to see Phil Dalhausser and (Sean) Rosenthal. They are so cute,” Aaron said with a sly grin as Rosenthal stood nearly ten feet away from her. “This is really exciting.”
Because the 18-year-old is so tall, she also likes coming to the event where she can meet others who are taller than her and enjoy the same sport.
“It's so great to come here and meet guys that are taller than me,” she said. “In my school there were only like three of them that were either my height or taller. This is good.”
Her father could only laugh because his 16-year-old son Joe was on the other side of the court looking at the women.
“We got here at 8:30 this morning to make sure we got a good court,” Joe said.
The AVP and its sponsors are aware at how sex is a formidable marketing tool, from the Cuervo Girls who lure adoring men into their tent for an airbrushed tattoo or pictures with the girls to the Bud Light Girl who ran her finger down the side of her almost bare torso telling drinkers that Bud Light does a body good.
“Sex is a great marketing tool,” said one of the Cuervo Girls, Margarita Suarez, 26, from Hackensack. “Guys see us and they want to stop and talk to us. Having that sex appeal has a lot to do with getting their attention.”

A WAY TO GET SOME EXPOSURE
Without uniforms, company ads become tattoos
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/2/06
BY JOE ZEDALIS
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Unlike other professional sports where uniforms provide opportunity for corporate logos like the Nike Swoosh or the Reebok emblem, there simply isn't that much room for advertising on a two-piece bikini or a pair of baggy shorts.
What male and female players on the Association of Volleyball Professionals tour do show, however, is plenty of skin. Corporate America's answer is temporary tattoos. Worn by players on their shoulders, the tattoos are visible to fans in the stands and caught regularly by cameras of newspaper and television.
Some players sport tattoos for sports drinks, others for hotels. And while the monetary deals for wearing the tattoos on the AVP tour don't exactly reach Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods numbers, they are lucrative in their own right.
"What personal sponsorships allow us to be is consummate professionals and not have a part-time job," said Stein Metzger, 33-year-old touring pro from California. "Without the sponsorships, we'd be nothing more than second-class athletes.
"It's our personal sponsors and the AVP support that allows us to compete worldwide and in the Olympics.'
Hilton Garden Hotels is in its first year as both a tour sponsor for the AVP and a personal sponsor for Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder. And while Hilton representatives wouldn't discuss dollar amounts, they admit the tattoos do get the Hilton name out into the public eye.
"We're not a manufacturer," said Cathleen Lewis, the director of strategic partnerships for Hilton Hotels. "It gives us exposure."
Jim Cone, the director of marketing for Hilton Hotels, said its partnership with Youngs and Wacholder is more than skin deep.
"We feel like our relationship with the AVP gives us a relationship with exemplary individuals who young people should aspire to be (like)."
Hilton Hotels also is heavily involved with the Olympic volleyball program and sponsors the youth clinic the AVP puts on at every tour stop during the season.
"We are in the hospitality business," Cone said.
The players, meanwhile, don't mind the tattoos at all.
"I was on the tour when the AVP was in trouble," Metzger said. "We were playing for $50,000 and if you won, you might make $2,000.
"There are so many good players on the tour now, you never know from week to week where you might finish or what your earnings might be. The sponsorship money is like a regular salary. It allows you to pay for the coaching, the training and the physical therapy. Besides, when I got out of college I was broke anyway," Metzger said. "So I was fine with the idea."

Not afraid of a little extra work
Jennings, Fuerbringer don't mind contender's bracket
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/2/06
BY BOB BADDERS
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Call it the contender's bracket, loser's bracket or the win-or-go-home bracket. Either way it's not a place teams like to find themselves if the goal is to win an event on the AVP/Crocs Tour.
Casey Jennings and Matt Fuerbringer do not seem to mind, however.
"You can almost breathe a little bit and relax even though you have a lot more work," Jennings said. "You get to reevaluate your game and reassess what you did wrong mentally and physically."
Twice in 2005 the pair battled back from the contender's bracket to reach the semifinals and was victorious in one tournament after being bounced from the winner's bracket.
Faced with the prospects of an early exit twice during Saturday's AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open, the duo was able to rebound in both contender's bracket matches to stay alive in its quest for a 2006 title. After a loss to John Hyden and Jeff Nygaard in the quarterfinals, Jennings and Fuerbringer won back-to-back three-game matches against Brent Doble and Ryan Mariano and Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal to guarantee at least a fifth-place finish. Today, Jennings and Fuerbringer will face Nick Lucena and Sean Rooney in a contender's bracket final.
In both wins, the tandem won the first game before taking one on the chin to set up a third game. Each time they went back to a combination of deft passing and swarming defense to stave off elimination.
"You've got to look at it and say "Hey, it's a new game,' " Fuerbringer said. "You can't let it get to you. You try to think about what you did good in the game you won, make the adjustments and put it all on the line in game three."
Physical attributes like Fuerbringer's 6-foot-7 frame and intangibles like Jennings' experience of eight years on the Tour have surely contributed to their success, but their laid-back attitude should get just as much credit. A mistake in the third game of an elimination match is usually enough to induce an emotional outburst from most players, but Jennings and Fuerbringer take it all in stride.
"You can't let that get to you or you'll never win that third game," Jennings said. "You have to slow it down, take a breath and realize you're not out of the game. Even if they make some great plays you have to keep your head high."
Their never-say-die attitudes are a big reason why the two are crowd favorites at nearly every stop on the Tour. That and a little fan interaction. Throughout their match with Gibb and Rosenthal, Jennings would throw the ball back and forth with a spectator before his serve while Fuerbringer urged the crowd to make noise.
"They just give me so much energy and anybody that's doing that for me I like to recognize it," Jennings said.
"Sometimes you're playing in a match and you're so into it, but you look up at the crowd and you realize that this is a dream of yours to play on the Tour and it kind of relaxes you," Fuerbringer added.
Even after 3 hours of matches Saturday, Jennings and Fuerbringer never lost their composure or their positive attitudes. So, it's no wonder they don't fold under pressure.
There will be more pressure today as the stakes get higher, but that doesn't figure to bother this tandem. Perhaps that's why it isn't called the loser's bracket. Not everyone feels like it's a total loss.

BREAKING UP A BIG PART OF THE AVP TOUR SCENE
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/2/06
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — When it comes to life on the AVP/Crocs Tour, breaking up isn't hard to do.
It can become like a bad Fox show, "Partner Swap," the way top players on the professional beach volleyball circuit shuffle playing partners. One season you're riding high, the next season you're picking up the newspaper and learning you're a goner, finding out from your friends you've been dumped or getting the George Costanza treatment from your playing partner: It's not you, it's me.
When Kobe and Shaq broke up after three championships with the Lakers, it was treated like Brad Pitt kicking Jennifer Aniston to the curb. When top players on the AVP part ways, it barely merits a shrug. There's always another Angelina Jolie out there who is tempting to partner up with, especially if you're enduring a bad stretch of tournaments.
"The guys who've been on the tour for a little while are more mature, so they know it's a business," said men's player Stein Metzger. "When you're younger it can be a little hard to take."
That theory was certainly tested before this season when Metzger dropped Jake Gibb, who was fresh off winning the 2005 AVP Most Valuable Player award, in favor of childhood friend Mike Lambert. Gibb is now partnered with Sean Rosenthal.
"It's the first time in the history of the AVP that the MVP has been dumped," Gibb said before offering a wry smile. "It was a little shocking, a little tough, but he had his reasons and I understood them. It's part of the sport.
"It's more of a relationship than you can believe. You want to let someone down easy, and we sat down and talked it out."
Metzger and Lambert, who advanced to today's semifinals of the AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open, both went to Punahou High School in Honolulu and have remained good friends. They always wanted to pair up on the AVP, but for various reasons, it hadn't happened. First Metzger was having success with his partners, then Lambert got a call from 45-year-old beach volleyball legend Karch Kiraly to join forces.
That tandem marauded the tour in 2004, but with players now looking for the right combination in advance of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Kiraly cut Lambert loose before this season so Lambert could find a suitable partner to make a run at a trip to China.
"Karch told me he had no intention of trying for the Olympics," Lambert, 32, said. "He said, 'Son, I've already got three gold medals. It's your chance. I'm done.' "
With Lambert searching for a partner, Metzger realized that the window was closing for the two old friends to play together.
"I figured this was our last chance because we're not getting any younger," Metzger, 33, said. "I had to make a tough decision or the dreams we've had since high school might not happen."
"I don't think it was super-risky for Stein to pick me because I think me and Jake are comparable," Lambert said. "It's kind of win-win. He dropped the '05 MVP to play with the '04 MVP."
On the women's side, the tour's best team also happens to be its most stable one, Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, who have been together for six years and have won an Olympic gold medal. Success certainly helps, but as Metzger and Gibb showed, it's not everything. Walsh and May-Treanor's secret sounds like something straight out of a marriage counseling handbook.
"We work out whatever we need to work out," May-Treanor said. "It would be easy to just go, 'Ohhhh (rolling her eyes)' and move on, but you don't get better if you don't have your ups and downs."
"We have a lot of faith in each other, so if we're in a rut, we're going to get out," Walsh said. "Either she's going to pull me out, or I'm going to pull her out.
"The women's breakups are a little worse than the men's breakups. I think women take
it a little more personally."
The key to rebounding from getting dumped is to be prepared. Getting a new partner takes a little more than passing a note in the cafeteria that reads, 'Do you like me? Check yes or no.' One thing that will genuinely anger the dumpee is getting dropped without any time to make some phone calls and latch on to a new partner.
"I think everyone knows what their short list is," Lambert said. "To me, I'm a right-side blocker, so I look at all the best left-side defenders. Then you have to find someone you get along with.
"You might be bummed because you're not going to find a better guy, but in the end each guy is the one who is going to have to go home and pay his own bills. A guy has to make the best moves for himself."
That means it's every man for himself in a sport that requires two-man teams. Using that math, there's no time for hard feelings.

Husband and wife duo Kerri Walsh and Casey Jennings Win in Seaside Heights
July 2, 2006
SEASIDE HEIGHTS , NJ - July 2, 2006 - Top-seed Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh defeated no. 2 seed Rachel Wacholder and Elaine Youngs 21-13, 21-18 in the final of the 2006 AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light on Sunday to win their sixth title this season and continue their domination of the AVP Crocs Tour. May-Treanor and Walsh have faced Wacholder and Youngs in the finals four times this season.
Walsh and husband AVP star Casey Jennings who took home the men's title in Seaside with partner Matt Fuerbringer, became only the second married couple in history to win pro beach volleyball titles in the same weekend.
"My heart was beating out of my chest," said Walsh about watching husband Jennings' match. "It's huge. Hopefully we'll have many more wins together."
Youngs also made history in Seaside surpassing the one million dollar mark in prize money earned. She is the third American female beach volleyball player to accomplish this feat behind Holly McPeak and May-Treanor. Walsh is currently on course to be the fourth and could secure her spot at the 2006 AVP McDonalds Chicago Open presented by Toyota event later this month.
"I think it's fantastic," said May-Treanor about Youngs' accomplishment. "We should get green jackets or something like the golfers do. The sport is definitely growing and the prize money is going up."
On the men's side, no. 4 seed Fuerbringer and Jennings secured their first title of the 2006 AVP Crocs Tour defeating no. 7 seed Dax Holdren and Sean Scott 16-21, 21-12, 17-15. The Tour has seen four different teams win titles this year with Fuerbringer and Jennings joining Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers, Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger and Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal. Seaside marked the first finals appearance of the season for Holdren and Scott.
"Sometimes teams can jump out on you, and sometimes you have to claw your way out of a hole," said Jennings. "You always have to go back to zero in the second game. They (crowd) were into it. They're going to go spread the word. If you don't enjoy it while you're playing and then you go lose, what did you get out of it?"
Fuerbringer and Jennings battled back through the contenders bracket to reach today's championship match. They knocked out top seeds Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers 21-19, 14-21, 15-10 in the semifinals. This is the fourth career title win for the team; Fuerbringer and Jennings have been in the finals in New Jersey for four straight years.
"I think it's only going to build from here," said Fuerbringer about the Tour's return to Seaside Heights. "The fan support is great, everyone's into it here."
The Seaside Heights Open event is the first of four consecutive weekend tournaments. The 2006 AVP Crocs Tour will travel to Atlanta next weekend for the Atlanta Open, July 6-9, Birmingham for the Birmingham-Hoover Open presented by Vault July 13-16 then to Chicago for the McDonalds Chicago Open presented by Nautica July 20-23. Tickets are available for purchase at www.avp.com.

All in the family
Walsh, husband Jennings capture respective titles
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/3/06
BY SCOTT CLAYTON
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Fans crowding a makeshift stadium on the beach to watch Olympic gold medalists Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor win another AVP/Crocs Tour event at the Jersey Shore had to be thankful the proceedings were brief.
On a sweltering day at the Seaside Heights Open, Walsh and May-Treanor made short work of second-seeded Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder in the women's final, winning 21-13, 21-18 in 49 minutes. The men's final in which Walsh's husband, Casey Jennings, and his partner Matt Fuerbringer took down Sean Scott and Dax Holdren, 16-21, 21-12, 17-15, brought the crowd to a frenzy the women had a tough time following.
What Walsh and May-Treanor have going in the volleyball world is not cheered so much as it is admired, anyway. The pair has now won 31 of the 37 AVP events in which they played together. Their record on the season now stands at 56-2 overall and 39-1 domestically, with the only blemish being a loss to Youngs and Wacholder in the finals of the Hermosa Beach Open on June 11, the teams' last meeting.
"We were hungry and more focused," May-Treanor said. "We didn't make as many mistakes as they did."
After dominating game one, both teams sided out the rest of the match after Walsh and May-Treanor seized an 11-9 lead. On match point, Wacholder was able to make a dig to keep the point alive, but given a second opportunity to end the match, Walsh took advantage.
"We only had two chances in the second game to score a point," Youngs said. "When you do get them, you're excited about it. They (Walsh and May-Treanor) compete really hard all the time and that's why they're as successful as they are."
"Our game two was exciting," Walsh said. "I much preferred game one. Misty sided out so patiently, though. Sometimes when you play them you just want to go, go, go, but you have to be patient."
Jennings and Fuerbringer won for the first time this year, and in a very balanced men's field, have amazingly made the finals in New Jersey for four straight years, the previous three coming at the Belmar Open. The pair took home a Belmar win in 2004, and are a favorite among the local fans.
"We always love Jersey," Jennings, a Las Vegas native, said. "They gave it to us first and we love giving it back to them."
Never one to hide his emotions, it's easy to see why the fiery Jennings has drawn such an outpouring of support from the New Jersey fans. Several times throughout the match he celebrated a point with a scream.
"If you don't enjoy it while you're playing and then you go lose, what did you get out of it?" Jennings wondered. "At that point, you're there, it's 15-all in the third game of the finals, if you don't have it there then you should just give up."
Scott was a dominant force in game one, converting on 13 of 15 attacks, but the tables turned in game two. After scoring just one point on serve in the first game, Jennings staked his team to a 3-0 lead in the second. It grew from there as the 6-foot-7 Fuerbringer, whose 36 blocks matched the tournament-high, dominated at the net.
In game three Holdren and Scott were able to quickly erase deficits at 3-1, 8-6, and 10-8, but Jennings was able to keep play alive with a dig at 16-15, and finished things off with a touch shot to a vacant corner.
"Sometimes teams can jump out on you," Jennings said, "and sometimes you have to claw your way out of a hole. But you always have to go back to zero in the second game."
"We had some chances," Holdren said. "Some blocks we had that normally go down went out of bounds."
Throughout the weekend the players reinforced their newfound love for Seaside Heights. Fuerbringer, for one, does not see a return to Belmar happening anytime soon.
"We're not going anywhere," Fuerbringer said. "I think it's only going to build from here. It's the first year here and the fan support is great, everyone's into it."

McGee is vital part of AVP experience
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/3/06
BY BOB BADDERS
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — During every game point, timeout and important moment of every match that takes place on stadium court, he has to rise to the occasion just as the players do.
The sun affects him just as much as the players, except it is not his muscles that take the beating, it is his vocal cords. Equal parts comedian and motivational speaker, Chris McGee is the voice of the AVP Tour.
During the men's and women's finals of the AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open, McGee, or "Geeter" as he is most commonly referred to, did what he does best: makes sure the crowd has the absolute best time possible.
"It's the greatest job in the world, to get paid to watch your friends play," McGee said. "It's about the game and the players. I'm just a part of it, but if people walk away a little more entertained than it feels great for me."
A former college volleyball player at California State University-Northridge, McGee joined the Tour as the emcee seven years ago after some friends who were playing on the tour asked him to help out. Since then, the AVP has relied on him to be a giant ball of energy at every stop — 18 per year to be exact.
Trying to catch up with McGee is no small task. From the time the day of the finals begins, McGee is moving at 100 mph with no time to rest. In between games of the men's final he was able to take about four minutes to answer some questions, and then it was out to pump up the crowd. He stole the show, coming back to the tent with plenty of high-fives waiting for him.
Before the women's final, he took to the beach and did "the worm" across the court to a standing ovation. He returned to the tent and brushed himself off before reminding himself that there was still work to be done.
"I drink a lot of water and take some "Throat Coat' just to keep the vocal cords going," McGee said. "You just have to ride the wave. You get some points where you're tired but you have to rise up."
McGee takes pride in his work and has plenty of fun at the same time. Whether it's giving an impromptu bio of Tour veteran and onlooker Mike Lambert or ragging on good friend and sound man Jeremy Rouche, McGee always gets a laugh.
"He is very entertaining to work with and if I'm tired, he's there to pick me up," Rouche said.
Juggling life on Tour is not easy, but McGee manages. For seven years he was a teacher and athletic director at Wildwood High School in West Los Angeles, also coaching the basketball and volleyball teams. Aside from his school and AVP gigs, McGee is a frequent guest on 1540 The Ticket in L.A. and also hosts two shows on Fox Sports Net — "AVP Classics" and "Dig" — and a show on the Travel Channel called "Sandblasters."
He recently retired from his athletic director post but still has plenty to keep him away from his home in Hermosa Beach, Calif., and his wife Jessica, whom he married last year.
His sacrifices do not go without notice, however. After Casey Jennings and Matt Fuerbringer won the men's title, Jennings grabbed the microphone to address the crowd. The first person he thanked was McGee.
"Without Geeter, the Tour would be a nightmare," Jennings said. "He's so into everything and does such a great job. We're lucky to have him."
Who knows how long the AVP will be able to hang on to its charismatic front man. All the hard work he has put in is starting to land him other opportunities, like the benefit he recently hosted with Ryan Seacrest of "American Idol" fame.
Until then, McGee will continue to bring energy to every stop the AVP makes as the ringleader of the Tour's big happy family.

Nothing but net: AVP officials, fans pleased by tourney
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/3/06
BY BRIAN PRINCE
STAFF WRITER
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — The crowd was on its feet, waiting for the volleyball to rise above the net and strike the sand for the final point.
It was a common sight here over the past few days as the borough hosted the AVP/Crocs Seaside Heights Open from Thursday to Sunday, its first AVP tournament since a men's event in 1995.
And then, with a bounce of the ball, it was over.
"I think it's been a great thing (AVP) came," said Dover Township resident Kevin Fox, 50, on Sunday, describing the atmosphere as "ecstatic."
In fact, the tournament was so exciting, Fox said, he and his daughter, Jordin, 15, blew off other social plans to attend.
"We said: "We got to go to the finals. They'll understand,' " Fox said with a smile.
Fox's sentiment was exactly what AVP Commissioner Leonard Armato was looking for. With its collection of rides, arcades and restaurants, Seaside Heights was the ideal entertainment-oriented environment for the competition, he said.
"Seaside Heights kind of represents the essence of the Jersey Shore," Armato said. "You can get up and yell and scream and have fun. We like to get people engaged."
Matt Fuerbringer of Redondo Beach, Calif., fresh from his team's victory in the finals, said the fans' spirit was contagious.
"Everyone's giving you energy," the 32-year-old said. "It's a great venue. We got a lot of walk-by traffic."
Though AVP officials did not offer an exact attendance figure, Armato said the tournament "got a pretty good crowd. We certainly hope to build it up more going forward."
On the boardwalk, employees at some businesses said the event had been good for the borough.
"It brought in different foot traffic," Glenn Lakatos, general manager of JR's Ocean Grill, said. "This has been good for the town."
"It was definitely a plus having the event here," said Mike Holland, general manager of restaurants Jimbo's and Spicy on the boardwalk. "Their operation is outstanding."
Good weather also helped, he said.
"It's really hot," said Linda Mabee, 61, of Jefferson as she stood on next to her husband, Will. The Morris County couple described themselves as fans of the sport and said they had attended the tournament when it was in Belmar.
"I think it's better here," she said.
"There's more stuff on the boardwalk here," her husband added.

The first couple of volleyball
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/3/06
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — Leaping up and down, hanging on every point, expending her energy in the 90-degree heat, beach volleyball star Kerri Walsh was certainly fired up for the finals of Sunday's AVP Crocs Tour Seaside Heights Open.
It's just that it was the men's final.
Walsh was supposed to be warming up for the women's final immediately following the men's championship, but it was more like overheating than warming up.
Walsh's husband, Casey Jennings, and his playing partner, Matt Fuerbringer, were locked in a three-game duel with Sean Scott and Dax Holdren before a packed crowd on the beach at Seaside Heights. During the course of their relationship, which includes their marriage Dec. 4, 2005, the best Jennings had done was play bridesmaid to his bride when it came to each of them locking up a title in the same tournament.
This season, Jennings and Fuerbringer were empty-handed thus far, while Walsh and May-Treanor had already bagged five titles heading into the Seaside Heights event.
That's why Walsh had May-Treanor a little concerned as Walsh rode the roller coaster of Jennings' eventual 16-21, 21-12, 17-15 victory. Jennings finally dropped in the winning shot, let loose a primal scream and celebrated his team's first win of the season, allowing Walsh to take a deep breath in the process. Now the pressure was on Walsh to hold up her end of the bargain, which hasn't been much of a problem.
"As a teammate, I worry about (Walsh's) energy level (when Jennings is playing)," May-Treanor said. "She gets so excited on every point. Up and down, boy, she makes me tired
watching her."
"It's draining on me, obviously," Walsh said. "They took it to three (games), and my heart was beating out of my chest."
Once Walsh and May-Treanor polished off a 21-13, 21-18 victory over Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder, Walsh and Jennings became the first husband and wife to each win AVP tournaments on the same weekend since Mike and Patty Dodd did it in 1989. Walsh and Jennings became the first couple to take home the oversized novelty checks at the same tournament.
Their status as the AVP's top power couple has been cemented. Cemented in sand, but cemented, nonetheless.
"Now that's what I call a double dip," Jennings said before smiling. "My wife got one and I got one."
"For the first time as hubby and wife, I'm very proud," Walsh said.
"It definitely gave me a lift. I had a big smile on my face because they've groveled, and they've earned everything."
While Walsh was fighting heart palpitations during Jennings' match, during Walsh's match Jennings was all smiles, munching hamburgers and cracking jokes up in the tent while the two Olympic gold medalists provided the latest example of their dominance. Jennings simply sat back and enjoyed the win while simultaneously basking in his own victory, a triumph that may actually dent his wallet a bit.
"(Jennings) is going to buy her something nice," May-Treanor cracked.
While working alongside your spouse is something that might drive some couples to the brink of insanity, Jennings and Walsh have been fine with it.
It certainly helps that May-Treanor knows what her teammate is going through because she's also married to a professional athlete, Florida Marlins catcher Matt Treanor.
Walsh, 27, has even helped slow down Jennings, 30, one of the most animated players on the tour, who's quick with a grin and always ready to let loose a roar after a big point in a match. In fact, her powers are so great that she may have accomplished something more impressive than her team's 89-match winning streak, that Olympic gold medal or her nearly $1 million in career earnings.
"She puts me to bed by nine o'clock," Jennings said before grinning.

Men's Recap: AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
By Matt Zuvela
July 3, 2006
It was a weekend of firsts at the AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light. The tour made its first stop in the beach town of Seaside Heights, New Jersey since 1995, and with the new tour stop came two new teams in the men's final, bringing the total to seven different finals' teams for the 2006 season. Casey Jennings and his partner Matt Fuerbringer played against Dax Holdren and Sean Scott after both teams advanced to the finals following a trip through the contender's bracket. Jennings and Fuerbringer won in three games 16-21, 21-12, 17-15 to give them their fourth tournament victory in their four seasons as partners.
For Jennings and Fuerbringer, this year's trip to the Jersey Shore yielded familiar results. The past three years the tournament was held north of Seaside Heights in Belmar, and Jennings and Fuerbringer made the finals on those occasions as well. The fourth straight finals appearance in the Garden State was also marked their first finals showing in 2006. It also produced their first tournament victory of the year. Fuerbringer credits the fan support for a large part of their success in the Garden State.
"Everyone is into it and giving you energy," he said. "If you have a bad moment, you've got people getting you up. They're into it, and that's what we work so hard for."
The location in Seaside Heights was right next to the lively boardwalk with carnival games, rides, and food vendors, which gave the tournament a unique feel.
"It's a fun kind of amusement park atmosphere around here, and I think the players have a lot of fun," Holdren said.
Holdren and Scott made their first appearance in the finals as partners in 2006 this past weekend. However, they took the long way after being sent to the contender's bracket by second seeded Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger on Saturday. The two teams faced off again in the semifinals on Sunday morning and Holdren and Scott took the rematch in three games.
Fuerbringer and Jennings also played their way through the contender's bracket. In fact, both teams registered eight matches played over the holiday weekend, one match short of the maximum possible. Fuerbringer and Jennings loss to fifth seeded John Hyden and Jeff Nygaard on Saturday knocked the duo out of the winner's bracket. But they rebounded to upset the third seeded team of Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal and then top seeded Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers in the semifinal.
Both teams in the finals played two matches in the few hours before the championship match on an especially hot and humid day on the Jersey shore. In the finals, Holdren and Scott took game one while Fuerbringer and Jennings controlled game two. However, game three was even right up to the end. It became a battle of who could survive the longest in the grueling match.
"At that point," Jennings said, "you are at the finals and you are at fifteen all in the third game. You better be in it and focused no matter how hot."
Both teams were exhausted by the end, but Fuerbringer and Jennings were able to piece together the final two points after game three was tied at fifteen.
Holdren said that players can't train for that kind of heat and humidity out in California, yet it was an equalizer between the two teams as they came into the finals.
"It was a good, fair match up," he said. "We didn't have to play against someone who was really fresh. Each team had that going for them."
For Jennings, his win in the men's finals set up a rare opportunity for him and his wife Kerri Walsh, who played in the women's finals right after the men's match. A tournament victory for Walsh would put them on the short list of husband and wife players who won a tournament on the same weekend. Mike and Patty Dodd accomplished the feat four times in 1989, but at the time the men's and women's tours were separate and the wins came in different tournaments. Walsh and her partner Misty May-Treanor won in two games over Rachel Wacholder and Elaine Youngs, making Jennings and Walsh the first married couple to win the same tournament on the same day.
"That's what you call double dipping," Jennings said.
Partners Again
Nick Lucena and Sean Rooney were partnered together for the second tournament of the season in Tempe before spending some time apart to play with other partners during the last four tournaments. The two reunited over the weekend at Seaside Heights and put together a fifth place finish, which was a career best for Rooney and Lucena's second fifth place finish of the year.
Lucena and Rooney started the weekend off strong with an exciting upset victory over the third seeded team of Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal in the second round. The teams split the first two games and took game three well beyond the 15 points needed to win as Lucena and Rooney finally won the match 21-19, 18-21, 27-25. Lucena and Rooney's winning streak came to an end in the fourth round of the winner's bracket, falling to Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger. Sunday morning in the contender's bracket eventual champions Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings put an end to Rooney and Lucena's run.
"We beat a couple good teams in order to get to fifth and I think we need to focus on making that normal," Rooney said.
It was an especially good finish for Rooney, whose previous best finish this year was thirteenth. Lucena has had success in the past, appearing in four final fours in 2005 and taking home the title at last year's Austin Open with his former partner Phil Dalhausser. Rooney said he and Lucena plan on sticking together to try and improve on their fifth place finish.
"We've got some good chemistry," he said.
Mayer Back With Keenan After Trip to Greece
After surprising everyone by coming out of the qualifiers and making it to the final four at the Hermosa Beach Open June 9-11, Brad Keenan and John Mayer had to wait an extra tournament before getting another chance play together in the main draw. Keenan was partnered with Paul Baxter at the last AVP Crocs Tour stop in Sacramento because Mayer was overseas playing beach volleyball at the World University in Cyprus, Greece.
Mayer said that since Keenan has made a name for himself on the beach, he was able to pick up a good partner in Baxter for Sacramento, where they finished thirteenth. But Mayer wasn't about to let Keenan get away for the rest of the season.
"I told (Baxter) he could play with (Keenan) for one, but no more," Mayer jokes.
Mayer won a bronze medal in the tournament overseas and returned to the AVP tour with Keenan this weekend in Seaside Heights. Although they didn't repeat their semifinal run from Hermosa Beach, Keenan and Mayer still managed to crack the top ten despite being seeded eighteenth. They finished ninth in only their sixth tournament together and their first tournament with an automatic spot in the main draw.

Women's Recap: AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light
July 3, 2006
Despite losing the championship match of the AVP Seaside Heights Open presented by Bud Light, Elaine Youngs had something to celebrate this weekend. After earning at least a third place finish in the tournament with a win over Nicole Branagh and Holly McPeak on Saturday afternoon, Youngs' prize money for the tournament pushed her past the one million dollar mark in career earnings.
"I just think it's great for women's sports," Youngs said of her accomplishment. "Anything that draws attention to the AVP that is positive and good news is great, and I'm glad to be a part of it."
Youngs became just the third American woman to reach the million dollar milestone, joining Misty May-Treanor and Holly McPeak on the list. Both women were happy to welcome Youngs to the group.
"She's one of the best players to ever play and she deserves to be in that club," McPeak said.
May-Treanor was just ahead of Youngs to go over a million earlier this season, and her partner Kerri Walsh could do the same by the end of the month. If (or more likely, when) Walsh earns her millionth dollar as a player, she will be the third woman to do so in the same season, which speaks volumes about the emerging opportunities for women on the beach.
"I've been around for 17 seasons, so I've seen it all," said McPeak. "It's really exciting to be a part of this, and to see three women go over a million in the same year is amazing."
Walsh referred to an article in Dig Magazine on the storied career of Kathy Gregory to illustrate just how for the sport has come. Although Walsh says Gregory is one of the all-time legends of the game, players today can make more money in one tournament than Gregory did during her entire career.
"In her career which spanned maybe twenty years, she made like $13,000 total," Walsh said. "The fact that we're breaking a million bucks is huge."
"If it wasn't for women like that paving the way, we wouldn't have this," said May-Treanor.
Youngs found out a few days before the Seaside Heights Open that she could go over a million with a third place finish, but she didn't realize she had locked it up after her semifinal victory on Saturday until it was announced on the stadium court PA system. She immediately went over to the other player's box and gave McPeak a hug.
"I'm really happy and I thanked Holly afterwards for helping me get there," said Youngs, who also mentioned her coach Liz Masakayan, her current partner Rachel Wacholder, and her former partner Nancy Reno as people who have helped her along the way.

A Trip to the Bank for Jennings and Walsh
Only a few hours after her husband Casey Jennings picked up his first win of the season in the men's final in Seaside Heights, Kerri Walsh brought home another win for the couple in the women's final, making them the first married couple to win the same tournament on the same day.
"To win our first time as hubby and wife, I'm very proud," said Walsh, who admitted to feeling a little pressure since Casey picked up his win first.
"He did it, and I had to hold up my end of the bargain."
Walsh and her partner Misty May-Treanor faced Rachel Wacholder and Elaine Youngs for the fourth time this season in an AVP final. The last time the two met was at the Hermosa Beach Open, where Wacholder and Youngs swept the gold medalists in the finals. May-Treanor and Walsh faced Nicole Branagh and Holly McPeak in the finals of the last AVP tournament in Sacramento and had to wait until this weekend for a rematch against Wacholder and Youngs. This time it was May-Treanor and Walsh who did the sweeping, winning 21-13, 21-18.
"We didn't make as many mistakes as we had in the previous match (in Hermosa Beach)," said May-Treanor.
Walsh and May-Treanor won decisively in the first game, but the second game went back and forth nearly the whole time. After the score was 11-9 for May-Treanor and Walsh, there was a new server on every play until the end of the match. Unfortunately for Wacholder and Youngs, the two point advantage on the other side of the net held and they couldn't close the gap.
"The second game we were pretty much flawless siding out but we couldn't score any points," Youngs said.
Walsh said patience was the key to keeping the upper hand in the second game.
"A lot of times against them, you just want to go and be quick and beat them," she said. "But with us, if you take a deep breath and you see the court, there's a lot of court open."
"We played our style of volleyball today and we didn't get sucked into theirs."
May-Treanor and Walsh have won three of the last four tournaments held in New Jersey. The last was in 2005 north of Seaside Heights in Belmar. With the lights and sounds from the carnival games on the boardwalk reaching the courts, the atmosphere in the new stop of Seaside Heights is very festive and a perfect match for the beach volleyball lifestyle.
"It's a little different than Belmar," said May-Treanor. "There's more action off the court."
"Jersey is a great state for beach volleyball," added Walsh.

Young Teams Are on the Map
Michelle More and Suzanne Stonebarger
Suzanne Stonebarger may be used to a lot of attention -- she is the centerfold in the latest edition of Dig Magazine -- but on Saturday night during the Seaside Heights open, she and her partner Michelle More were literally under the spotlight. More and Stonebarger were one of four teams to play in a special night session of the Seaside Heights Open, and as if the large crowd and stadium lights weren't enough pressure, they were up against top seeded Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.
More and Stonebarger lost the match 14-21, 14-21, but that fact that they made it to Saturday night to play against the gold medalists indicates that they were having a good tournament. They won three straight matches to open the tournament including an upset win over the fourth seeded team of Jen Boss and Nancy Mason, who won the rematch between the two teams on Sunday morning in the contender's bracket to eliminate More and Stonebarger.
More and Stonebarger finished fifth, equaling their career best set in the 2006 season opener in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Keao Burdine and April Ross
After finishing no higher than 25th in four tournaments this season, Burdine and Ross broke through from the qualifiers and finished ninth two weeks ago in Sacramento. This weekend with an automatic birth in the main draw, they picked up their second straight ninth place finish and turned some heads on the women's side of the bracket in the process.
Both of their winning matches were upsets for Burdine and Ross, who were seeded 21st coming into the weekend. In the first round they beat twelfth seeded Brooke Hanson and Sarah Straton before advancing to face the number five seed of Dianne DeNecochea and Tammy Leibl. Burdine and Ross rose to the challenge and put DeNecochea and Leibl away in two games. Their next match was a loss against More and Stonebarger, and they were eliminated by the number eight seeded team of Samirames Marins and Tatiana Minello.
With a second consecutive ninth place finish, Burdine and Ross are anxiously awaiting for the AVP Atlanta Open seedings to be released so they can see if they have secured their spot in the main draw this coming weekend. Whether they have to play out of the qualifier or earn the main draw spot, a warning message has been sent to the other players in the women's draw that they had better watch out for these up and comers.

Seaside Heights wants volleyball tour to return
Official has some "tweaks" in mind
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/4/06
BY JOE ZEDALIS
TOMS RIVER BUREAU
SEASIDE HEIGHTS — While saying officials will have to "tweak" some operational difficulties, Borough Administrator John C. Camera said Monday he will recommend that the borough pick up the two-year option allowing the Association of Volleyball Professionals tour to return next year.
The AVP/Crocs Tour played from Friday to Sunday on borough beaches, bringing the best volleyball players in the world to Seaside Heights. Although the AVP does not release attendance figures, the crowds were considered decent by borough officials.
AVP representatives said the round played under the lights Saturday night was better attended than the night round played at the previous tour stop in Sacramento, Calif.
"My recommendation would be to make it a regular event in Seaside Heights," Camera said. "There were definitely people who came to Seaside Heights just for the volleyball. I think the tournament helped our Boardwalk crowds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday."
Councilman William Akers said the borough achieved its goal of getting exposure from the national television coverage of the event finals and stories in newspapers across the state.
"We knew the first year was going to be hit or miss," Akers said. "As a town, we got the exposure we were looking for. Overall, I would call the event a positive for the town."
Camera said the borough will address several minor issues with the AVP in negotiating the next contract. Parking management and the location of the tournament stadium are the biggest concerns.
"It wasn't that we didn't have enough parking, because I think we did," Camera said. "What I think we can do better is locate the generators and trailers, so some of our business people don't get blocked out of the street-ends."
Camera said he will also suggest that the tournament location be moved slightly north, closer to Casino Pier and away from the Grant-to-Blaine-avenues location used during the weekend.
Camera said he will ask the Borough Council to consider dropping the $5 daily beach-badge fee that was required with the purchase of a ticket to the tournament.
"We thought the beach-badge fee would be necessary because people going to the tournament would be able to sit or lie on the beach or go in the water," Camera said. "But the tournament compound was not set up that way. It was completely fenced in."
Camera said there were no reports of problems with the selling and consumption of alcoholic beverages on the beach within the AVP compound. Alcohol was prohibited on beaches outside the AVP area as it is throughout the tourist season.
Maria Maruca, executive director of the Seaside Heights Business Improvement District, said the fans she spoke with liked the tournament in the borough better than when it was in Belmar.
"There was a more sports-minded crowd in town Sunday than we usually see in Seaside Heights," Maruca said.
She acknowledged that some business owners were unhappy with the AVP re-entry policy, which prohibited a free re-entry if a ticket holder left the compound. It prevented tournament fans from leaving the tournament area to eat or shop on the Boardwalk.
"They changed that policy Sunday," Maruca said.
Akers agreed: "The simple fact they did it on the spot showed they were listening to the people.
"Sometimes our business owners are shortsighted and can't look past earning their next dollar," Akers said. "If you look down the road and build on what we started this year, this could be a huge event for the town."

Photos:

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Thurs Quali 1 Pics, Men/Women's Quali & Youth Clinic Photos

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Thurs Quali 1 Pics

Here are a few of my pics from the 2006 AVP Seaside Heights NJ Thurs Qualifier.
There are some Men's & Women's matches mixed in.
Also a set of photos of the AVP Youth Clinic sponsored by Hilton Garden Inns
which featured Elaine Youngs,Rachel Wacholder and Liz Masakayan.

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Thurs Quali 2

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Thurs Quali 2 Pics

Larger Views

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Friday 3

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Friday 3

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Saturday 4

AVP Seaside Heights NJ Saturday 4

Video:

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VIDEO #1
Sean Scott/Dax Holdren vs. Larry Witt/Kevin Wong

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VIDEO #2
Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers vs. Jason Lee/Matt Heath

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VIDEO #3
Sean Rosenthal/Jake Gibb vs. Ty Loomis/Ed Ratledge

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VIDEO #4
Sean Rosenthal/Jake Gibb vs. Ty Loomis/Ed Ratledge

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VIDEO #5
Matt Fuerbringer/Casey Jennings vs. Dana Camach/Ivan Mercer

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VIDEO #6
Chip McCaw/Matt Prosser vs. Dain Blanton/Eric Fonoimoanna

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VIDEO #7
Chip McCaw/Matt Prosser vs. Dain Blanton/Eric Fonoimoanna

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VIDEO #8
Dana Camacho/Ivan Mercer Warmups

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VIDEO #9
Rachel Wacholder/Elaine Youngs vs. ????????

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VIDEO #10
Suzanne Stonebarger/Michelle More vs. Jen Kessey-Boss/Nancy Mason

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VIDEO #11
Jeff Nygaard/John Hyden vs. Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers

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VIDEO #12
Jeff Nygaard/John Hyden vs. Phil Dalhausser/Todd Rogers

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VIDEO #13
Sinjin Smith Vball Clinic Seaside Heights,NJ

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VIDEO #14
Nick Lucena/Sean Rooney vs. Sean Rosenthal/Jake Gibb Warmups

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VIDEO #15
Nick Lucena/Sean Rooney vs. Sean Rosenthal/Jake Gibb Match (6) minutes long

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VIDEO #16
Misty May-Treanor/Kerri Walsh vs. Michelle More/Suzanne Stonebarger Warmups

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Video #17
Misty May-Treanor/Kerri Walsh vs. Michelle More/Suzanne Stonebarger

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VIDEO #18
P.T BARNUM BOARDWALK BARKER AVP SEASIDE HEIGHTS NJ

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VIDEO #19
Finals
Match 61: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Dax Holdren / Sean Scott (7) 16-21, 21-12, 17-15 (1:18)

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Note*: Liquid Nutrition can now be shipped to many different countries,shipping and handling fees apply,see drop down list when ordering..

Note*: AVP on DVD disc may be shipped separately from your order and is simply our GIFT to you,you are purchasing the nutritional supplement only and not the DVD.

Note*: Unca Nick Productions & IanClarkVolleyball.net are not affiliated with the AVP Association Of Volleyball Professionals in any shape or form regarding this promotion.

Unca Nick Productions
Get in touch with me by email. mailto:spiro@monmouth.com

FORMERLY THE BELMAR SUNKIST OPEN

July 18-19,1998 - Belmar, New Jersey - June 26-27,1999 - Belmar, New Jersey
July 21st-23rd 2000 - Belmar, New Jersey-July 20th-22nd 2001 - Belmar, New Jersey
June 28th-30th 2002 - Belmar,New Jersey
NEXT EVENT: July 25th-27th 2003 !!!!!!

AVP NISSAN SERIES BELMAR OPEN
Belmar, NJ- JULY 25TH-27TH 2003

Click on the banner above to watch a live view of the beach in Belmar right here !!!

Men's and Women's Qualifier

Outer Courts
Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Over 90 Men's and Women's teams compete on the outer courts.

Men's and Women's Main Draw
Stadium & Outer Courts
Saturday:
9:00 am - 5:00 pm Men's & Women's Main Draw Competition
Sunday:
9:00AM to 1:30PM Men's & Women's Main Draw Competition
1:30PM Women's Championship Match
3:00PM Men's Championship Match
32 Men's and 24 Women's teams compete for the 2003 Belmar Title.

Featuring:

Men's Tournament
Eric Fonoimoana & Dax Holdren
Karch Kiraly & Brent Doble
Canyon Ceman & Mike Whitmarsh
Ian Clark & Chip McCaw

Women's Tournament
Holly McPeak & Elaine Youngs
Jenny Johnson Jordan & Annett Davis
Kerri Walsh & Misty May

Free AVP Youth Clinic

AVP KIDS DAY (Friday)
$5 (includes box lunch,
admission to AVP clinic with the pros)

Stadium Court
Friday 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Free youth clinic for all players under 18. Learn fundamentals and beach strategy. Participants will receive 20 minutes verbal and 90 minutes of hands-on instruction from top AVP Men's and Women's professionals. The 2 hour clinic closes with a question and answer and autograph session.

Special Activities

Nissan/ Sports Illustrated's Fresh Faces Swimsuit Model Competition

Saturday,July 26th,2003

at the Belmar Beach 2003 AVP Beach Volleyball Open
12:30PM Nissan/ Sports Illustrated's Fresh Faces Swimsuit Model Competition
Enter here

Kinesys
KINESYS.100.54.gif
Kinesys Tent
Saturday & Sunday All Day
Meet the solar patrol for free sun screen application.

Paul Mitchell
Stop by on Saturday for samples and give-aways. On Sunday, come by for $10 Cut-a-thon and get your hair cut and styled by one of Paul Mitchell's talented stylists. Profits go to Eric Fonoimoana's "Dig For Kids" Foundation. You'll walk around the beach looking fantastic, and for a good cause.

Nissan

Be sure to stop by the Nissan display and sign up to win "Crew Club Cab" seats to sit courtside during the Men's and Women's finals. Test drive the Nissan Road Rally remote control cars and race against your friends and AVP athletes. Don't forget to pick up a safety kit and other special give-away items - you can even get henna tattoos!

XBOX Competition

Visit Xbox at the beach and challenge your friends in the latest and greatest Xbox Game titles. You can be King and sit in Xbox's "King of the Court" seats, the hottest seats on stadium court all weekend long or for the Men's and Women's finals. You'll be front row in your Xbox visor, t-shirt, tattoo and much more watching the pro beach stars battle for number one.

Bud Light
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Be a part of the Bud Light Party Zone. Look for Bud Light onsite to find out more information.

Aquafina
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Aquafina Purity Patrol is coming to the beach with tons of fun activities in the sun. Compete in the the Aquafina Obstacle Course, Aquafina/ Wilson Speed Serve/ and "Return to Aquafina" hitting challenges. See how you stand up against AVP Pros and your friends and win cool prizes. .

ChapStick
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Take a break from the heat in one of ChapStick's four Fan Lounges equipped with a moisture tent, multiple beach chairs, games, tubes of ChapStick LipMoisturizer and other fun give-aways. Don't miss your opportunity with Misty May who will be making appearances throughout the weekend for autograph signings and photo opportunities.

Wrigleys
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long Lasting Flavor, Extra's Got It! Stop By the Wrigley Booth for a free sample of Wrigley's Extra gum.

Nature Valley Granola Bars
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whether you're out on the court or watching from up in the stands, Nature Valley Granola Bars are a natural source of energy. Make sure to stop by the Nature Valley tent to pick up a free sample. Nature Valley - The Energy Bar Nature Intended.

AVP Fan Parties
Wednesday,Thursday, Friday & Saturday

Event Schedule

Wednesday
8:00PM to
10:00PM AVP Fan/Player Party @ the Headliner

Thursday
7:00PM to
8:00PM AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Hour with Karch Kiraley, Sinjin Smith, and Chris "Geeter" McGee @ Sharkeez
10:00PM AVP Fan/Player Party w/ the WRAT @ D'jais
10:00PM to
11:00PM AVP Fan/Player Party @ Paddy McDonald's featuring many top AVP stars
11:00PM to
12:00PM AVP Fan/Player Party @ Piranha Pub

Friday
8:00AM to
6:00PM AVP Qualifier
11:00AM to
6:00PM Sponsor Village Open
11:00AM to
6:00PM Nissan Display, Henna Tattoos, and Road Rally
11:00AM to
6:00PM Aquafina’s AVP Challenge
11:00AM to
6:00PM Xbox Interactive Gaming Area
11:00AM to
6:00PM Nature Valley Granola Bars Product Sampling
11:00AM to
6:00PM Chapstick AVP Fan Lounge
11:00AM to
6:00PM Wrigley's Extra Gum Sampling
2:30PM to
4:00PM AVP Youth Clinic at Aquafina Interactive Court
6:00PM to
8:00PM AVP Fan Party @ Tropical Pub
8:00PM to
10:00PM AVP Fan Party @ Bar A

Saturday
9:00AM to
6:30PM AVP Men’s & Women’s Main Draw Competition
9:00AM to
6:30PM Sponsor Village Open
9:00AM to
6:30PM Nissan Display, Henna Tattoos, Road Rally, & Club Crew Cab Seat Give-aways
9:00AM to
6:30PM Bud Light Party Zone Seating Section
9:00AM to
6:30PM Aquafina’s AVP Challenge
9:00AM to
6:30PM Xbox Interactive Gaming Area
9:00AM to
6:30PM JPMS Product Sampling
9:00AM to
6:30PM Chapstick AVP Fan Lounges
9:00AM to
6:30PM Wrigley's Extra Gum Sampling
9:00AM to
6:30PM Wilson Display and Autograph Ball Raffle
9:00AM to
6:30PM Nature Valley Granola Bars Product Sampling
12:30PM Nissan/ Sports Illustrated's Fresh Faces Swimsuit Model Competition
7:00PM to
9:00PM AVP Fan Party with WRAT @ The Norwood Inn
9:00PM to
10:00PM AVP Fan Party with WRAT @ The Headliner

Sunday
8:30AM to
5:00PM AVP Men’s & Women’s Main Draw Competition
8:30AM to
5:00PM Sponsor Village Open
8:30AM to
5:00PM Nissan Display, Henna Tattoos, Road Rally, & Club Crew Cab Seat Give-aways
8:30AM to
5:00PM Wilson Display and Autograph Ball Raffle
8:30AM to
5:00PM Bud Light Party Zone Seating Section
8:30AM to
5:00PM Aquafina’s AVP Challenge
8:30AM to
5:00PM Xbox Interactive Gaming Area
8:30AM to
5:00PM JPMS Product Sampling & Dig For Kids Hair Cut-a-thon
8:30AM to
5:00PM Chapstick AVP Fan Lounges
8:30AM to
5:00PM Wrigley's Extra Gum Sampling
8:30AM to
5:00PM Wilson Display and Autograph Ball Raffle
8:30AM to
5:00PM Nature Valley Granola Bars Product Sampling
1:00PM Nissan/ Sports Illustrated's Fresh Faces Swimsuit Model Competition
2:00PM Women's Championship Match
3:30PM Men's Championship Match

TICKET INFORMATION

To order tickets call (732) 901-7000 opt. 2

GENERAL ADMISSION
Friday - free
Saturday Only - $10
Sunday Only - $10
Weekend Pass - $15

BEACH CLUB
Saturday Only - $50
Sunday Only - $50
Weekend Pass - $90

AVP KIDS DAY (Friday)
$5 (includes box lunch, admission to AVP clinic with the pros)

To order tickets, call the AVP Hotline at (310) 426-7171

How To Get There
4th Avenue at Ocean Blvd.
Belmar, NJ 07719

From the Newark airport, take the New Jersey Turnpike South. Turn off at exit 11, Garden State Parkway, and go South. Turn off at exit 98, "Belmar, Spring Lake", to Belmar. Go right on 5th Street to Ocean.

KMPC 1540am "Switch AVP Beach Volleyball Radio Hour"
Thursday 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm (PST)
Sangria, 100 Pier Ave. Hermosa Beach
Weekly, one-hour, talk radio show focusing on the new AVP: its stars, its events, its sponsors, and its future. Hosted by the greatest name in Beach Volleyball, Karch Kiraly; and the Voice of the AVP, Chris “Geeter” McGee.
Shows are open to the public! Come check us out and win hot AVP gear!
Interested in being on our show? Have a question for our hosts? Have a question for our guests? Email us at avphour@avp.com or call in at 800.770.1540
Our special guests will be posted soon.

How To Get There

Location 4th Avenue at Ocean Blvd.
Belmar, NJ 07719

Driving:
From the Newark airport, take the New Jersey Turnpike South. Turn off at exit 11, Garden State Parkway, and go South. Turn off at exit 98, "Belmar, Spring Lake", to Belmar. Go right on 5th Street to Ocean.

Parking:
Belmar attracts a decent crowd. Its a larger stop on the tour. There's also a large beach crowd so parking can get a little tight if you don't get there early enough. There are meters along the beach and additional street parking as you move away from the beach all the way down to main street (if you do park on the side streets make sure it is in a legal space) As for motels I know there are a few in Belmar and the surrounding areas but there are also a lot of B&Bs in Spring Lake and Sea Girt, the next two towns down.

Beach Badges Mandatory:
You must purchase a beach badge before purchasing your Tickets to the Belmar AVP Event. Badges are available for each day of the event right on the boardwalk on 5th street in booths at the entrance to the event.The cost is an extra $5 daily in addition to the General AVP Admission..

General AVP Admission
- Saturday Only $5
- Sunday Only $5
- Saturady and Sunday $10

Map and Online Driving Directions:
Map

BelmarHotel Listings:
All Seasons
301 Tenth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-8384

The Bellevue Stratford Inn
7 Main Avenue
Ocean Grove 07756 (732) 775-2424

Belmar Beach Bed & Breakfast
200 Tenth Avenue
Belmar 07719

Belmar Beach Hotel
402 Fifteenth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-9664

The Belmar Inn
112 Twelfth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 280-9400

Belmar Motor Lodge
Tenth Avenue & Rt. 35
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-6600

Belport Inn
300 Tenth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-5315

The Berkeley Hotel
107 Twelfth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-9617

Breeze Inn
218 Tenth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 280-8045

Carol’s Guest House
201 Eleventh Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-4422

Down The Shore Bed & Breakfast
201 Seventh Avenue
Belmar 07719

Gallagher’s Guest House
302 Tenth Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-2655

House By The Sea Bed & Breakfast
406 Fifth Avenue
Belmar 07719

The Inn At The Shore Bed & Breakfast
301 Fourth Avenue
Belmar 07719

The Mayfair Hotel
1000 Ocean Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-2620

Meier Guest House
203 Eleventh Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-7003

More NJ Shore Accommodations

Morning Dove Inn
204 Fifth Avenue
Belmar 07719

The Seaflower Bed & Breakfast
110 Ninth Avenue
Belmar 07719

Travelodge
1916 Highway 35
Wall 07719 (732) 974-8400

The White House
102 Second Avenue
Belmar 07719 (732) 681-1991

Last Year 2002 at the AVP Belmar Open Ian finished:

9thAaronBoss ,SanDiego,Cali/IanClark,Boulder,Co/HermosaBch,Cali

Ian Clark & Aaron Boss finished 9th together at the 2002 Belmar AVP Paul Mitchell Open

This Year 2003 at the AVP Belmar Open Ian finished:

17th Chip McCaw,Santa Monica,Cali./Ian Clark.Hermosa Beach,Cali

Match Record 2003 Belmar AVP Open:

Winner's Bracket First round
Match 6: Chad Mowrey / Ed Ratledge (21) def. Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) 23-21, 21-16 (53 Min.)
Contender's Bracket
Round 1
Match 33: Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) def. John Braunstein / Anthony Mihalic (28, Q5) 21-16, 21-18 (39 Min.)
Round 2

Match 41: Paul Baxter / Carl Henkel (6) def. Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) 21-18, 17-21, 15-8 (63 Min.)

-With a match recoed of (2) losses and (1) win Ian Clark/Chip McCaw finish 17th at the Men's AVP 2003 Belmar Open
winning $400.00

Association of Volleyball Professionals Belmar Entries
(Qualification Tournament seeds based on entry points, Main Draw seeds to be determined after Qualification Tournament)

Men's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open July 25-27, 2003

Finish Player Partner Seed
0 Dain Blanton Jeff Nygaard
0 Jake Gibb Adam Jewell
0 Chris Guigliano Rich Vanhuizen
0 Ian Clark Chip McCaw
0 Albert Hannemann Scott Lane
0 Brian Chapman Chris Harger
0 Jon Barnes Jon Rose
0 Dan Fisher Jim Nichols
0 Ryan Cronin Kevin Dake
0 Jason Ring Scott Wong
0 Mike Mattarocci Collin Smith
0 Aaron Boss Alika Williams
0 Kevin Craig Ranse Jones
0 David DiPierro Mike Dipierro
0 Steve Delaney Gaston Macau
0 Guy Hamilton Dennis Marlow
0 Ryan Mariano Jon Thompson
0 Joe Rohr Derek Zimmerman
0 Leon Lucas Kevin Sensi
0 David Fischer Brad Torsone
0 Bill Maik Jim Van Zwieten
0 Lou Messier Matthew Terrell
0 Ben Drumm Matt Heagy
0 Bryan Hoopes Eric Ryba
0 Mike Briody Wes Moore
0 Scott Brinser BJ Cook
0 Eli Fairfield Fred Souza
0 Pepe Delahoz David Smith
0 Eduardo Bacil Lee LeGrande
0 Anthony Medel John Moran
0 C.J. Denk Robert Jackson
0 Chad Mowrey Ed Ratledge
0 Brian Reiner Mike Vajo
0 Mark Kavulak Tony Yates
0 Kurt Gurdal Jeff Schietzelt
0 Greg Boor Todd Hart
0 Morgan Chapman Amaury Velasco
0 Jon Hubright Peter Weremay
0 Mike Salak Daniel Schultz
0 Tom Barber Billy Sosnickie
0 Scott Davenport Jason Lee
0 Joe Boken Cameron Green
0 Ihor Akinshyn Gennady Shevchenko
0 Matt Fuerbringer Casey Jennings
0 Sean Rosenthal Larry Witt
0 Brent Doble Karch Kiraly
0 Eric Fonoimoana Dax Holdren
0 Paul Baxter Carl Henkel
0 Scott Ayakatubby Brian Lewis
0 Canyon Ceman Mike Whitmarsh
0 Brian Duff Tony Pray
0 Kevin Gregan Jason Wight
0 Skyler Davis Jim Walls
0 Jason Buckwalter William D'abbene
0 Pawel Kadlubowski Michael Mielcarz
0 Gary Barnes Dana Camacho
0 Peter Frey Timothy Ko
0 Chris Magill Hans Stolfus
0 John Hyden Andy Witt
0 Matt Botsford Tyler Lesneski
0 Colin Kaslow Tim Wooliver
0 Graig Domanski Wayne Gant
0 Brian Olsen Steven Stacy
0 Chad Winterhalter Zach Winterhalter
0 Mark Fay Jim Vanderwall
0 James Meeks John Meeks
0 Dan Clower Shawn Feeney
0 John Braunstein Anthony Mihalic
0 Jake Elliott Brian Soldano
0 Chris Kosty Chad Turner
0 Matt Davis Jason Hodell
0 Zach Hollman Brian Rutland
0 Scott Hill Dan Mintz
0 Jerry Mancuso Adam Tormollan
0 Tim Chittenden Fred Fauhl, Jr.
0 Tom Kolakowski Daniel Mullen
0 Matt Heath Adam Roberts
0 Philip Dalhausser Nick Lucena
0 Mike Deforge Nick Rank

Men's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open
July 25-27, 2003

Winner's Bracket
Round 1
Match 1: Scott Ayakatubby / Brian Lewis (1) def. Nick Lucena / Philip Dalhausser (32) 21-18, 21-16 (33 Min.)
Match 2: Scott Davenport / Jason Lee (17) def. Andy Witt / John Hyden (16) 17-21, 21-14, 15-13 (60 Min.)
Match 3: Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) def. Rich Vanhuizen / Chris Guigliano (24, Q1) 21-19, 21-14 (53 Min.)
Match 4: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Dan Fisher / Jim Nichols (25, Q4) 21-16, 21-18 (43 Min.)
Match 5: Dain Blanton / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. John Braunstein / Anthony Mihalic (28, Q5) 21-18, 21-18 (39 Min.)
Match 6: Chad Mowrey / Ed Ratledge (21) def. Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) 23-21, 21-16 (53 Min.)
Match 7: Aaron Boss / Alika Williams (13) def. Albert Hannemann / Scott Lane (20) 19-21, 21-12, 15-10 (53 Min.)
Match 8: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Anthony Medel / John Moran (29, Q10) 18-21, 21-13, 15-13 (62 Min.)
Match 9: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Gaston Macau / Steve Delaney (30, Q8) 21-12, 21-16 (36 Min.)
Match 10: Jason Ring / Scott Wong (19) def. Jake Elliott / Brian Soldano (14) 21-19, 21-19 (48 Min.)
Match 11: Eli Fairfield / Fred Souza (11) def. Mike Mattarocci / Collin Smith (22) 28-30, 21-18, 15-10 (85 Min.)
Match 12: Paul Baxter / Carl Henkel (6) def. Chris Kosty / Chad Turner (27, Q3) 21-8, 21-15 (33 Min.)
Match 13: Eric Fonoimoana / Dax Holdren (7) def. Scott Hill / Dan Mintz (26, Q11) 14-21, 21-19, 15-11 (58 Min.)
Match 14: Pepe Delahoz / David Smith (23) def. Eduardo Bacil / Lee LeGrande (10) 21-19, 21-16 (55 Min.)
Match 15: David Fischer / Brad Torsone (15) def. Adam Roberts / Matt Heath (18) 21-16, 21-18 (40 Min.)
Match 16: Canyon Ceman / Mike Whitmarsh (2) def. Colin Kaslow / Tim Wooliver (31, Q18) 21-12, 21-15 (33 Min.)

Round 2
Match 17: Scott Ayakatubby / Brian Lewis (1) def. Scott Davenport / Jason Lee (17) 21-16, 21-17 (42 Min.)
Match 18: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) 21-17, 17-21, 15-13 (63 Min.)
Match 19: Dain Blanton / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. Chad Mowrey / Ed Ratledge (21) 21-13, 21-14 (36 Min.)
Match 20: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Aaron Boss / Alika Williams (13) 21-16, 21-14 (46 Min.)
Match 21: Jason Ring / Scott Wong (19) def. Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) 27-25, 21-19 (58 Min.)
Match 22: Eli Fairfield / Fred Souza (11) def. Paul Baxter / Carl Henkel (6) 23-21, 15-21, 20-18 (65 Min.)
Match 23: Eric Fonoimoana / Dax Holdren (7) def. Pepe Delahoz / David Smith (23) 21-16, 24-22 (53 Min.)
Match 24: Canyon Ceman / Mike Whitmarsh (2) def. David Fischer / Brad Torsone (15) 21-15, 23-21 (47 Min.)

Round 3
Match 25: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Scott Ayakatubby / Brian Lewis (1) 21-18, 21-18 (41 Min.)
Match 26: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Dain Blanton / Jeff Nygaard (5) 13-21, 21-15, 18-16 (60 Min.)
Match 27: Jason Ring / Scott Wong (19) def. Eli Fairfield / Fred Souza (11) 26-24, 22-24, 15-13 (61 Min.)
Match 28: Canyon Ceman / Mike Whitmarsh (2) def. Eric Fonoimoana / Dax Holdren (7) 23-21, 21-17 (54 Min.)

Round 4
Match 29: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) 21-19, 21-18 (43 Min.)
Match 30: Jason Ring / Scott Wong (19) def. Canyon Ceman / Mike Whitmarsh (2) 15-21, 22-20, 15-13 (62 Min.)

Contender's Bracket
Round 1
Match 31: Andy Witt / John Hyden (16) def. Nick Lucena / Philip Dalhausser (32) 21-16, 26-24 (43 Min.)
Match 32: Dan Fisher / Jim Nichols (25, Q4) def. Rich Vanhuizen / Chris Guigliano (24, Q1) 21-16, 15-21, 15-13 (65 Min.)
Match 33: Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) def. John Braunstein / Anthony Mihalic (28, Q5) 21-16, 21-18 (39 Min.)
Match 34: Albert Hannemann / Scott Lane (20) def. Anthony Medel / John Moran (29, Q10) 21-16, 21-12 (42 Min.)
Match 35: Jake Elliott / Brian Soldano (14) def. Gaston Macau / Steve Delaney (30, Q8) 21-18, 17-21, 15-13 (63 Min.)
Match 36: Mike Mattarocci / Collin Smith (22) def. Chris Kosty / Chad Turner (27, Q3) 21-19, 21-18 (45 Min.)
Match 37: Eduardo Bacil / Lee LeGrande (10) def. Scott Hill / Dan Mintz (26, Q11) 13-21, 23-21, 15-11 (58 Min.)
Match 38: Adam Roberts / Matt Heath (18) def. Colin Kaslow / Tim Wooliver (31, Q18) 21-15, 18-21, 15-7 (49 Min.)

Round 2
Match 39: Andy Witt / John Hyden (16) def. David Fischer / Brad Torsone (15) 21-13, 21-23, 15-9 (60 Min.)
Match 40: Dan Fisher / Jim Nichols (25, Q4) def. Pepe Delahoz / David Smith (23) 21-19, 21-18 (47 Min.)
Match 41: Paul Baxter / Carl Henkel (6) def. Ian Clark / Chip McCaw (12) 21-18, 17-21, 15-8 (63 Min.)
Match 42: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Albert Hannemann / Scott Lane (20) 21-13, 21-14 (37 Min.)
Match 43: Jake Elliott / Brian Soldano (14) def. Aaron Boss / Alika Williams (13) 21-16, 15-21, 15-8 (50 Min.)
Match 44: Chad Mowrey / Ed Ratledge (21) def. Mike Mattarocci / Collin Smith (22) 21-15, 21-18 (46 Min.)
Match 45: Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) def. Eduardo Bacil / Lee LeGrande (10) 21-12, 22-20 (45 Min.)
Match 46: Adam Roberts / Matt Heath (18) def. Scott Davenport / Jason Lee (17) 21-18, 21-18 (43 Min.)

Round 3
Match 47: Andy Witt / John Hyden (16) def. Dan Fisher / Jim Nichols (25, Q4) 22-24, 21-17, 15-8 (78 Min.)
Match 48: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Paul Baxter / Carl Henkel (6) 17-21, 21-19, 15-13 (85 Min.)
Match 49: Jake Elliott / Brian Soldano (14) def. Chad Mowrey / Ed Ratledge (21) 21-16, 21-12 (40 Min.)
Match 50: Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) def. Adam Roberts / Matt Heath (18) 22-20, 21-16 (44 Min.)

Round 4
Match 51: Dain Blanton / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. Andy Witt / John Hyden (16) 21-16, 21-18 (45 Min.)
Match 52: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Scott Ayakatubby / Brian Lewis (1) 21-16, 17-21, 15-7 (62 Min.)
Match 53: Eric Fonoimoana / Dax Holdren (7) def. Jake Elliott / Brian Soldano (14) 21-16, 21-17 (41 Min.)
Match 54: Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) def. Eli Fairfield / Fred Souza (11) 21-19, 20-22, 17-15 (60 Min.)

Round 5
Match 55: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Dain Blanton / Jeff Nygaard (5) 21-14, 21-19 (42 Min.)
Match 56: Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) def. Eric Fonoimoana / Dax Holdren (7) 21-16, 21-18 (45 Min.)

Round 6
Match 57: Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) def. Canyon Ceman / Mike Whitmarsh (2) 20-22, 21-15, 15-11 (65 Min.)
Match 58: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Jake Gibb / Adam Jewell (9) 21-18, 21-17 (45 Min.)

Semifinals
Match 59: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Brent Doble / Karch Kiraly (3) 31-29, 21-16 (59 Min.)
Match 60: Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) def. Jason Ring / Scott Wong (19) 21-17, 21-17 (43 Min.)

Finals
Match 61: Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal (8) def. Casey Jennings / Matt Fuerbringer (4) 21-16, 18-21, 15-12 (6 Min.)

2003 Belmar AVP Tournament Champions >>Larry Witt / Sean Rosenthal

Men's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open
July 25-27, 2003
Finish Player Partner Seed Winnings Points
1 Sean Rosenthal Larry Witt 8 $14,500.00 360.0
2 Matt Fuerbringer Casey Jennings 4 $9,750.00 324.0
3 Brent Doble Karch Kiraly 3 $5,825.00 270.0
3 Jason Ring Scott Wong 19 $5,825.00 270.0
5 Canyon Ceman Mike Whitmarsh 2 $3,500.00 216.0
5 Jake Gibb Adam Jewell 9 $3,500.00 216.0
7 Dain Blanton Jeff Nygaard 5 $2,500.00 180.0
7 Eric Fonoimoana Dax Holdren 7 $2,500.00 180.0
9 Scott Ayakatubby Brian Lewis 1 $1,600.00 144.0
9 Eli Fairfield Fred Souza 11 $1,600.00 144.0
9 Jake Elliott Brian Soldano 14 $1,600.00 144.0
9 John Hyden Andy Witt 16 $1,600.00 144.0
13 Paul Baxter Carl Henkel 6 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Matt Heath Adam Roberts 18 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Chad Mowrey Ed Ratledge 21 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Dan Fisher Jim Nichols 25, Q4 $1,050.00 108.0
17 Eduardo Bacil Lee LeGrande 10 $400.00 72.0
17 Ian Clark Chip McCaw 12 $400.00 72.0
17 Aaron Boss Alika Williams 13 $400.00 72.0
17 David Fischer Brad Torsone 15 $400.00 72.0
17 Scott Davenport Jason Lee 17 $400.00 72.0
17 Albert Hannemann Scott Lane 20 $400.00 72.0
17 Mike Mattarocci Collin Smith 22 $400.00 72.0
17 Pepe Delahoz David Smith 23 $400.00 72.0
25 Chris Guigliano Rich Vanhuizen 24, Q1 $100.00 36.0
25 Scott Hill Dan Mintz 26, Q11 $100.00 36.0
25 Chris Kosty Chad Turner 27, Q3 $100.00 36.0
25 John Braunstein Anthony Mihalic 28, Q5 $100.00 36.0
25 Anthony Medel John Moran 29, Q10 $100.00 36.0
25 Steve Delaney Gaston Macau 30, Q8 $100.00 36.0
25 Colin Kaslow Tim Wooliver 31, Q18 $100.00 36.0
25 Philip Dalhausser Nick Lucena 32 $100.00 36.0
33 Skyler Davis Jim Walls Q2 $.00 18.0
33 Gary Barnes Dana Camacho Q6 $.00 18.0
33 Kevin Craig Ranse Jones Q7 $.00 18.0
33 Brian Chapman Chris Harger Q9 $.00 18.0
33 Ryan Mariano Jon Thompson Q12 $.00 18.0
33 Brian Duff Tony Pray Q17 $.00 18.0
33 Bill Maik Jim Van Zwieten Q19 $.00 18.0
33 Ihor Akinshyn Gennady Shevchenko Q20 $.00 18.0
41 Joe Rohr Derek Zimmerman Q13 $.00 12.0
41 Ryan Cronin Kevin Dake Q14 $.00 12.0
41 David DiPierro Mike Dipierro Q15 $.00 12.0
41 Chris Magill Hans Stolfus Q16 $.00 12.0
41 Zach Hollman Brian Rutland Q21 $.00 12.0
41 Kevin Gregan Jason Wight Q22 $.00 12.0
41 Greg Boor Todd Hart Q23 $.00 12.0
41 Matt Davis Jason Hodell Q25 $.00 12.0
41 Leon Lucas Kevin Sensi Q27 $.00 12.0
41 Guy Hamilton Dennis Marlow Q28 $.00 12.0
41 Pawel Kadlubowski Michael Mielcarz Q31 $.00 12.0
41 Jon Barnes Jon Rose Q32 $.00 12.0
41 Mark Fay Jim Vanderwall Q35 $.00 12.0
41 Graig Domanski Wayne Gant Q36 $.00 12.0
41 Kurt Gurdal Jeff Schietzelt Q39 $.00 12.0
41 Bryan Hoopes Eric Ryba Q41 $.00 12.0
57 Tom Barber Billy Sosnickie Q24 $.00 8.0
57 Morgan Chapman Amaury Velasco Q26 $.00 8.0
57 C.J. Denk Robert Jackson Q29 $.00 8.0
57 Joe Boken Cameron Green Q30 $.00 8.0
57 Mike Salak Daniel Schultz Q33 $.00 8.0
57 Chad Winterhalter Zach Winterhalter Q34 $.00 8.0
57 Jon Hubright Peter Weremay Q37 $.00 8.0
57 Tim Chittenden Fred Fauhl, Jr. Q38 $.00 8.0
57 Matt Botsford Tyler Lesneski Q40 $.00 8.0
57 Jerry Mancuso Adam Tormollan Q42 $.00 8.0
57 Mike Briody Wes Moore Q43 $.00 8.0
57 Ben Drumm Matt Heagy Q44 $.00 8.0
57 James Meeks John Meeks Q45 $.00 8.0
57 Brian Reiner Mike Vajo Q46 $.00 8.0
57 Scott Brinser BJ Cook Q47 $.00 8.0
57 Brian Olsen Steven Stacy Q48 $.00 8.0
57 Mike Deforge Nick Rank Q49 $.00 8.0
57 Tom Kolakowski Daniel Mullen Q50 $.00 8.0
57 Jason Buckwalter William D'abbene Q51 $.00 8.0
57 Lou Messier Matthew Terrell Q52 $.00 8.0
57 Mark Kavulak Tony Yates Q53 $.00 8.0
57 Dan Clower Shawn Feeney Q54 $.00 8.0
57 Peter Frey Timothy Ko Q55 $.00 8.0
57 Matt Campbell Robert Kossak Q56 $.00 8.0

LAST YEAR
Championship Match in 2002 Revisited (winners place first, split $14,500; losers place second, split $9,750)

· Ceman/Whitmarsh (6)def. Fonoimoana/Holdren (1), 21-18 and 21-16 (50).

Mike Whitmarsh Canyon Ceman

2002 Belmar AVP Tournament Champions >>Mike Whitmarsh/ Canyon Ceman

Belmar Women's Entries
(Qualification Tournament seeds based on entry points, Main Draw seeds to be determined after Qualification Tournament)

Women's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open July 25-27, 2003

Finish Player Partner Seed
0 Holly McPeak Elaine Youngs
0 Bridget Lambert Jennifer Zanna
0 Cassandra Libath Mariso Vino
0 Jennifer Lombardi Mary Strong
0 Karen Grifftih Lauren Nilsen
0 Amber Davis Suzana Manole
0 Ashley Bowles Lia Young
0 Joy McKienzie Alyson Randick
0 Johanna Lehman Kathleen Madden
0 Aycan Kara Teri Van Dyke
0 Barbara Nyland Kristen Schritter
0 Kim Cook Maureen Milmanow
0 Kerri Eich Kaili Kimura
0 Catie Fleisher Kelly Rowe
0 Tyra Harper Francie Rard
0 Cherry Simkins Ashanti Taylor
0 Karen Reitz Sarah White
0 Jane Linn Tammy Rau
0 Heather Chandler Heather Kahn
0 Kengy Bell Sharon Wentworth
0 Misty May Kerri Walsh
0 Annett Davis Jenny Johnson Jordan
0 Lisa Arce Rachel Wacholder
0 Carrie Busch Leanne McSorley
0 Dianne DeNecochea Nancy Mason
0 Danalee Bragado Ali Wood
0 Paula Roca Gracie Santana-Baeni
0 Jennifer Meredith Wendy Stammer
0 Jennifer Kessy Jenny Pavley
0 Angie Akers Sarah Straton
0 Tanya Fuamatu Heide Ilustre
0 Linda Capizzi Dana Mincer
0 Melissa Karwowski Holly Reisor
0 Pat Keller Marsha Miller
0 Daven Casad-Allison Kim Zuffelato
0 Dana Fiume Kathryn McGeehan
0 Katie Lindquist Tracy Lindquist
0 Samantha Meador Laura Romeika
0 Rhonda Kottke Marla O'Hara
0 Kimberly Coleman Julie Sprague
0 Linda Hanley Liz Masakayan
0 Cathy Hughes Beth Kennedy
0 Jen Blair Melanie Thornton
0 Karen Helyer Beth Van Fleet
0 Kelly Kuebler Jaimie Lee
0 Katherine Fay Stephanie Roberts
0 Denise Johns Jenelle Koester
0 Anastasia Debonis Jill Leake
0 Adria Ciraco Cristina Salak
0 Christine Cummings Monique Ritter
0 Barb Birnbaum Saralyn Smith
0 Lauren Fendrick Julie Romias
0 Anne McArthur Carrie Wright
0 Nikki Audette Helen Reale
0 Sharman Mitchell Alicia Polzin
0 Erin Galli Michelle Morse

Women's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open
July 25-27, 2003

Winner's Bracket
Round 1
Match 1: Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (16) def. Erin Galli / Michelle Morse (17) 21-14, 21-13 (36 Min.)
Match 2: Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) def. Tammy Rau / Jane Linn (24) 21-16, 21-19 (47 Min.)
Match 3: Danalee Bragado / Ali Wood (12) def. Barbara Nyland / Kristen Schritter (21, Q4) 21-18, 19-21, 16-14 (63 Min.)
Match 4: Kim Zuffelato / Daven Casad-Allison (20, Q3) def. Ashley Bowles / Lia Young (13) 21-17, 25-23 (50 Min.)
Match 5: Kelly Kuebler / Jaimie Lee (19, Q8) def. Marsha Miller / Pat Keller (14) 21-18, 21-23, 15-8 (54 Min.)
Match 6: Barb Birnbaum / Saralyn Smith (22, Q7) def. Paula Roca / Gracie Santana-Baeni (11)15-21,21-13, 18-16 (65 Min.)
Match 7: Jenny Pavley / Jennifer Kessy (10) def. Lauren Fendrick / Julie Romias (23, Q17) 21-13, 21-14 (33 Min.)
Match 8: Tanya Fuamatu / Heide Ilustre (15) def. Sharman Mitchell / Alicia Polzin (18, Q2) 21-11, 21-17 (35 Min.)

Round 2
Match 9: Misty May / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (16) 21-11, 21-12 (34 Min.)
Match 10: Jennifer Meredith / Wendy Stammer (8) def. Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) 24-22, 20-22, 15-10 (64 Min.)
Match 11: Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) def. Danalee Bragado / Ali Wood (12) 21-18, 21-18 (37 Min.)
Match 12: Lisa Arce / Rachel Wacholder (4) def. Kim Zuffelato / Daven Casad-Allison (20, Q3) 21-15, 21-11 (38 Min.)
Match 13: Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) def. Kelly Kuebler / Jaimie Lee (19, Q8) 21-15, 21-17 (35 Min.)
Match 14: Linda Hanley / Liz Masakayan (6) def. Barb Birnbaum / Saralyn Smith (22, Q7) 21-14, 23-21 (50 Min.)
Match 15: Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) def. Jenny Pavley / Jennifer Kessy (10) 21-16, 18-21, 15-10 (54 Min.)
Match 16: Holly McPeak / Elaine Youngs (2) def. Tanya Fuamatu / Heide Ilustre (15) 21-19, 21-19 (47 Min.)

Round 3
Match 17: Misty May / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Jennifer Meredith / Wendy Stammer (8) 21-19, 21-13 (33 Min.)
Match 18: Lisa Arce / Rachel Wacholder (4) def. Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) 21-17, 18-21, 15-13 (54 Min.)
Match 19: Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) def. Linda Hanley / Liz Masakayan (6) 23-21, 21-16 (38 Min.)
Match 20: Holly McPeak / Elaine Youngs (2) def. Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) 21-15, 23-21 (48 Min.)

Round 4
Match 21: Misty May / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Lisa Arce / Rachel Wacholder (4) 21-18, 21-17 (38 Min.)
Match 22: Holly McPeak / Elaine Youngs (2) def. Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) 21-17, 21-17 (34 Min.)

Contender's Bracket
Round 1
Match 23: Tanya Fuamatu / Heide Ilustre (15) def. Erin Galli / Michelle Morse (17) 21-19, 21-17 (45 Min.)
Match 24: Jenny Pavley / Jennifer Kessy (10) def. Tammy Rau / Jane Linn (24) 21-18, 21-14 (38 Min.)
Match 25: Barbara Nyland / Kristen Schritter (21, Q4) def. Barb Birnbaum / Saralyn Smith (22, Q7) 21-14, 21-14 (37 Min.)
Match 26: Ashley Bowles / Lia Young (13) def. Kelly Kuebler / Jaimie Lee (19, Q8) 21-17, 21-14 (35 Min.)
Match 27: Marsha Miller / Pat Keller (14) def. Kim Zuffelato / Daven Casad-Allison (20, Q3) 21-17, 21-16 (44 Min.)
Match 28: Paula Roca / Gracie Santana-Baeni (11) def. Danalee Bragado / Ali Wood (12) 21-18, 21-16 (41 Min.)
Match 29: Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) def. Lauren Fendrick / Julie Romias (23, Q17) 21-15, 21-17 (34 Min.)
Match 30: Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (16) def. Sharman Mitchell / Alicia Polzin (18, Q2) 21-16, 21-11 (35 Min.)

Round 2
Match 31: Jenny Pavley / Jennifer Kessy (10) def. Tanya Fuamatu / Heide Ilustre (15) 21-17, 25-23 (40 Min.)
Match 32: Ashley Bowles / Lia Young (13) def. Barbara Nyland / Kristen Schritter (21, Q4) 21-17, 14-21, 15-12 (55 Min.)
Match 33: Marsha Miller / Pat Keller (14) def. Paula Roca / Gracie Santana-Baeni (11) 17-21, 21-16, 15-11 (55 Min.)
Match 34: Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) def. Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist (16) 21-17, 21-19 (33 Min.)

Round 3
Match 35: Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) def. Jenny Pavley / Jennifer Kessy (10) 21-13, 21-15 (29 Min.)
Match 36: Jennifer Meredith / Wendy Stammer (8) def. Ashley Bowles / Lia Young (13) 21-17, 21-23, 15-10 (55 Min.)
Match 37: Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) def. Marsha Miller / Pat Keller (14) 21-9, 21-14 (32 Min.)
Match 38: Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) def. Linda Hanley / Liz Masakayan (6) 15-21, 21-19, 16-14 (53 Min.)

Round 4
Match 39: Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) def. Jennifer Meredith / Wendy Stammer (8) 21-19, 21-19 (41 Min.)
Match 40: Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) def. Angie Akers / Sarah Straton (9) 21-10, 21-15 (31 Min.)

Round 5
Match 41: Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) def. Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan (3) 21-19, 21-19 (39 Min.)
Match 42: Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) def. Lisa Arce / Rachel Wacholder (4) 21-15, 21-16 (34 Min.)

Semifinals

Match 43: Misty May / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Dianne DeNecochea / Nancy Mason (5) 21-19, 21-13 (39 Min.)
Match 44: Holly McPeak / Elaine Youngs (2) def. Carrie Busch / Leanne McSorley (7) 22-20, 21-11 (32 Min.)

Finals

Match 45: Misty May / Kerri Walsh (1) def. Holly McPeak / Elaine Youngs (2) 21-17, 21-11 (41 Min.)

Women's AVP $62,500 Belmar Open
July 25-27, 2003
Finish Player Partner Seed Winnings Points
1 Misty May Kerri Walsh 1 $14,500.00 360.0
2 Holly McPeak Elaine Youngs 2 $9,750.00 324.0
3 Dianne DeNecochea Nancy Mason 5 $5,825.00 270.0
3 Carrie Busch Leanne McSorley 7 $5,825.00 270.0
5 Annett Davis Jenny Johnson Jordan 3 $3,500.00 216.0
5 Lisa Arce Rachel Wacholder 4 $3,500.00 216.0
7 Jennifer Meredith Wendy Stammer 8 $2,500.00 180.0
7 Angie Akers Sarah Straton 9 $2,500.00 180.0
9 Linda Hanley Liz Masakayan 6 $1,600.00 144.0
9 Jennifer Kessy Jenny Pavley 10 $1,600.00 144.0
9 Ashley Bowles Lia Young 13 $1,600.00 144.0
9 Pat Keller Marsha Miller 14 $1,600.00 144.0
13 Paula Roca Gracie Santana-Baeni 11 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Tanya Fuamatu Heide Ilustre 15 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Katie Lindquist Tracy Lindquist 16 $1,050.00 108.0
13 Barbara Nyland Kristen Schritter 21, Q4 $1,050.00 108.0
17 Danalee Bragado Ali Wood 12 $500.00 72.0
17 Erin Galli Michelle Morse 17 $500.00 72.0
17 Sharman Mitchell Alicia Polzin 18, Q2 $500.00 72.0
17 Kelly Kuebler Jaimie Lee 19, Q8 $500.00 72.0
17 Daven Casad-Allison Kim Zuffelato 20, Q3 $500.00 72.0
17 Barb Birnbaum Saralyn Smith 22, Q7 $500.00 72.0
17 Lauren Fendrick Julie Romias 23, Q17 $500.00 72.0
17 Jane Linn Tammy Rau 24 $500.00 72.0
25 Kimberly Coleman Julie Sprague Q12 $.00 36.0
25 Joy McKienzie Alyson Randick Q22 $.00 36.0
27 Rhonda Kottke Marla O'Hara Q1 $.00 18.0
27 Anne McArthur Carrie Wright Q5 $.00 18.0
27 Tyra Harper Francie Rard Q6 $.00 18.0
27 Nikki Audette Helen Reale Q9 $.00 18.0
27 Denise Johns Jenelle Koester Q10 $.00 18.0
27 Aycan Kara Teri Van Dyke Q14 $.00 18.0
27 Catie Fleisher Kelly Rowe Q15 $.00 18.0
27 Amber Davis Suzana Manole Q20 $.00 18.0
35 Kerri Eich Kaili Kimura Q11 $.00 12.0
35 Karen Reitz Sarah White Q13 $.00 12.0
35 Karen Helyer Beth Van Fleet Q16 $.00 12.0
35 Samantha Meador Laura Romeika Q18 $.00 12.0
35 Cherry Simkins Ashanti Taylor Q19 $.00 12.0
35 Adria Ciraco Cristina Salak Q21 $.00 12.0
35 Katherine Fay Stephanie Roberts Q24 $.00 12.0
35 Dana Fiume Kathryn McGeehan Q25 $.00 12.0
35 Cathy Hughes Beth Kennedy Q26 $.00 12.0
35 Melissa Karwowski Holly Reisor Q29 $.00 12.0
35 Karen Grifftih Lauren Nilsen Q32 $.00 12.0
35 Cassandra Libath Mariso Vino Q34 $.00 12.0
35 Christine Cummings Monique Ritter Q35 $.00 12.0
35 Jennifer Lombardi Mary Strong Q37 $.00 12.0
35 Kengy Bell Sharon Wentworth Q38 $.00 12.0
51 Johanna Lehman Kathleen Madden Q27 $.00 8.0
51 Heather Chandler Jessica Kahn Q28 $.00 8.0
51 Jen Blair Melanie Thornton Q30 $.00 8.0
51 Kim Cook Maureen Milmanow Q31 $.00 8.0
51 Linda Capizzi Dana Mincer Q33 $.00 8.0
51 Bridget Lambert Jennifer Zanna Q36 $.00 8.0

2003 Belmar AVP Tournament Champions >>Misty May/ Kerri Walsh

Misty May Kerri Walsh

LAST YEAR
Championship Match Belmar AVP 2002(winners place first, split $14,500; losers place second, split $9,750)
· McPeak/Youngs (1) def. Davis/Johnson Jordan (3), 16-21, 21-14, 15-12 (60).

Holly McPeak Elaine Youngs

2002 Belmar AVP Tournament Champions >>Holly McPeak/ Elaine Youngs

Articles for Belmar AVP 2003 THIS YEAR:

Volleyball: Soldano proving to be the toast of both coasts
Sunday, July 06, 2003
BY AKILAH NELSON
Star-Ledger Staff

For some people at Asbury Park's Second Avenue beachfront yesterday, the run-down boardwalk and desolate stretch of sand were a surprise.They had come to see professional beach volleyball, California-style, and Asbury's shore was not reminding them of Venice BeachBut for Brian Soldano, a native of Freehold who now plays professionally with the American Volleyball Professionals tour, the Jersey Shore is where beach volleyball began.
Soldano came home for this weekend's Jersey Shore Beach Volleyball Association's Greetings from Asbury Park tournament as the top contender, something you wouldn't expect from an East Coast man in a West Coast sport.
Five years ago, Soldano traded the unpredictable New Jersey weather for the year-round sunny beaches of California. Today, he will compete for the JSVBA Championship and $6,500 prize money, but he's used to competing for much more than money. "You definitely have to earn (California) guys' respect when you go out there from the East Coast," Soldano said. Placing in the top 10 of eight of 21 professional tournaments helped Soldano gain that respect.
Soldano left JSVBA, a semiprofessional tour, to begin his professional career in 1998. He knew he didn't quite fit the blond-haired, blue-eyed California beach boy stereotype of a volleyball player, but that did not bother him.
"It gave me more drive to want to go out there and prove that New Jersey guys are legitimate competitors in this sport."
Don Sachau, Soldano's former JSVBA partner, said when Soldano left there was no question that he would be a top contender. Sachau said Soldano had had all the right tools.
Soldano's mother, Leslie, said he played volleyball from a very young age and that she taught him to play, at first, by batting a balloon across a string, then in a beach volleyball pit at an area swim club.
"He didn't get to play in high school," Soldano's mother said. "And, so, he didn't play (intercollegiate) in college, either."
Instead, Soldano played basketball and ran track at Freehold Township High School, then competed with the University of Delaware's club volleyball team, an indoor six-man sport.
"It's not the same, but it helped him put together those same skills."
"The odds were definitely not in my favor," Soldano said. "But I realized that did not mean I couldn't go on and be successful."
Soldano has been successful. But even after competing against Karch Kiraly, who ranks first on the AVP money list, Soldano still finds competition on the Jersey Shore stiff.
"There are some fierce competitors out here," Soldano said. "You can't just come out here and think because this is New Jersey there is no competition."
So, Soldano doesn't mind that Asbury Park has no large crowds or hustling vendors, or that beachgoers must purchase beach badges. For him, this is just how volleyball should be -- focused on the game.
"This is pure volleyball here, no form, no fashion," Soldano said.

Common Interests
AVP
7/11/2003
Being able to play with one of your long time friends is always a joy. Being able to play on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour with the same person is even better.
Such is the case for the team of Casey Jennings (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Matt Fuerbringer (Hermosa Beach, Calif.).
About four years ago, the two teamed up and qualified for a few events. They remained friends and kept in touch and this season got back together to, according to Fuerbringer, "take care of some unfinished business."
They clicked immediately as a team and found that they share the same desires, goals and views of the game. Jennings and Fuerbringer were on the same page before hitting the sand, giving them an advantage that takes a long time for others to develop.
As far as playing goes, Jennings is the defensive specialist. At six-foot-three-inches, his job is to cover the court and sideout. Fuerbringer, at six-foot-eight-inches, handles the blocking chores and brings excellent setting skills to the table.
Jennings said the success of the team is attributed to their "persistence, discipline, and believing that they can and will be successful" adding that never giving up and training hard play a key role in their rise to the top.
On the court, the competitiveness of the two appears equal. They remain focused on the game and try not to let the emotions get the best of them. Communication between the two keeps them focused and whatever goes wrong during play, is taken care of after the match concludes.
Their training consists of workouts in the sand, as well as hitting the weight room to improve their strength. Away from the sport, Jennings and Fuerbringer share the same friends and hang out together quite a bit.
Both players are focused on 2004 with a goal of representing the U.S. in the beach volleyball segment of the Olympics in Athens, Greece.

Belmar Bound
AVP
7/23/2003

The AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour is rolling along during its 20th consecutive season and as it hits the shores of New Jersey, some of its athletes look to keep some streaks of their own alive.
The hottest story line at the July 25-27 AVP Belmar Open involves Mike Whitmarsh (San Diego) and partner Canyon Ceman (Bel Air, Calif.) who seem to own the Jersey beach.
Together the duo have notched titles in Belmar in 1997, 2000, 2002 and Whitmarsh earned one more with partner Kent Steffes in 1998.
"I do seem to have a lot of confidence when I¹m playing there," Whitmarsh said. "The ball just seems to bounce my way there for some reason."
Misty May (Long Beach, Calif.) and Kerri Walsh (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), who appear in an AVP event in Belmar for the first time, are on a run of their own.
After winning all three of the AVP events entered this season, the two return from Marseille, France where they won the Gold Medal in a July 15-20 Fèdèration Internationale de Volleyball tournament.
The tandem, which earned the No. 1 ranking on the FIVB Tour in 2002, have earned one additional gold, a silver and a bronze on the international tour and have already brought its 2003 beach volleyball earnings to a whopping $153,400.
The rest of the women¹s field is not about to let May and Walsh walk away with another AVP title.
Holly McPeak (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Elaine Youngs (Durango, Colo.), winners of the June 13-15 San Diego Open Presented by Bud Light, certainly are expected to compete.
Youngs, the 2002 AVP Most Valuable Player, and McPeak secured a Silver Medal on the 2003 FIVB Tour.
McPeak, the 2002 AVP Best Defensive Player, continues her quest to improve on her over $1 million in career earnings (most in women¹s beach volleyball) and with one more title, ties Karolyn Kirby¹s career leading 67 championships.
2002 Best Server Annett Davis (Tarzana, Calif.) and Jenny Johnson Jordan (Tarzana, Calif.), who defeated McPeak and Youngs in two finals¹ matches last season, look to avenge a championship loss to May and Walsh in the April 25-27 AVP Tempe Open, the second stop of the Tour.
Other women¹s teams include Carrie Busch (El Segundo, Calif.) and Leanne McSorley (Manhattan Beach), Lisa Arce (Redondo Beach, Calif.) and Rachel Wacholder (El Segundo, Calif.) and Nancy Mason (Redondo Beach, Calif.) with Dianne DeNecochea (La Jolla, Calif.).
The 2003 AVP men¹s field is a wide-open affair with every event being won by a different combination.
Champions of the April 4-6 Paul Mitchell Fort Lauderdale Open, Eric Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach, Calif.), the 2002 AVP Most Valuable Player, and Dax Holdren, who recently underwent knee surgery, look to get back on the pace that has them earning five No. 1 finishes dating back to 2002.
Brian Lewis (San Clemente, Calif.) and Brian Ayakatubby (Hermosa Beach, Calif.), champions of the June 6-8 AVP Hermosa Beach Open Presented by Bud Light, are in the hunt for their second victory this season.
Dain Blanton (Santa Monica, Calif.), who won the beach volleyball Gold Medal at the 2000 Olympics with Fonoimoana, and Jeff Nygaard (Los Angeles), winners of the San Diego event, are certain to fare well in Belmar. The duo have also earned Gold and Bronze Medals on the FIVB Tour.
Casey Jennings (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Matt Fuerbringer (Hermosa Beach, Calif.), with three second place finishes in 2003, will bring the heat to the Belmar event.
In the hunt for a piece of the $125,000 purse is the team including the all time leader in championships (143) and prize money (over $3 million), Karch Kiraly (San Clemente, Calif.) and Brent Doble (Capistrano Beach, Calif.).
Tournament action begins Friday with the AVP Qualifier Tournament (8 a.m.-5 p.m. local time). Main Draw action runs on Saturday (9 a.m.- 6:30 p.m.) continuing through Sunday beginning at 8:30 a.m. concluding with the women¹s finals (2 p.m.) and men¹s finals (3:30 p.m.).
The big question in regards to Whitmarsh, who some have deemed as the mayor of Belmar, and Ceman, is if they can bring their A-game and top the always-competitive AVP men¹s field.
The two have one title under their belt this season in Tempe, but health issues persist for both competitors. Whitmarsh sat out the San Diego event with an ankle injury and Ceman suffers from Lymphedema, a congenital defect of the lymph system in his left leg causing the limb to swell to incredible proportions.
"Belmar brings out the best in me," Ceman said. "It's something about the combination of the fans making us feel like appreciated professional athletes and the sand and wind combo that seems to bring out my best serving and hitting and, the great play of Whitmarsh."

Beach Volleyball

Orange County Metro
The professional circuit hits the Huntington Beach Open Aug. 14-17
By Jason Reed

Sinjin Smith. Randy Stoklos. Kent Stefes. Karch Kiraly. These are the old names of pro beach volleyball. Eric Fonoimoana, Holly McPeak, Misty May (of Long Beach State) and Karch Kiraly are the players lighting up the circuit today. After more than 20 years on the sand, Kiraly stands as the link from beach volleyball past to beach volleyball present.

Kiraly has excelled indoors as well as out and has three Olympic Gold Medals - 1984 and 1988 indoors and 1996 in the first-ever Olympic Beach Volleyball tournament. Along with his current partner, Brent Doble, Kiraly will play in the Huntington Beach Open Aug. 14-17 and then attempt to qualify for the Athens Olympics when the tour hits the new Home Depot Center in Carson for Olympic qualifying this September.

The Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) sanctions beach volleyball tournaments in Southern California and around the world. The 2003 AVP Tour returns home to Southern California in August, playing at the beach where it all started - Manhattan Beach. The next weekend the players move down to Surf City to play in the Huntington Beach Open, then return in September to the Home Depot Center for Olympic qualifying.

Orange County has a long and storied history with the AVP dating back to 1983 and the Seal Beach Open. The tournaments next to the pier started with a few hundred fans lounging in their beach chairs but by the '90s grandstands had to be constructed to hold all the people who flocked to the beach.

With the popularity of the sport growing, the chance of getting Seal Beach back in the near future is good. Two O.C. tournaments would be good for a region known for the beach.

The AVP can trace its roots back to 1948 and the first known tournament was held in Los Angeles. The players were not playing for prize money as they are today and there were no corporate sponsors. The winning duo split a case of Pepsi as their prize.

The year 1965 saw the birth of the California Beach Volleyball Association and beach volleyball was finally becoming a legitimate sport. The "circuit" was now up to eight events being held up and down California at places you would expect, like Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara and Manhattan Beach and at one unlikely spot - Lake Tahoe.

About 250 folks made it out to San Diego in 1974 to witness the first commercially sponsored tournament - the San Diego Open sponsored by Winston Cigarettes which featured a whopping $1,500 in total prize money! It didn't take long for the sport to explode and just two years later at the Olympia (beer) Championships of Beach Volleyball 30,000 people gathered to witness the event and first prize alone was $5,000.

The 1980s saw the tour catch fire and with major corporate sponsors such as Jose Cuervo tequila and Miller Lite backing the events, prize money grew tremendously. The old Prime Ticket sports cable channel in So. Cal and ABC's Wide World of Sports broadcast the tournaments to a large audience. The biggest year for beach volleyball was 1988 with a record 28 events held around the country.

However, the late 1990's were dismal for the fledgling sports league. Then in 2001, sports agent Leonard Armato - best known for making Shaquille O'Neal a household name - took control of the AVP. Armato has transformed the pro circuit into a lucrative venture that is being talked about not just locally, but globally. Today the tour has multi-year sponsorship commitments from major corporations including Nissan, Gatorade (part of PepsiCo), Paul Mitchell, Microsoft and Anhauser-Busch. In addition, NBC TV has contracted to televise six events during August.

In addition to Armato, another ambassador of the sport is Kiraly. At 43, he still loves to play and is the iron man of the sport, winning 143 titles going into 2003 and earning more than $3 million in prize money.

Most players on the tour grew up playing the sport from their youth, but Mike Whitmarsh is a big exception. Originally a basketball player, he was also drafted by the Portland Trailblazers and played briefly for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Today he is seventh all time on the career money list and was a Silver Medalist at the '96 Atlanta Games.

The 2003 schedule includes an East Coast swing in July to Belmar, N.J. before returning to Southern California. The tour features tournaments on six natural beaches and four landlocked, manmade beaches. In April, the matches were held in Tempe, Ariz. - a place known for sand, but not for the beach. At the end of August, the tour will make its annual pilgrimage to Chicago, then to the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas in September. The Olympic qualifying at Home Depot Center is the last of the fake beaches.

It won't be long until the professional beach volleyball tour comes to Huntington Beach. Grab your hat, your chair and don't forget the sunscreen. OCM

Jason Reed is a freelance writer based in Long Beach. Letters to the editor go to: Feedback@ocmetro.com.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Professional Beach Volleyball

Southern California Tournaments
For more info log onto www.avp.com

August 7-10
Manhattan Beach Open Presented by Bud Light
Southside of Manhattan Beach Pier

August 14-17
Huntington Beach Open Presented by Bud Light
Southside of Huntington Beach Pier

September 19-21
Olympic Qualifying Tournament
Home Depot Center, Carson
For tickets go to www.homedepotcenter.com

The Top Players
Karch Kiraly - The 43-year-old is the top winner of both tournaments and money in the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) history. He has played with and against the top players in the sport and owns three Olympic gold medals.

Eric Fonoimoana - The 34-year-old won the Gold Medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He was voted the tour's 2002 MVP and along with partner Dax Holdren forms the tour's No. 1 team.

Mike Whitmarsh - The 41-year-old is currently seventh on the all-time money list. He has won 24 titles and grabbed the Silver Medal at Atlanta. He briefly played in the NBA.

Misty May - The 25-year-old is a former "All-everything" at Long Beach State and in 1998 was the NCAA Athlete-of-the-Year. Since moving outdoors she has racked up 12 titles and finished 2002 as half of the top-ranked team on tour. She is originally from Costa Mesa.

Holly McPeak - The 34-year-old has won more money than any other woman in pro beach volleyball history. She enters 2003 with 65 titles - two shy of a record. She picked up another win in San Diego this past June and now needs one more to tie and two more to be No. 1.

Kerri Walsh - This 24-year-old partners with Misty May to form the top team of 2003. The pair has won three out of the four tournaments played so far this summer. Kerri was an Olympian in 2000 on the indoor team and while at Stanford she became the first player ever to win First Team All American honors four straight years. OCM

AVPNext Semi-pro Circuit names Belmar Main Draw competitors
AVP
7/23/2003
LOS ANGELES ‹ The AVPNext Semi-pro Circuit, a program offering elite up-and-coming amateur beach volleyball competitors the opportunity to compete on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, named the representatives earning spots into the Main Draw of the the July 25-27 AVP Belmar (N.J.) Open, the fifth stop of the 2003 AVP Nissan Series.

The Toyota Tour placed Florida¹s Nick Lucena and Phil Dalhauser into the men¹s Main Draw while East End Volleyball¹s Jane Linn (New York) earned the women¹s spot and selected Florida¹s Tammy Rau as here partner in Belmar.

Lucena and Dalhauser notched one first place finish in the qualifying events offered while Linn won four of the five EEVB events offered to earn the Main Draw berth.

AVPNext, the developmental program of the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, selected East End Volleyball (offering events in areas on the eastern seaboard, Northeast and mid-Atlantic), the Toyota Tour (mid-Atlantic), California Beach Volleyball Association, Colorado Professional Volleyball Association and the Florida Beach Volleyball Tour as the associations most qualified to take part in the AVPNext Semi-pro Circuit¹s trial season.

Both men¹s and women¹s teams from each selected AVPNext Semi-Pro Circuit association, meeting the necessary requirements, receive automatic entry into the Main Draw of predetermined AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour events during the 2003-04 season.

AVPNext Semi-pro Circuit contestants earn points that determine a player¹s national ranking and are applied toward entry into the Sept. 12-14 AVPNext U.S. Amateur Championships in Santa Barbara, Calif. where the male and female winners receive automatic entry into the Main Draw of the first four AVP events of the 2004 season.

AVP Belmar Open --- The Semifinals are set with few surprises
AVP
7/26/2003
THE SEMI MATCHES ARE SET FOR SUNDAY’S ACTION AT THE BELMAR OPEN ON THE AVP NISSAN SERIES

Belmar, NJ (July 26, 2003) - The semifinal matches are set for Sunday’s beach action at the Belmar Open. The men’s semis will feature eighth seeds Sean Rosenthal (Redondo Beach, CA) and Larry Witt (Santa Ynez, CA) battling fourth seeds Matt Fuerbringer (Hermosa Beach, CA) and Casey Jennings (Manhattan Beach, CA). Rosenthal/Witt knocked down the number one seeded team of Scott Ayakatubby (Herrmosa Beach, CA) and Brian Lewis in a quarter match 21-18, 21-18.

The other semi match will team up the second seeded team of Canyon Ceman (Los Angeles, CA) and Mike Whitmarsh (San Diego) who will do with battle 19th seeds Jason Ring (Bend, OR) and Scott Wong (Venice, CA). This will mark Ring/Wong’s first time in a semi on the AVP Nissan Series. Ring/Wong defeated Eli Fairfield (San Diego, CA) and Fred Souza (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) in a quarter match 26-24, 24-22, 15-13. Ceman/Whitmarsh defeated the number seventh seeds Eric Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach, CA) and Dax Holdren (Santa Barbara, CA) in a quarter match 23-21, 21-17. Whitmarsh is looking to defend his title that would give him his sixth win in Belmar.

There were no upsets in the women’s bracket as the top four teams advanced to the semifinals. The number one seeded team of Misty May (Long Beach, CA) and Kerri Walsh (Manhattan Beach, CA) will take on fourth seeds Lisa Arce (Redondo Beach, CA) and Rachel Wacholder (El Segundo, CA). May/Walsh breezed through Saturday’s matches and in a quarterfinals match beating Jennifer Meredith (El Segundo, CA) and Wendy Stammer (Tigard, OR) 21-19, 21-13. Second seeds Holly McPeak (Manhattan Beach, CA) and Elaine Youngs (Durango, CO) will do battle against Annett Davis (Valencia, CA). and Jenny Johnson Jordan (Tarzana, CA). Defending champ McPeak is looking to capture her 67th victory to tie all time leader Karolyn Kirby.

In the last contender’s match of the day the third seeded team of Brent Doble (Dana Point, CA) and Karch Kiraly, three-time Olympic Gold Medalist eliminated the number one seeds Scott Ayakatubby (Hermosa Beach, CA) and Brian Lewis (San Clemente, CA) 21-16, 21-17, 15-6. Doble/Kiraly will take on the fifth seeds Dain Blanton (Laguna Beach, CA) and Jeff Nygaard (Los Angeles, CA) in contender’s matches.

Sunday’s play begins at 8:30 a.m. at Belmar Beach at 4th & Ocean with women’s final set for 2 p.m. and the men’s final is set for 3:30 p.m. This is the fifth stop on the AVP Nissan Series.

Big rally for beach
Published in the Asbury Park Press 7/26/03
By TRACY ROBINSON
COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU
BELMAR -- A big spike in the beach crowd is due here this weekend, thanks to the Association of Volleyball Professionals tour, which is making its only stop in the Northeast at the Nissan Series Belmar Open today and tomorrow.

"I'd say we're going to get upwards of 50,000 on the beach this weekend," said AVP commissioner Leonard Armato yesterday. Tour officials were delighted by yesterday's perfect weather and the prospect of more sun today and tomorrow.

After a slow start because of the rainy June, beach badge revenues for the town, nearly $1.5 million as of July 20, are almost back to last year's level. And since tournament watchers will have to wear a badge, a big sales spurt is expected.

With a total of $125,000 at stake, the event kicked off yesterday with 93 men's and women's teams competing in qualifying games to get to play today. Top-ranked teams -- including defending champions Canyon Ceman/Mike Whitmarsh and Elaine Youngs/Holly McPeak -- have already secured their spots in the main draw event.

But the competition gets tougher today as the eight men's teams and six women's teams who qualified yesterday take on the big guns. By tomorrow night, the double-elimination tournament will whittle the field down to two winning teams, each of which gets $14,500.

"I've come to see the pros," said spectator Di Pearson yesterday as she stood in the stand watching Pawel Kadlubowski and Michael Mielcarz play Jim Walls and Skylar Davis.

"I come down every year for this, it's a blast," said Pearson, 45, who is here from Moorestown for the weekend. "As far as watching goes it doesn't get better than this."

Belmar is a popular stop on the tour, agreed top-seeded player Karch Kiraly, because the tour has played here for so long, and area fans "really only get to see us once a year."

Another reason for the event's popularity is because the Jersey Shore has many beach volleyball enthusiasts, he said.

"There were tons of temporary courts set up today," Kiraly said.

"The people that come to Belmar really love their volleyball," Armato said.

"It's a great beach, and you have a great following of people who play beach volleyball and they can't wait for the pros to come in," said AVP publicity director Debbie Rubio.

Spectators agree
"It is like a major event in our back yard," said Monica Slattery of Brick, who came to watch with her three children Shannon, 14, Neil, 12, and Shayne, 10.
"I think it is really cool I am really excited it's here," Shannon said as she participated in a free skills clinic for kids yesterday.

The clinic, which involved some pros teaching skills like serving, passing and setting, is to get youth interested in the sport, said Heather Kreger, an AVP marketing manager.

"Whether they are the next player or the next fan, it is a way to get them involved," she said.

The clinic was just one among many sideshows. Others included an interactive tent with games sponsored by X box and a Bud Light party zone, Armato said.

"It is also a wonderful interactive beach party," he said.

Local business owners, such as Clark Mitchell of Be Green, an oceanfront eatery, welcome the additional business the beach party brings.

"This thing is wonderful for us . . . especially because they are really health conscious," said Mitchell, whose shop sells fruit smoothies and good-for-you sandwiches.

"This is our best weekend of the year," he said, estimating sales will be 20 percent greater than on an ordinary one.

AVP Nissan Series Belmar Open -
May/Walsh continue to win while newcomers Witt/Rosenthal capture their first title
AVP
7/27/2003
MAY/WALSH AND ROSENTHAL/WITT
CAPTURE AVP NISSAN SERIES TITLES
AT THE BELMAR OPEN

Belmar, NJ (July 27, 2003) - The raucous crowd at the AVP Nissan Series
Belmar Open witnessed two entertaining finals as top seeded Misty May (Long
Beach, CA) and Kerri Walsh (Manhattan Beach,CA) captured their fourth title
this season while newcomers Sean Rosenthal (Redondo Beach, CA)and Larry Witt (Santa Ynez, CA) won their first career title before a packed crowd at Belmar Beach, NJ.

The women's final saw the top seeds dispatch the second seeded team of Holly
McPeak (Manhattan CA) and Elaine Youngs (Durango; CO) in workmanlike fashion
by the scores of 21-17, 21-11. This was the third meeting in the finals between these two teams on the AVP Nissan Series, with May and Walsh winning each contest. Since making their AVP debut this season, May and Walsh now have a 20-0 match record.

In the semi round they defeated fifth seeds Dianne DeNecochea (San Diego,
CA) and Nancy Mason (Redondo Beach, CA) 21-19, 21-13.

In the men's final eighth seeds Sean Rosenthal (Redondo Beach, CA) and Larry
Witt (Santa Ynez, CA) captured their first win on the AVP Nissan Series by
defeating the fourth seeded team of Matt Fuerbringer (Hermosa Beach, CA) and
Casey Jennings (Manhattan Beach, CA) 21-17, 21-11, 15-12 in a grueling three
game match. This marked the fourth finals appearance for Fuerbringer and
Jennings this season. .

On the road to the finals Fuerbringer/Jennings defeated 19th seeds Jason
Ring (Bend, OR) and Scott Wong (Venice, CA) 21-17, 21-16 in a semi match.

The month of August, the AVP Nissan Series will be "live" on NBC beginning
with the Manhattan Open, Aug. 7-10, Huntington Open, Aug. 14-17 and the
Chicago Open, Aug. 28-31st. Both the women's final on Saturday and the men's on Sunday
will be televised at 4:30 EST. For more information and complete results
visit http://www.avp.com

Articles for Belmar AVP 2002 LAST YEAR:

Mr. Sandman: Age, injuries no match for Kiraly
Fred Siegle/Asbury Park Press
6/26/2002

Even when Karch Kiraly isn't there, he often becomes a big part of the story at a beach volleyball tournament.
Take the Association of Volleyball Professional's Belmar Open last year. Kiraly, the all-time leader in beach volleyball victories, didn't attend because of a leg injury. But when Brent Doble -- who began the year as Kiraly's partner -- won the event with Lee LeGrande, speculation immediately began concerning what Doble would do when Kiraly came back from the injury. Stay with LeGrande, with whom he won? Or go back to Kiraly, a three-time Olympic gold medalist (twice indoors in the 1980s and on the beach at the 1996 games in Atlanta), possibly the greatest volleyball player, indoor, beach or both, of all time?
This year, Doble is back with Kiraly. And two weeks ago, everybody found out why when the pair won the AVP's Santa Barbara Open, Kiraly's 143rd career win. This weekend, Kiraly returns to Belmar for the first time since 1999 for the AVP's 12th Belmar event. He'll be trying to tie former partner Kent Steffes with his fifth Belmar victory and add the 144th tournament win to his career total.Those stats, along with his gold-medal status and his $2,989,030 in career prize money, make Kiraly a big story everywhere he goes."I'm not the only story on the tour," Kiraly said. "There's a lot of interesting stories. The reigning gold medalists (Eric Fonoimoana and Dain Blanton) are on the tour, even though they split as a team about two monthes after they won the gold. But if I have to play the part, I will." But Kiraly is more than a big draw. Everybody knows, if he's playing, he has to be considered a contender. Even at nearly 42 years old, he and 32-year-old Doble haven't finished worse than fifth in their three tournaments so far."Brent naturally went someplace else when I was hurt," Kiraly said. "But we decided to try again this year. We've been right there in all the tournaments so far. We've finished third, fifth and first. And each time, we showed we have some great potential together. We've had some real close matches with some of the best teams around."
Kiraly said he never considered retiring, even with the injury that limited him to two events last year, ending a streak of 14 straight years in which he won at least one tournament. In fact, it actually may have enabled him to extend his career. A shoulder injury had hampered him the previous year, when he often played despite the pain.
"The Achilles' (tendon) injury could recur, but it's been over a year," Kiraly said. "Right now, everything feels fine. And if anything, missing some events last year actually gave my body some rest, and it helped recoup some of the strength in my shoulder." Kiraly said the AVP field is deeper than it's ever been, making it difficult for a team to dominate the way he and Steffes did from 1992 to 1994, when they won 48 of 71 tournaments they entered, including the Belmar event in each of those years. And at 6-2, he's now one of the smaller players on the tour. Partner Doble, for instance, is 6-6.
"I still feel there's some good volleyball in me," Kiraly said. "I'm taking as good care of my body as I can, and I try to use the experience I've gained over time to overcome the younger, more physical guys on the tour now."
Besides, he said, 40-year-old Mike Whitmarsh, another four-time Belmar winner, won't allow him to quit.
"Mike says I can't retire until he retires," Kiraly said. "He doesn't want to be the oldest guy out there. And he's still playing some real good volleyball."

AVP'S Belmar Open at a glance

WHO: Top volleyball professionals return to Belmar for the Association of Volleyball Professionals $125,000 tournament. Both men's (32 teams) and women's (24 teams) competition will be held in a double-elimination format.

WHEN: Qualifying tournament with 8 main draw berths available, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday; Main draw begins 9 a.m. Saturday with competition until 5 p.m.; Play resumes 8:30 a.m. Sunday; women's final 2 p.m., men's final A 3 p.m.

WHERE: Fourth Avenue beach, Belmar.

COST: Front Row VIP Riser Seats -- Saturday Only, $40; Sunday Only, $45; Saturday and Sunday, $75; VIP Riser Seats -- Saturday Only, $35; Sunday Only, $40; Saturday and Sunday, $60; General Admission -- $5 each, Saturday and Sunday.

THIS WEEK'S EVENTS: June 26-- Fan party at the Headliner, Neptune, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.; June 27-- Fan party at the Boat House, Belmar, 10:30 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.; June 28 -- Free AVP youth clinic (18-under), 4 to 5 p.m., Fourth Avenue beach; Fan parties at Tropical Pub and D'Jais, Belmar, 6:30 p.m.; Xbox Halo tournament at the Headliner, Neptune, 8-10 p.m.; June 29 -- Xbox Halo tournament at Bar Anticipation, Belmar, 8-10 p.m. Sponsor Village: Friday 1 to 6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

AMATEUR TOURNAMENT: The AVPNext amateur tournament will be held alongside the AVP event on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday -- Men's and Women's Open, AA, A and B; Sunday -- Coed Open, A, B & MAA. All games will be played on the honor system without any referees so that you can spend as much time as possible watching the pros play. A players party will be held Saturday night at Bar Anticipation in conjunction with the AVP pro players. Check www.eevb.net to register. Advance registration is recommended.

Published in the Asbury Park Press 6/26/02

AVP TOUR VISITS JERSEY SHORE WITH TRENDS AT STAKE;
BELMAR HOSTS FIRST FULL-FIELD WOMEN'S COMPETITION
Courtesy Of Tim Simmons
BELMAR, N. J. - Will it be the same for the Association of Volleyball
Professionals (AVP) Tour this weekend (June 28-30) when the domestic pro beach
players invade the Jersey Shore for the 12th-straight season at Belmar Beach
for the $150,000 AVP 2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell?
The first three AVP Tour stops in California have produced a similar pattern
for each gender. The pattern for the men was a different winning team in
Huntington Beach, Hermosa Beach and Santa Barbara. The women's patterm
featured the same teams in the championship match each time with the same title
tandem - Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs.
The women return to Belmar for the first time since the early 1990s when the
AVP Tour staged a four-team event in 1993 on Belmar Beach followed by an
eight-team field in 1994. McPeak teamed with Cammy Ciarelli to win the 1993
women's title while 1996 Atlanta Olympic Gold Medallists Sandra Pires and
Jackie Silva winning the 1994 title.
McPeak and Youngs have won 15-straight AVP Tour events this season. The pair
defeated Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana each title match at Huntington,
Hermosa and Santa Barbara. McPeak and Youngs extended their 2002 winning
streak to 19-straight matches before dropping an elimination match last
Saturday in Switzerland to Sydney Olympic Gold Medallists Natalie Cook and
Elaine Youngs.
Youngs will also be seeking her fifth straight AVP Tour team title as she
teamed with Barbra Fontana to capture the Manhattan Beach crown last August. A
title this weekend would also put McPeak into second-place on the all-time
title standings behind Karolyn Kirby. McPeak is currently tied for second with
Silva at 59 each. Kirby, who retired after the 2000 season, won 67 women's pro
beach titles.
Beach legends Karch Kiraly and Mike Whitmarsh highlight the men's field as both
men will be seeking their fifth Belmar title to tie Kent Steffes for the most
wins on Belmar Beach. Kiraly enters this weekend after winning the last AVP
Tour stop in Santa Barbara (June 16) with Brent Doble.
The win was the 143rd in Kiraly's career, as he became the oldest player (41
years, 265 days) to win a pro beach title. Doble became the 12th different
partner to capture a title with Kiraly, who won Belmar titles in 1991, 1992,
1993 and 1996 with Steffes. Retired from the sport since 1999, Steffes won his
fifth Belmar title with Whitmarsh in 1998.
Whitmarsh won his first Belmar title with Canyon Ceman and his third crown on
Belmar Beach with David Swatik. Ceman and Whitmarsh, who are entered together
this weekend, also captured the 2000 Belmar Open before placing third last
season when Doble and Lee LeGrande defeated Albert Hannemann and Sean Scott for
the title.
Eric Fonoimoana and Dax Holdren captured the 2002 season opener by defeating
Ceman and Whitmarsh in the Huntington Beach finale May 26. Hannemann and Jeff
Nygaard upset top-seeded Stein Metzger and Kevin Wong for the Hermosa Beach
crown June 9. Doble and Kiraly defeated Fonoimoana and Holdren for the Santa
Barbara title June 16.
Kiraly (1996 Atlanta with Steffes) and Fonoimoana (Sydney 2000 with Dain
Blanton) are Olympic Gold Medallists. Whitmarsh captutred the Silver Medal
with Mike Dodd in the 1996 Olympic Games. Other USA beach Olympians competing
this weekend are McPeak (1996 and 200), Fontana (1996), Linda Hanley (1996) and
Wong (2000).
The AVP 2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell begins Friday (June 28)
with men's (51 teams) and women's (27 teams) qualifying. The
single-elimination qualifier will advance eight men's and six women's teams to
Saturday's opening Main Draw double-elimination rounds. Friday's qualifier is
set to start at 8 a.m. (EDT). Saturday's Main Draw will begin at 9 a.m. with
Sunday's final matches scheduled to start at 8 a.m.
After the Belmar stop, the AVP Tour will take five weekends off before resuming
play with nationally-televised events by NBC from Manhattan Beach (August 9-11)
and Chicago (August 23-25). The season ends with a specialty event in Las
Vegas September 4-7.
During the break, the top AVP Tour players will be competing internationally on
the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. The next FIVB event is July 2-7 in
Stavanger, Norway for the fourth-straight. The 2002 Stavanger will also
feature women's competition for the first time.
Thirteen (13) teams from the AVP Tour have entered the Norway stop. As for
Norway results, Brazilians have won all three men's titles, including Gold
Medals by former AVP Tour players Jose Loiola (1999) and Emanuel Rego (1999 and
2001). The best USA finish in Norway was a 2000 fifth by Carl Henkel and
Sinjin Smith.
Men's Main Draw (July 5-7) - Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong, Eric Fonoimoana/Dax
Holdren and Dain Blanton/Carl Henkel. Men's Qualification Tournament (July
3-4) - Todd Rogers/Sean Scott, John Hyden/Christian McCaw, Adam Jewell/Collin
Smith, Casey Jennings/Brad Torsone.
Women's Main Draw (july 4-6) - Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Dianne
DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana. Misty May/Kerri Walsh have also earned a Main Draw
berth for the United States. Women Qualification Tournament (July 2-3) -
Danalee Bragado/Rachel Wacholder, Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster, Cary
Wendell/Ali Wood and April Chapple Zanella and MJ Smith.

HAWAIIANS FUAMATU & ILUSTRE EARN FOURTH-STRAIGHT WOMEN'S MAIN DRAW BERTH;
MONEY ROUNDS FOR $125,000 AVP BELMAR OPEN START SATURDAY MORNING;
2002 AVP TOUR REACHES MIDWAY POINT ON JERSEY SHORE FOR 12TH ANNUAL BELMAR BEACH
BASH

BELMAR, N. J. - Tanya Fuamatu and Heidi Ilustre continued their streak in the
2002 Qualification Tournaments for the Association of Volleyball Professionals
(AVP) Tour season by posting a pair of wins here Friday (June 28) to advance to
the women's Main Draw for this weekend's event.

Seeded fourth in the women's Qualification Tournament, Fuamatu (Waipahu, Hi.)
and Ilustre (Honolulu, Hi.) are the only team, men or women, to advance from
the play-in rounds to the Main Draws in all four AVP Tour events this season.
The Hawaiians have won 11 of 12 qualifying matches this season. In the Main
Draws, Fuamatu and Ilustre have posted a 5-6 matches mark and have shared
$3,700 on the AVP Tour.

The final berths for the men's and women's Main Draws for the $125,000 AVP 2002
Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell were determined Friday as the
Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) Tour returned to this Jersey
Shore site for the 12th-straight season.

Seven of the top eight-seeded teams advanced from the 51-team men's
Qualification Tournament to the 32-team Main Draw. Six tandems earned spots
from the 27-team women's Qualification Tournament Friday to the 24-team Main
Draw. Both Main Draws start at 9 a.m. (EDT) Saturday as the AVP Tour reaches
the midway point of the 2002 season. Sunday's final matches are scheduled to
start at 8 a.m.

Third-seeded Michelle Morse (Redondo Beach, Calif.) and Liz Pagano (San Diego,
Calif.) joined Fuamatu and Ilustre in advancing from an AVP qualifier
multi-times this season. Morse and Pagano earned a Main Draw berth in the last
AVP Tour stop June 14 in Santa Barbara, Calif..

Also earning women's Main Draw berths were the tandems of second-seeded Erin
Galli (San Diego, Calif.)/Barbara Nyland, San Diego, Calif.), sixth-seeded
Daven Casad-Allison (Santa Barbara, Calif.)/Kim Zuffelato, Santa Barbara,
Calif.), ninth-seeded Anne McArthur (Los Angeles, Calif.)/Sarah White (Venice,
Calif.) and 16th-seeded Franci Rard (Naples, Fla.)/Paula Roca (Tierra Verde,
Fla.).

The only men's qualifier not seeded among the top eight in the Qualification
Tournament was 10th-seeded Jason Kruger (Calgary, Canada) and Everett Matthews
(Airdric, Canada). The Canadians eliminated seventh-seeded Brett Scharf (Los
Angeles) and Andrew Vazquez (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) to earn the eighth and
final spot in the Main Draw. Kruger and Matthews advanced from an AVP Tour
qualifier for the second time this season after earning a spot June 7 in
Hermosa Beach, Calif.

Advancing from an AVP Tour qualifier to the Men Draw for the second-time were
the tandems of second-seeded John Hyden (Los Angeles, Calif.)/Christian McCaw
(Santa Monica, Calif.), fifth-seeded John Anselmo (Manhattan Beach,
Calif.)/Scott Wong (Pearl City, Hi.) and eighth-seeded Mark Reilly (Redondo
Beach, Calif.)/Richard Van Huizen (Redondo Beach, Calif.).

Also earning men's Main Draw berths Friday were the from the men's qualifier
were the teams of top-seeded Daniel Fisher (Goleta, Calif.)/David Smith (Santa
Monica, Calif.), third-seeded Skyler Dale Davis (Irving, Tex.)/Matt Heath
(Myrtle Beach, S. C.), fourth-seeded Mike Mattarocci (San Diego, Calif.)/Eddie
Stokes (Redondo Beach, Calif.) and sixth-seeded Jason Lee (Venice,
Calif.)/Gaston Macau (Miami Beach, Fla.).

Heath and Macau had qualified for Main Draw berths together in Huntington (May
26) and Hermosa earlier this season. With Macau on the sidelines for the Santa
Barbara qualifier, Heath just missed advancing to that events men's Main Draw
with Davis by losing to Mike Daniel and Jacob Gill in the final elimination
match in the Qualification Tournament.

With the Main Draw fields determined, the stage is set for the AVP 2002 Belmar
Open to determine the final results as the first three California stops this
season produced a similar pattern for each gender. The pattern for the men was
a different winning team in Huntington Beach, Hermosa Beach and Santa Barbara.
The women's pattern featured the same teams in the championship match each time
with the same title tandem - Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs.

The women return to Belmar for the first time since the early 1990s when the
AVP Tour staged a four-team event in 1993 on Belmar Beach followed by an
eight-team field in 1994. McPeak teamed with Cammy Ciarelli to win the 1993
women's title while 1996 Atlanta Olympic Gold Medallists Sandra Pires and
Jackie Silva won the 1994 title.

McPeak and Youngs have won 15-straight AVP Tour events this season. The pair
defeated Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana each title match at Huntington,
Hermosa and Santa Barbara. McPeak and Youngs extended their 2002 winning
streak to 19-straight matches before dropping an elimination match last
Saturday in Switzerland to Sydney Olympic Gold Medallists Natalie Cook and
Kerri Pottharst.

Youngs will also be seeking her fifth straight AVP Tour team title as she
teamed with Barbra Fontana to capture the Manhattan Beach crown last August. A
title this weekend would also put McPeak into second-place on the all-time
title standings behind Karolyn Kirby. McPeak is currently tied for second with
Silva at 59 each. Kirby, who retired after the 2000 season, won 67 women's pro
beach titles.

Beach legends Karch Kiraly and Mike Whitmarsh highlight the men's field as both
men will be seeking their fifth Belmar title to tie Kent Steffes for the most
wins on Belmar Beach. Kiraly enters this weekend after winning the last AVP
Tour stop in Santa Barbara (June 16) with Brent Doble.

The win was the 143rd in Kiraly's career, as he became the oldest player (41
years, 265 days) to win a pro beach title. Doble became the 12th different
partner to capture a title with Kiraly, who won Belmar titles in 1991, 1992,
1993 and 1996 with Steffes. Retired from the sport since 1999, Steffes won his
fifth Belmar title with Whitmarsh in 1998.

Whitmarsh won his first Belmar title with Canyon Ceman and his third crown on
Belmar Beach with David Swatik. Ceman and Whitmarsh, who are entered together
this weekend, also captured the 2000 Belmar Open before placing third last
season when Doble and Lee LeGrande defeated Albert Hannemann and Sean Scott for
the title.

Eric Fonoimoana and Dax Holdren captured the 2002 season opener by defeating
Ceman and Whitmarsh in the Huntington Beach finale May 26. Hannemann and Jeff
Nygaard upset top-seeded Stein Metzger and Kevin Wong for the Hermosa Beach
crown June 9. Doble and Kiraly defeated Fonoimoana and Holdren for the Santa
Barbara title June 16.

Kiraly (1996 Atlanta with Steffes) and Fonoimoana (Sydney 2000 with Dain
Blanton) are Olympic Gold Medallists. Whitmarsh captured the Silver Medal with
Mike Dodd in the 1996 Olympic Games. Other USA beach Olympians competing this
weekend are McPeak (1996 and 200), Fontana (1996), Linda Hanley (1996) and Wong
(2000).

After the Belmar stop, the AVP Tour will take five weekends off before resuming
play with nationally-televised events by NBC from Manhattan Beach (August 9-11)
and Chicago (August 23-25). The season ends with a specialty event in Las
Vegas September 4-7.

During the break, the top AVP Tour players will be competing internationally on
the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. The next FIVB event is July 2-7 in
Stavanger, Norway for the fourth-straight season. The 2002 Stavanger will also
feature women's competition for the first time.

Thirteen (13) teams from the AVP Tour have entered the Norway stop. As for
Norway results, Brazilians have won all three men's titles, including Gold
Medals by former AVP Tour players Jose Loiola (1999) and Emanuel Rego (1999 and
2001). The best USA finish in Norway was a 2000 fifth by Carl Henkel and
Sinjin Smith.

Men's Main Draw (July 5-7) - Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong, Eric Fonoimoana/Dax
Holdren and Dain Blanton/Carl Henkel.
Men's Qualification Tournament (July 3-4) - Todd Rogers/Sean Scott, John
Hyden/Christian McCaw, Adam Jewell/Collin Smith, Casey Jennings/Brad Torsone.

Women's Main Draw (july 4-6) - Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Dianne
DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana. Misty May/Kerri Walsh have also earned a Main Draw
berth for the United States.
Women Qualification Tournament (July 2-3) - Danalee Bragado/Rachel Wacholder,
Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster, Cary Wendell/Ali Wood and April Chapple Zanella
and MJ Smith.

McPEAK & YOUNGS EXTEND AVP TOUR WOMEN'S WINNING STREAK;
TOP-SEEDED FONOIMOANA & HOLDREN LEAD MEN'S FIELD INTO SUNDAY'S FINAL ROUNDS;
2002 AVP TOUR REACHES MIDWAY POINT ON JERSEY SHORE FOR 12TH ANNUAL BELMAR BEACH
BASH

BELMAR, N. J. - The top-seeded teams of Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Eric
Fonoimoana/Dax Holdren won as expected here Saturday (June 29) to lead the
final eight tandems for each gender into Sunday's final rounds of the $125,000
AVP 2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell.

Sunday's final rounds in the AVP 2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell is
scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. (PDT) as the AVP Tour returned to this Jersey
Shore site for the 12th-straight season. The finals are scheduled to start at
2 p.m. with the winning teams in each gender sharing the $14,500 first-place
prizes.

McPeak (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Youngs (Durango, Colo.) won a pair of
matches Saturday to extend their Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP)
Tour winning streak to 17-straight matches this season. McPeak and Youngs
defeated ninth-seeded Danalee Bragado (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Monique
Oliver (Malibu, Calif.) 21-11 and 21-13 to advance to Sunday's first match
against Lisa Arce (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Linda Hanley (Pacific
Palisades, Calif.).

Competing in their fifth pro beach event this season after placing fifth last
week in a FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour event in Switzerland, McPeak and
Youngs won the first three AVP stops in California this season. McPeak and
Youngs defeated Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana for the titles at
Huntington Beach (May 26), Hermosa Beach (June 9) and Satna Barbara (June 16).
DeNecochea (San Diego, Calif.) and Fontana (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) dropped
both of their matches Saturday to place 17th.

Third-seeded Annett Davis (Tarzana, Calif.) and Jenny Johnson Jordan (Tarzana,
Calif.) and 10th-seeded Angie Akers (Long Beach, Calif.) and Jen Pavley (Agoura
Hills, Calif.) will play in Sunday's other match pitting unbeaten teams from
Saturday's play. Davis and Johnson Jordan, who finished fifth at the Sydney
2000 Olympic Games for the United States, have placed third in the first three
AVP Tour events this season. Akers and Pavley placed fifth in Santa Barbara.

Four other women's teams remain in contention for the Belmar title as they
enter Sunday's rounds with one defeat in the double-elimination tournament.
Fifth-seeded Carrie Busch (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Leanne Schuster
(Manhattan Beach play Bragado and Oliver while 15th-seeded Cary Wendell (San
Clemente, Calif.) and Ali Wood (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) challenge eighth-seeded
Nancy Mason (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Rachel Wacholder (El Segundo, Calif.)
in Sunday's opening elimination matches.

Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Holdren (Santa Barbara, Calif.) posted a
3-0 match mark Saturday, including a 21-17 and 21-19 win over eighth-seeded
Mike Lambert (Honolulu, Hi.) and Lee LeGrande (Hermosa Beach, Calif.), who
captured the 2001 Belmar title with Brent Doble. Fonoimoana and Holdren face
13th-seeded Scott Davenport (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Eli Fairfield (San
Diego, Calif.) in an opening winner's bracket match Sunday.

After finishing fifth, second and ninth in their last three pro beach starts
this season, Fonoimoana and Holdren are seeking to duplicate their efforts in
the 2002 AVP Tour season opener when they defeated Canyon Ceman and Mike
Whitmarsh for the Huntington Beach title.

Davenport and Fairfield advanced to Sunday's rounds with two upset wins to in
their last two matches Saturday. The pair scored wins over fourth-seeded
Eduardo Bacil (El Segundo, Calif.) and Frederico Souza (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
11-21, 21-18 and 15-13 in 62 minutes and 12th-seeded Casey Jennings (Huntington
Beach, Calif.) and Brad Torsone (Redondo Beach, Calif.) 24-22, 18-21 and 15-12
in 64 minutes. Fairfield is now guaranteed at least a fifth for his best pro
beach finish. Davenport's best finish was a fifth last season.

The 1998 and 2000 Belmar winners, Ceman (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Whitmarsh
(San Diego, Calif.), scored a "big" win Saturday by defeating third-seeded
Brent Doble (Capistrano Beach, Calif.) and Karch Kiraly (San Clemente, Calif.)
21-19, 15-21 and 15-13 in 62 minutes. Doble and Kiraly won the last AVP Tour
men's title in Santa Barbara by defeating Fonoimoana and Holdren in the finals.

Ceman and Whitmarsh, who has won four Belmar championships along with Kiraly as
they chase Kent Steffes five titles on this Jersey Beach, will play
second-seeded Stein Metzger (Honolulu, Hi.) and Kevin Wong (Pearl City, Hi.) in
an opening match Sunday morning.

Metzger and Wong, who won the Bronze Medal in last week's FIVB Beach Volleyball
World Tour event in Switzerland, have placed third, second and fifth in their
first three AVP Tour events this season. Winners of the last two AVP team
events in 2001, Metzger and Wong lost the Hermosa Beach finale to Albert
Hannemann and Jeff Nygaard.

Four other men's tandems remain in contention for the Belmar title as they
enter Sunday's rounds with one defeat in the double-elimination tournament.
Lambert and LeGrande play 18th-seeded Nick Hannemann (Hermosa Beach, Calif.)
and Jason Ring (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) with Bacil and Souza face Doble and
Kiraly. Bacil and Souza have finished third in the last two AVP Tour stops.

NOTES - Here are notes following the second of three days of competition on Belmar Beach.

· The women return to Belmar for the first time since the early 1990s when the
AVP Tour staged a four-team event in 1993 on Belmar Beach followed by an
eight-team field in 1994. Holly McPeak teamed with Cammy Ciarelli to win the
1993 women's title while 1996 Atlanta Olympic Gold Medallists Sandra Pires and
Jackie Silva won the 1994 title.

· Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs have now won 21 of 22 pro beach matches this
season. McPeak and Youngs extended their 2002 winning streak to 19-straight
matches before dropping an elimination match June 21 in Switzerland to Sydney
Olympic Gold Medallists Natalie Cook and Kerri Pottharst.

· Elaine Youngs is seeking her fifth straight AVP Tour team title as she teamed
with Barbra Fontana to capture the Manhattan Beach crown last August. A title
this weekend would also put Holly McPeak into second-place on the all-time
title standings behind Karolyn Kirby. McPeak is currently tied for second with
Silva at 59 each. Kirby, who retired after the 2000 season, won 67 women's pro
beach titles.

· Beach legends Karch Kiraly and Mike Whitmarsh highlight the men's field as
both men will be seeking their fifth Belmar title to tie Kent Steffes for the
most wins on Belmar Beach. Kiraly enters this weekend after winning the last
AVP Tour stop in Santa Barbara (June 16) with Brent Doble.

· The win was the 143rd in Kiraly's career, as he became the oldest player (41
years, 265 days) to win a pro beach title. Doble became the 12th different
partner to capture a title with Kiraly, who won Belmar titles in 1991, 1992,
1993 and 1996 with Steffes. Retired from the sport since 1999, Steffes won his
fifth Belmar title with Whitmarsh in 1998.

· Eric Fonoimoana and Dax Holdren captured the 2002 season opener by defeating
Ceman and Whitmarsh in the Huntington Beach finale May 26. Hannemann and Jeff
Nygaard upset top-seeded Stein Metzger and Kevin Wong for the Hermosa Beach
crown June 9. Doble and Kiraly defeated Fonoimoana and Holdren for the Santa
Barbara title June 16.

· Kiraly (1996 Atlanta with Steffes) and Fonoimoana (Sydney 2000 with Dain
Blanton) are Olympic Gold Medallists. Whitmarsh captured the Silver Medal with
Mike Dodd in the 1996 Olympic Games. Other USA beach Olympians competing this
weekend are McPeak (1996 and 200), Fontana (1996), Linda Hanley (1996) and Wong
(2000).

· After the Belmar stop, the AVP Tour will take five weekends off before
resuming play with nationally-televised events by NBC from Manhattan Beach
(August 9-11) and Chicago (August 23-25). The season ends with a specialty
event in Las Vegas September 4-7.

Past Belmar Champions

Season Men's Winning Team
· 1991 Karch Kiraly/Kent Steffes
· 1992 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1993 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1994 Adam Johnson/Randy Stoklos
· 1995 Brian Lewis/Bill Boullianne
· 1996 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1997 Canyon Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 1998 Steffes/Whitmarsh
· 1999 David Swatik/Whitmarsh
· 2000 Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 2001 Brent Doble/Lee LeGrande
· 2002 Ceman/Whitmarsh

Season Women's Winning Team
· 1993 Cammy Ciarelli/Holly McPeak
· 1994 Sandra Pires/Jackie Silva

NO BREAK FOR THE TOP AVP PLAYERS

During the break, the top AVP Tour players will be competing internationally on
the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. The next FIVB event is July 2-7 in
Stavanger, Norway for the fourth-straight season. The 2002 Stavanger will also
feature women's competition for the first time.

Thirteen (13) teams from the AVP Tour have entered the Norway stop. As for
Norway results, Brazilians have won all three men's titles, including Gold
Medals by former AVP Tour players Jose Loiola (1999) and Emanuel Rego (1999 and
2001). The best USA finish in Norway was a 2000 fifth by Carl Henkel and
Sinjin Smith.

Men's Main Draw (July 5-7) - Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong, Eric Fonoimoana/Dax
Holdren and Dain Blanton/Carl Henkel.
Men's Qualification Tournament (July 3-4) - Todd Rogers/Sean Scott, John
Hyden/Christian McCaw, Adam Jewell/Collin Smith, Casey Jennings/Brad Torsone.

Women's Main Draw (july 4-6) - Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Dianne
DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana. Misty May/Kerri Walsh have also earned a Main Draw
berth for the United States.
Women Qualification Tournament (July 2-3) - Danalee Bragado/Rachel Wacholder,
Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster, Cary Wendell/Ali Wood and April Chapple Zanella
and MJ Smith.

McPEAK & YOUNGS EXTEND AVP TOUR WOMEN'S WINNING STREAK TO 19-STRAIGHT MATCHES;
DAVIS & JOHNSON PLAY TOP-RANKED WOMEN'S TEAM IN SUNDAY'S TITLE MATCH;
TOP-SEEDED FONOIMOANA & HOLDREN LEAD MEN'S FIELD INTO SUNDAY'S SEMIFINALS;
2002 AVP TOUR REACHES MIDWAY POINT ON JERSEY SHORE FOR 12TH ANNUAL BELMAR BEACH
BASH

BELMAR, N. J. - Top-seeded Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs will be seeking their
fourth-straight domestic title here Sunday (June 30) as they face third-seeded
Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson Jordan in the women's final of the $125,000 AVP
2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell.

While McPeak and Youngs face Davis and Johnson and Jordan for the third time
this season on a Sunday, top-seeded Eric Fonoimoana and Dax Holdren lead the
men's field into the semifinals. Fonoimoana and Holdren won their opening
match Sunday to gain their third "final four" spot together in four AVP Tour
events this season.

Sunday's championship matches in the AVP 2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul
Mitchell are scheduled to start at 2 p.m. with the winning teams in each gender
sharing the $14,500 first-place prizes. McPeak and Youngs are looking for
their fourth straight Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) Tour title
this season while Fonoimoana and Holdren seek their second domestic
championship in 2002.

McPeak (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Youngs (Durango, Colo.) won their opening
two matches Sunday to extend their AVP Tour winning streak to 19-straight
matches this season. McPeak and Youngs defeated fourth-seeded Lisa Arce
(Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Linda Hanley (Pacific Palisades, Calif.) 20-22,
21-16 and 15-10 in 60 minutes to advance to a semifinal match where they
defeated fifth-seeded Carrie Busch and Leanne Schuster 21-10, 19-21 and 15-13
in 56 minutes.

Competing in their fifth pro beach event this season after placing fifth last
week in a FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour event in Switzerland, McPeak and
Youngs won the first three AVP stops in California this season. McPeak and
Youngs defeated Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana for the titles at
Huntington Beach (May 26), Hermosa Beach (June 9) and Santa Barbara (June 16).
DeNecochea (San Diego, Calif.) and Fontana (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) dropped
both of their matches Saturday to place 17th.

Davis (Tarzana, Calif.) and Johnson Jordan (Tarzana, Calif.) advanced to their
first title matches since 2000 by defeating eighth-seeded Nancy Mason (Hermosa
Beach, Calif.) and Rachel Wacholder (El Segundo, Calif.) 21-16 and 21-10 in a
36-minute semifinal. Davis and Johnson Jordan, who finished fifth at the Sydney
2000 Olympic Games for the United States, have placed third in the first three
AVP Tour events this season. The pair has a 15-5 match mark this season.

Davis and Johnson Jordan advanced to the semifinals with a 21-12 and 21-19 win
in 36 minutes over Akers and Pavley. Davis and Johnson Jordan are 0-2 against
McPeak and Youngs after dropping semifinal matches in Huntington Beach (21-18
and 21-10) and Hermosa Beach (21-18 and 21-18).

Busch (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Schuster (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) won two
matches Sunday morning to advance to semifinals. Busch and Schuster opened
with a 21-14 and 21-14 win over ninth-seeded Danalee Bragado (Manhattan Beach,
Calif.) and Monique Oliver (Malibu, Calif.) before eliminating 10th-seeded
Angie Akers (Long Beach, Calif.) and Jen Pavley (Agoura Hills, Calif.) 17-21,
21-12 and 15-9 in 51 minutes.

Mason and Wacholder, who had to win five-straight elimination matches after
dropping their first match Saturday to Bragado and Oliver, won their opening
two matches Sunday. Mason and Wacholder ousted 15th-seeded Cary Wendell (San
Clemente, Calif.) and Ali Wood (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) 21-19 and 21-19 and Arce
and Hanley 21-13, 9-21 and 15-11 in 50 minutes.

Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Holdren (Santa Barbara, Calif.) won
their opening match Sunday by defeating 13th-seeded Scott Davenport (Manhattan
Beach, Calif.) and Eli Fairfield (San Diego, Calif.) 21-15 and 21-18 in 40
minutes. With the win, Fonoimoana and Holdren face second-seeded Stein Metzger
and Kevin Wong for the second-time season.

Metzger and Wong, who dropped a 21-17, 19-21 and 15-11 semifinal decision to
Fonoimoana and Holdren in Huntington Beach May 26, dropped their opening match
to sixth-seeded Canyon Ceman (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Mike Whitmarsh (San
Diego, Calif.) 21-18 and 21-19 in 47 minutes. Metzger and Wong advanced to the
semfinals with a 21-17 and 21-12 in 40 minutes over eighth-seeded Mike Lambert
(Honolulu, Hi.) and Lee LeGrande (Hermosa Beach, Calif.).

Metzger and Wong, who won the Bronze Medal in last week's FIVB Beach Volleyball
World Tour event in Switzerland, have placed third, second and fifth in their
first three AVP Tour events this season. Winners of the last two AVP team
events in 2001, Metzger and Wong lost the Hermosa Beach finale to Albert
Hannemann and Jeff Nygaard, who placed ninth Saturday.

Ceman and Whitmarsh, who captured the 1998 and 2000 AVP Belmar Open titles,
challenge third-seeded Brent Doble (Capistrano Beach, Calif.) and Karch Kiraly
(San Clemente, Calif.) in the second men's semifinals. Doble and Kiraly won a
pair of elimination matches Sunday morning by defeating fourth-seeded Eduardo
Bacil (El Segundo, Calif.) and Frederico Souza (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) 21-19
and 21-13 in 40 minutes and 13th-seeded Scott Davenport (Manhattan Beach,
Calif.) and Eli Fairfield (San Diego, Calif.) 21-18, 12-21 and 15-13 in 63
minutes.

Doble and Kiraly, who won the last AVP Tour men's title in Santa Barbara by
defeating Fonoimoana and Holdren in the finals, dropped a 21-19, 15-21 and
15-13 decision in 62 minutes to Ceman and Whitmarsh Saturday. Doble and
Kiraly, who defeated Fonoimoana and Holdren in the Santa Barbara final, are 0-2
against Ceman and Whitmarsh this season after losing 21-8, 21-23 and 15-13 in
the Huntington semifinal. Kiraly and Whitmarsh have won four Belmar
championships each as they chase Kent Steffes' record of five titles on this
Jersey Beach.

NOTES - Here are notes for the third of three days of competition on Belmar Beach.

· The women return to Belmar for the first time since the early 1990s when the
AVP Tour staged a four-team event in 1993 on Belmar Beach followed by an
eight-team field in 1994. Holly McPeak teamed with Cammy Ciarelli to win the
1993 women's title while 1996 Atlanta Olympic Gold Medallists Sandra Pires and
Jackie Silva won the 1994 title.

· Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs have now won 23 of 24 pro beach matches this
season to share $64,775 in earnings. McPeak and Youngs extended their 2002
winning streak to 19-straight matches before dropping an elimination match June
21 in Switzerland to Sydney Olympic Gold Medallists Natalie Cook and Kerri
Pottharst.

· Elaine Youngs is seeking her fifth straight AVP Tour team title as she teamed
with Barbra Fontana to capture the Manhattan Beach crown last August. A title
this weekend would also put Holly McPeak into second-place on the all-time
title standings behind Karolyn Kirby. McPeak is currently tied for second with
Silva at 59 each. Kirby, who retired after the 2000 season and was celebrating
her 41st birthday Sunday, won 67 women's pro beach titles.

· The Santa Barbara win was the 143rd in Karch Kiraly's career, as he became
the oldest player (41 years, 265 days) to win a pro beach title. Brent Doble
became the 12th different partner to capture a title with Kiraly, who won
Belmar titles in 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1996 with Kent Steffes. Retired from the
sport since 1999, Steffes won his fifth Belmar title with Mike Whitmarsh in
1998.

· Karch Kiraly (1996 Atlanta with Kent Steffes) and Eric Fonoimoana (Sydney
2000 with Dain Blanton) are Olympic Gold Medallists. Mike Whitmarsh captured
the Silver Medal with Mike Dodd in the 1996 Olympic Games. Other USA beach
Olympians competing this weekend are Holly McPeak (1996 and 200), Barbra
Fontana (1996), Linda Hanley (1996) and Kevin Wong (2000).

· After the Belmar stop, the AVP Tour will take five weekends off before
resuming play with nationally-televised events by NBC from Manhattan Beach
(August 9-11) and Chicago (August 23-25). The season ends with a specialty
event in Las Vegas September 4-7.

Past Belmar Champions

Season Men's Winning Team
· 1991 Karch Kiraly/Kent Steffes
· 1992 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1993 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1994 Adam Johnson/Randy Stoklos
· 1995 Brian Lewis/Bill Boullianne
· 1996 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1997 Canyon Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 1998 Steffes/Whitmarsh
· 1999 David Swatik/Whitmarsh
· 2000 Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 2001 Brent Doble/Lee LeGrande

Season Women's Winning Team
· 1993 Cammy Ciarelli/Holly McPeak
· 1994 Sandra Pires/Jackie Silva

NO BREAK FOR THE TOP AVP PLAYERS

During the break, the top AVP Tour players will be competing internationally on
the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. The next FIVB event is July 2-7 in
Stavanger, Norway for the fourth-straight season. The 2002 Stavanger will also
feature women's competition for the first time.

Thirteen (13) teams from the AVP Tour have entered the Norway stop. As for
Norway results, Brazilians have won all three men's titles, including Gold
Medals by former AVP Tour players Jose Loiola (1999) and Emanuel Rego (1999 and
2001). The best USA finish in Norway was a 2000 fifth by Carl Henkel and
Sinjin Smith.

Men's Main Draw (July 5-7) - Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong, Eric Fonoimoana/Dax
Holdren and Dain Blanton/Carl Henkel.
Men's Qualification Tournament (July 3-4) - Todd Rogers/Sean Scott, John
Hyden/Christian McCaw, Adam Jewell/Collin Smith, Casey Jennings/Brad Torsone.

Women's Main Draw (july 4-6) - Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Dianne
DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana. Misty May/Kerri Walsh have also earned a Main Draw
berth for the United States.
Women Qualification Tournament (July 2-3) - Danalee Bragado/Rachel Wacholder,
Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster, Cary Wendell/Ali Wood and April Chapple Zanella
and MJ Smith.

McPEAK & YOUNGS DEFEAT DAVIS & JOHNSON FOR WOMEN'S BELMAR CROWN;
TOP-RANKED TEAM EXTENDS AVP TOUR WOMEN'S WINNING STREAK TO 20-STRAIGHT MATCHES;
TOP-SEEDED FONOIMOANA & HOLDREN FACE CEMAN & WHITMARSH IN MEN'S FINALE;
2002 AVP TOUR REACHES MIDWAY POINT ON JERSEY SHORE FOR 12TH ANNUAL BELMAR BEACH
BASH

BELMAR, N. J. - Top-seeded Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs captured their
fourth-straight domestic title here Sunday (June 30) by defeating third-seeded
Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson Jordan in the women's final of the $125,000 AVP
2002 Belmar Open Presented by Paul Mitchell.

After McPeak and Youngs' 16-21, 21-14, 15-12 win in 60 minutes, sixth-seeded
Canyon Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh challenged top-seeded Eric Fonoimoana and Dax
Holdren in the men's finale. Fonoimoana and Holdren won their two opening
matches Sunday to gain their third title match spot this season while Ceman and
Whitmarsh advanced to their second championship match together in four AVP Tour
events this season.

Sunday's championship teams in each gender will share the $14,500 first-place
prizes. McPeak and Youngs extended their Association of Volleyball
Professionals (AVP) Tour winning streak to 20-straight matches with the title
victory Sunday. Fonoimoana and Holdren seek their second domestic championship
in 2002.

McPeak (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Youngs (Durango, Colo.), have now won 24
of 25 pro beach matches this season to share $67,575 in earnings. McPeak and
Youngs only defeat was June 21 in Switzerland to Sydney Olympic Gold Medallists
Natalie Cook and Kerri Pottharst of Australia where the Americans finished
fifth.

Youngs won her fifth straight AVP Tour team title as she teamed with Barbra
Fontana to capture the Manhattan Beach crown last August. Sunday's crown for
McPeak moved her into second-place on the all-time title standings behind
Karolyn Kirby. McPeak, who has won a pro beach title in nine of the last 10
season, has 60 crowns. Kirby, who retired after the 2000 season and was
celebrating her 41st birthday Sunday, won 67 women's pro beach titles.

McPeak and Youngs won their opening two matches by defeating fourth-seeded Lisa
Arce (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Linda Hanley (Pacific Palisades, Calif.)
20-22, 21-16 and 15-10 in 60 minutes and fifth-seeded Carrie Busch and Leanne
Schuster 21-10, 19-21 and 15-13 in 56 minutes.

Competing in only their fifth pro beach event together, McPeak and Youngs won
the first three AVP stops in California this season. McPeak and Youngs
defeated Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana for the titles at Huntington
Beach (May 26), Hermosa Beach (June 9) and Santa Barbara (June 16). DeNecochea
(San Diego, Calif.) and Fontana (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) dropped both of their
matches Saturday to place 17th.

Davis (Tarzana, Calif.) and Johnson Jordan (Tarzana, Calif.) advanced to their
first title matches since 2000 by defeating eighth-seeded Nancy Mason (Hermosa
Beach, Calif.) and Rachel Wacholder (El Segundo, Calif.) 21-16 and 21-10 in a
36-minute semifinal. Davis and Johnson Jordan, who finished fifth at the
Sydney 2000 Olympic Games for the United States, have placed third in the first
three AVP Tour events this season. The pair has a 15-6 match mark this season
and shared $9,750 for second-place Sunday.

Davis and Johnson Jordan advanced to the semifinals with a 21-12 and 21-19 win
in 36 minutes over Akers and Pavley. Davis and Johnson Jordan are now 0-3
against McPeak and Youngs after dropping semifinal matches in Huntington Beach
(21-18 and 21-10) and Hermosa Beach (21-18 and 21-18) earlier this season.

Busch (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Schuster (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) won two
matches Sunday morning to advance to the semifinals. Busch and Schuster opened
with a 21-14 and 21-14 win over ninth-seeded Danalee Bragado (Manhattan Beach,
Calif.) and Monique Oliver (Malibu, Calif.) before eliminating 10th-seeded
Angie Akers (Long Beach, Calif.) and Jen Pavley (Agoura Hills, Calif.) 17-21,
21-12 and 15-9 in 51 minutes.

Mason and Wacholder, who had to win five-straight elimination matches after
dropping their first match Saturday to Bragado and Oliver, won their opening
two matches Sunday. Mason and Wacholder ousted 15th-seeded Cary Wendell (San
Clemente, Calif.) and Ali Wood (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) 21-19 and 21-19 and Arce
and Hanley 21-13, 9-21 and 15-11 in 50 minutes. For placing third, the
Busch/Schuster and Mason/Wacholder tandems earned $5,825 each.

Fonoimoana (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) and Holdren (Santa Barbara, Calif.) won
their opening match Sunday by defeating 13th-seeded Scott Davenport (Manhattan
Beach, Calif.) and Eli Fairfield (San Diego, Calif.) 21-15 and 21-18 in 40
minutes. Fonoimoana and Holdren advanced to the finals with a 14-21, 21-16 and
25-23 in 62 minutes over second-seeded Stein Metzger and Kevin Wong.

Ceman (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Whitmarsh (San Diego, Calif.), who captured
the 1998 and 2000 AVP Belmar Open titles, defeated third-seeded Brent Doble
(Capistrano Beach, Calif.) and Karch Kiraly (San Clemente, Calif.) 21-18, 15-21
and 15-13 in a 63-minute Sunday's second men's semifinals. It was the second
win of the weekend for Ceman and Whitmarsh over Doble and Kiraly.

Whitmarsh, who has won four Belmar championships as he chases Kent Steffes'
record of five titles on this Jersey Beach, and Ceman have posted a 15-5 mark
this season while Fonoimoana and Holdren are 23-4, including 20-3 on the AVP
Tour. Fonoimoana and Holdren defeated Ceman and Whitmarsh 21-18 and 21-14 at
the Huntington finale May 26 in the only meeting this season between the two
teams.

Metzger (Honolulu, Hi.) and Wong (Pearl City, Hi.), who dropped a 21-17, 19-21
and 15-11 semifinal decision to Fonoimoana and Holdren in Huntington Beach May
26, dropped their opening match Sunday to Ceman and Whitmarsh 21-18 and 21-19
in 47 minutes. Metzger and Wong advanced to the semfinals with a 21-17 and
21-12 in 40 minutes over eighth-seeded Mike Lambert (Honolulu, Hi.) and Lee
LeGrande (Hermosa Beach, Calif.).

Metzger and Wong, who won the Bronze Medal in last week's FIVB Beach Volleyball
World Tour event in Switzerland, have placed third, second and fifth in their
first three AVP Tour events this season. Winners of the last two AVP team
events in 2001, Metzger and Wong lost the Hermosa Beach finale to Albert
Hannemann and Jeff Nygaard, who placed ninth Saturday.

Doble and Kiraly won a pair of elimination matches Sunday morning to advance to
the "final four." Doble and Kiraly defeated fourth-seeded Eduardo Bacil (El
Segundo, Calif.) and Frederico Souza (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) 21-19 and 21-13
in 40 minutes and 13th-seeded Scott Davenport (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Eli
Fairfield (San Diego, Calif.) 21-18, 12-21 and 15-13 in 63 minutes.

Doble and Kiraly, who won the last AVP Tour men's title in Santa Barbara by
defeating Fonoimoana and Holdren in the finals, dropped a 21-19, 15-21 and
15-13 decision in 62 minutes to Ceman and Whitmarsh Saturday. Doble and
Kiraly, who defeated Fonoimoana and Holdren in the Santa Barbara final, are now
0-3 against Ceman and Whitmarsh this season after losing 21-8, 21-23 and 15-13
in the Huntington semifinal. For placing third, the Metzger/Wong and
Doble/Kiraly tandems earned $5,825 each.

NOTES - Here are notes for the third of three days of competition on Belmar
Beach.

· The women return to Belmar for the first time since the early 1990s when the
AVP Tour staged a four-team event in 1993 on Belmar Beach followed by an
eight-team field in 1994. Holly McPeak teamed with Cammy Ciarelli to win the
1993 women's title while 1996 Atlanta Olympic Gold Medallists Sandra Pires and
Jackie Silva won the 1994 title.

· The 2002 Santa Barbara win was the 143rd in Karch Kiraly's career, as he
became the oldest player (41 years, 265 days) to win a pro beach title. Brent
Doble became the 12th different partner to capture a title with Kiraly, who won
Belmar titles in 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1996 with Kent Steffes. Retired from the
sport since 1999, Steffes won his fifth Belmar title with Mike Whitmarsh in
1998.

· Karch Kiraly (1996 Atlanta with Kent Steffes) and Eric Fonoimoana (Sydney
2000 with Dain Blanton) are Olympic Gold Medallists. Mike Whitmarsh captured
the Silver Medal with Mike Dodd in the 1996 Olympic Games. Other USA beach
Olympians competing this weekend were Holly McPeak (1996 and 200), Barbra
Fontana (1996), Linda Hanley (1996) and Kevin Wong (2000).

· After the Belmar stop, the AVP Tour will take five weekends off before
resuming play with nationally-televised events by NBC from Manhattan Beach
(August 9-11) and Chicago (August 23-25). The season ends with a specialty
event in Las Vegas September 4-7.

Past Belmar Champions

Season Men's Winning Team
· 1991 Karch Kiraly/Kent Steffes
· 1992 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1993 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1994 Adam Johnson/Randy Stoklos
· 1995 Brian Lewis/Bill Boullianne
· 1996 Kiraly/Steffes
· 1997 Canyon Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 1998 Steffes/Whitmarsh
· 1999 David Swatik/Whitmarsh
· 2000 Ceman/Whitmarsh
· 2001 Brent Doble/Lee LeGrande
· 2002 Eric Fonoimoana/Dax Holdren or Ceman/Whitmarsh

Season Women's Winning Team
· 1993 Cammy Ciarelli/Holly McPeak
· 1994 Sandra Pires/Jackie Silva
· 2002 Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs

NO BREAK FOR THE TOP AVP PLAYERS

During the break, the top AVP Tour players will be competing internationally on
the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour. The next FIVB event is July 2-7 in
Stavanger, Norway for the fourth-straight season. The 2002 Stavanger will also
feature women's competition for the first time.

Thirteen (13) teams from the AVP Tour have entered the Norway stop. As for
Norway results, Brazilians have won all three men's titles, including Gold
Medals by former AVP Tour players Jose Loiola (1999) and Emanuel Rego (1999 and
2001). The best USA finish in Norway was a 2000 fifth by Carl Henkel and
Sinjin Smith.

Men's Main Draw (July 5-7) - Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong, Eric Fonoimoana/Dax
Holdren and Dain Blanton/Carl Henkel.
Men's Qualification Tournament (July 3-4) - Todd Rogers/Sean Scott, John
Hyden/Christian McCaw, Adam Jewell/Collin Smith, Casey Jennings/Brad Torsone.

Women's Main Draw (july 4-6) - Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs and Dianne
DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana. Misty May/Kerri Walsh have also earned a Main Draw
berth for the United States.
Women Qualification Tournament (July 2-3) - Danalee Bragado/Rachel Wacholder,
Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster, Cary Wendell/Ali Wood and April Chapple Zanella
and MJ Smith.

Lofty goals: Local players look to gain berth in main draw
Asbury Park Press 6/28/02
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER
There will be an added twist today when the top local beach volleyball players get their chance to live out their dreams by earning a berth in the Association of Volleyball Professionals main draw.

For the first time, women will be getting their chance to advance into tomorrow's event by playing in the qualifier tournament today. Several players from the East Coast, including Sharon Wentworth of Sea Bright, will be taking advantage of the opportunity.

"We're really excited to have the women here," said Wentworth, whose husband, Jeff, is also playing in the men's qualifier. "This is the first time in my history that they've offered this kind of opportunity for women's players. The only other thing we used to have was the Jose Cuervo tournaments.

"This is really big. I wouldn't miss it. We get a chance to play against the best players, and show that the women on the East Coast can be competitive with the players from the West. I really feel that the teams from around here will make a good showing."

Eight men's teams and six women's teams will gain spots in the main draw for the $125,000 Belmar Open by winning two or three matches at the qualifier today.

Because this is the first time the women's portion of the AVP is being held in Belmar, Wentworth and the other East Coast players -- several from Long Island will take part -- aren't too familiar with the opposition. Wentworth and her partner, Danielle Stannard of Washington, D.C., will play the No. 6 seeds, Daven Casad-Allison and Kim Zuffelato, in the opening round.

"I really don't recognize most of the names in the qualifier," said Wentworth. "It's hard to predict when you don't know the competition. With this type of system, luck of the draw can play a big part. If you can get by the first round, you have a good chance."

Wentworth and Stannard are friends, but they haven't played much together before because they live far apart. Wentworth says she plays mostly at East End Volleyball tournaments on Long Island, "because that's where the best competition is."

She said her style complements Stannard's.

"She's taller and a good blocker, and I'm more of a defensive player," Wentworth said. "With the new rules (the AVP's court is 20 percent smaller than the indoor and standard beach courts), we're a good combination. We're just going to try our best. We feel we have a real chance. It's going to be a great experience for us."

For many of the local men's teams, the qualifying tournament has become an annual rite. Past qualifiers who've made it into the main draw include Tim Chittenden, Belmar, and Fred Fauhl, Seaside Heights; Wayne Gant, Wall, and Ihor Akinshyn, North Bergen; Jon Rose, Toms River, and Jon Barnes, Mount Laurel, and Graig Domanski and Brian Soldano, both Freehold Township. Soldano is now a regular on the AVP Tour, and he and partner Jake Elliott of Isle of Palms, S.C., are the No. 14 seeds in the main draw.

Barnes and Rose and Chittenden and Fauhl are playing together again today, while Gant and Domanski and Jeff Wentworth and Akinshyn are teaming up. The pairings have Chittenden and Fauhl playing Domanski and Gant in the opening round.

There are 51 teams, many traveling here from California, battling for the eight men's teams berths, and 28 in the women's competition.

Wentworth, 31, and Akinshyn played college volleyball together at Rutgers-Newark and have been one of the most formidable teams in this area for many years. At one time Wentworth pursued beach volleyball as a top priority, similar to many of the players from the West who'll be playing today, but he has a career now that makes the sport more into a "hobby."

"There are all these young guys coming up. They're dying to earn their way into the main draw, and at some point tomorrow we'll be playing them," he said. "They're dying to get in, to do what Brian (Soldano) has been able to do. They just want to beat us and move on. It's an interesting relationship, the mixture you get at the qualifier."

Rard, Roca earn spot in main event
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER Asbury Park Press

BELMAR -- Franci Rard and Paula Roca had never played together before, so they decided to work extra hard on communicating yesterday.
Communication and steady play enabled Rard, of Naples, Fla., and Roca, who was born in Brazil and now lives in Florida, to advance to today's main draw in the Association of Volleyball Professionals' $125,000 Belmar Open. The duo had three wins in the qualifier tournament yesterday.

Six women's teams and eight men's teams earned main draw berths, but no local teams qualified. Two New Jersey players will be in the main draw, with Brian Soldano, Freehold Township, and his partner, Jake Elliott, Isle of Palms, S.C., seeded 14th, and Jim Walls, Cape May, and his partner, Adam Roberts, South Carolina, seeded 22nd.

Rard and Roca, seeded 16th in the qualifier, beat the 17th seeds, Karen Reitz and Saralyn Smith, 21-16, 21-8, then upset the top seeds, Kerri Eich and Kristin Schritter, 21-18, 22-20. In the match to earn a main-draw berth, they beat the ninth seeds, Ann McArthur and Sarah White, 21-14, 22-20.

Both Rard and Roca had attempted to qualify for previous AVP tournaments this year, but neither had made it.

"Because we hadn't played together before, we knew we had to communicate well," said Rard. "That helped our playing, and Paula was serving tough all day."

Despite being the 16th seeds, they were confident as the day started.

"We've both played qualifiers before, and we knew that if we played well, we'd have a good chance," Rard said.

It also helped that the pair is adjusting to the AVP rules, which include let serves and a smaller court. Both had only played on the standard volleyball court, which is 20 percent bigger, in Florida.

"The rule changes took us a little time to get used to," Roca said. "We hadn't played tournaments before with the new rules."

Rard and Roca are the 22nd seed in the main draw, which begins at 9 a.m. today at the Fourth Avenue beach. They play the 11th seeds, Katie Lindquist and Tracie Lindquist, in the first round, and are looking forward to their first main-draw experience.

"It's awesome," Rard said. "The thing about the main-draw teams is they're so consistent. They don't have big lapses. They don't give up two, three points in a row."

"I'm very excited," Roca said. "The level of play is so high, you have to play really well to win a game."

Also earning berths in the women's main draw were: Tanya Fuamatu and Heidi Ilustre, the fourth seeds in the qualifier; McArthur and White, who won a play-in game after losing to Rard and Roca; Daven Casad-Allison and Kim Zuffelato, the sixth seeds; Michelle Morse and Liz Pagano, the third seeds, and Erin Galli and Barbara Nyland, the second seeds.

A.J. Mihalic, who was raised in Wall but has lived in California for the last year, came closest to gaining a spot in today's event among the qualifier players with local ties. Mihalic and partner Todd Hart lost 21-19, 21-16 to the fourth-seeded team of Mike Mattarocci and Eddie Stokes in the third round.

Graig Domanski, Freehold Township, and Wayne Gant, Wall; Jon Rose, Toms River, and Jon Barnes, Mount Laurel; Brian Gulick, Toms River, and Ryan Burrow, Newark, and Paul Kadlubowski, Ozone Park, N.Y., and Michael Mielcarz, Holland, Pa., all lost in the second round. Gant and Domanski lost 21-19, 19-21, 15-12 to Jason Lee and Gaston Macau, who also won in the third round to advance. Tough serving by Macau caused Gant and Domanski to fall behind 3-0 in the third game and they weren't able to close the gap.

"They basically won it on his serve," Gant said. "That killed us. Plus, I had two sets in transition in that game where I didn't swing, I hit roll shots that they were able to get back against us. You have to take your chances and swing in those situations."

Only one of the eight top-seeded teams failed to advance: No. 7 seeds Andrew Vazquez and Brett Scharf, who lost in the third round to Jason Kruger and Everett Matthews, the 10th seeds.

Also advancing from the men's qualifier were: Daniel Fisher and David Smith, the top seeds; No. 2 John Hyden and Chip McCaw; Skyler Dale Davis and Matt Heath (3); Mattorocci and Stokes; John Anselmo and Scott Wong (5), and Mark Reilly and Richard Vanhuizen (8).

Sand sharks: Whitmarsh wins 5th title, Ceman nets 3rd
Published in the Asbury Park Press 7/01/02
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER
BELMAR -- Mike Whitmarsh staged a block party on the sand he now owns yesterday.
Whitmarsh won his fifth Belmar Open title, teaming with Canyon Ceman to beat Dax Holdren and Eric Fonoimoana 21-18, 21-16 at the Association of Volleyball Professionals' $125,000 tournament. Whitmarsh has won at the site five of the last six years and is now tied with Kent Steffes, who doesn't play on the tour right now, in wins at Belmar, while Ceman won his third title, one behind Karch Kiraly.
"People have been asking me why I do so well here," Whitmarsh said. "The best way to explain it is, there's a lot of fire in this crowd, and I get fired up when I come here."
"It's their beach," Holdren said. "Mike's won five of the last six here, there's not much you can say more than that."
Whitmarsh had six blocks in the final, five in the second game. But it was more than the blocking. Ceman and Whitmarsh combined for 19 digs and were diving all over the court, fighting for every point. Maybe it was because they hadn't won a tournament since 2000 -- Ceman's last win was at Belmar that year, while 2001 was the first year Whitmarsh (he also won the season-ending King of the Beach event in 2000) didn't win a tournament.
"I've been hungry, I know Whitty's hungry," Ceman said. "It's been a while for both of us. For me, my big key was aggressiveness, when (people) say it looked like we were going for it, that's what it means for me. My serve, my hits, I was giving it all I had."
"Whitty's real comfortable here, it seems like he turns it up a notch in Belmar," Fonoimoana said. "They came up with some big plays doing the little things, covering when they got blocked, making good sets from off the net. Those kind of bravo plays can really frustrate you, when the other team is hustling like that and gets the majority of those, it can break your momentum."
When Ceman and Whitmarsh are playing well, everything starts with the intimidating block presented by Whitmarsh, who is 6-foot-7. They had lost in the final at Huntington Beach, Calif., on May 26 to Fonoimoana and Holdren, 21-18, 21-14.
"I had to block better, when we played them in Huntington, I blocked three balls the whole match, we're not going to win with me blocking like that," Whitmarsh said. "I knew that was part of the key to win the match, I had to block better."
"Today he was on. As his blocking goes, we go," Ceman said. "His blocking keys my defense, and it takes a little pressure of me in terms of siding out."
"Against that block, there's not a lot you can do," Holdren said. "You can try to cheap the ball around, but Canyon was running everything down. When they've got both those things going, its tough to beat them."
Of course, there's always a little luck involved in every victory. Leading 16-15 in the first game, Ceman scored with a jump-serve ace to Holdren's sideline.
"The beautiful thing about that, that was a mis-hit," Ceman said. "Anyone will tell you out here, that mis-hits are how you get aces. Most people know your tendencies, know where you're meaning to hit the ball. The big thing is aggressiveness is what creates breaks. I was swinging as hard as I could. With that philosophy, good things are going to happen on my serve."
The score was tied 9-9 in the second game when Ceman sided out with a kill after a long rally, making it 10-9, then Whitmarsh earned two service points. First, he blocked Fonoimoana, then Ceman made a dig and kill to make it 12-9. Two sideouts later, Whitmarsh had another block for 14-10 and they were in control.
Whitmarsh, 40, has been considering retirement for several years, and mentioned it again in his remarks to the crowd after the victory. But this time he acknowledged his love for this site.
"Right now, I'm leaning toward not playing anymore (after this season), but we'll see," he said. "Even if I'm not, I wouldn't mind coming back here just to see the people."
Ceman and Whitmarsh's road to the victory in the two-day, double-elimination event included two wins over Kiraly and Brent Doble, who finished third. They won 21-19, 15-21, 15-13 on Saturday, and 21-18, 15-21, 15-13 in the semifinals yesterday.

2002 AVP Points (Through June 30, 2002)

Here's are the men and women point leaders for the Association of Volleyball
Professionals (AVP) after the fourth of seven stops on the 2002 tour. The AVP
Pro Beach Volleyball Tour next event is August 9-11 in Manhattan Beach, Calif.
The points are based upon accumulated 2002 points for four events.

Men, residence (titles), Points

1. Eric Fonoimoana, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (1), 634
Dax Holdren, Santa Barbara, Calif. (1), 634
3. Brent Doble, Capistrano Beach, Calif. (1), 580
Karch Kiraly, San Clemente, Calif. (1), 580
5. Stein Metzger, Honolulu, Hi., 572
Kevin Wong, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 572
7. Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (1), 518
Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif. (1), 518
9. Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif., 459
Fred Souza, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil., 459
11. Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif. (1), 450
Jeff Nygaard, Los Angeles, Calif. (1), 450

Women, residence (titles), Points

1. Holly McPeak, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (4), 756
Elaine Youngs, Durango, Colo. (4), 756
3. Annett Davis, Tarzana, Calif., 594
Jenny Johnson Jordan, Tarzana, Calif., 594
5. Barbra Fontana, Manhattan Beach, Calif., 554
Dianne DeNecochea, San Diego, Calif., 554
7. Carrie Busch, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 540
Leanne Schuster, Manhattan Beach, Calif., 540
9. Lisa Arce, Redondo Beach, Calif., 481
Linda Hanley, Pacific Palisades, Calif., 481
11. Rachel Wacholder, El Segundo, Calif., 423
12. Nancy Mason, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 398

2002 AVP Earnings (Through June 30, 2002)

Men, residence (titles), Earnings

1. Eric Fonoimoana, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (1), $19,100.00
Dax Holdren, Santa Barbara, Calif. (1), $19,100.00
3. Brent Doble, Capistrano Beach, Calif. (1), $15,175.00
Karch Kiraly, San Clemente, Calif. (1), $15,175.00
5. Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif., $14,335.00
Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif., $14,335.00
7. Stein Metzger, Honolulu, Hi., $13,425.00
Kevin Wong, Hermosa Beach, Calif., $13,425.00
9. Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif. (1), $11,550.00
Jeff Nygaard, Los Angeles, Calif. (1), $11,550.00
11. Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif., $8,457.50
Fred Souza, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, $8,457.50

Women, residence (titles), Earnings
1. Holly McPeak, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (4), $30,450.00
Elaine Youngs, Durango, Colo. (4), $30,450.00
3. Dianne DeNecochea, San Diego, Calif., $15,850.00
Barbra Fontana, Manhattan Beach, Calif., $15,850.00
5. Annett Davis, Tarzana, Calif., $14,195.00
Jennifer Johnson Jordan, Tarzana, Calif., $14,195.00
7. Carrie Busch, Hermosa Beach, Calif., $11,070.00
Leanne Schuster, Manhattan Beach, Calif., $11,070.00
9. Lisa Arce, Redondo Beach, Calif., $8,512.50
Linda Hanley, Pacific Palisades, Calif., $8,512.50
11. Rachel Wacholder, El Segundo, Calif., $6,912.50
12. Nancy Mason, Hermosa Beach, Calif., $6,542.50

2002 AVP SCHEDULE - A total of seven combined men's and women's events
highlight the seven-stop schedule for the AVP.

Date, City, State, Site (Men & Women Winners)

May 24-26, Huntington Beach, Calif. (Eric Fonoimoana/Dax Holdren & Holly
McPeak/Elaine Youngs)
June 7-9, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (Albert Hannemann/Jeff Nygaard &
McPeak/Youngs)
June 14-16, Santa Barbara, Calif. (Brent Doble/Karch Kiraly & McPeak/Youngs)
June 28-30, Belmar, N.J. (Canyon Ceman/Mike Whitmarsh & McPeak/Youngs
August 9-11, Manhattan Beach, Calif., The Pier
August 23-25, Chicago, Ill., North Beach
September 4-7, Las Vegas, Nev., Hard Rock Hotel

2002 AVP Tour - Final Four Finishes

WOMEN'S

Huntington Beach, Calif. (May 24-26)
1. Holly McPeak/Elaine Youngs
2. Dianne DeNecochea/Barbra Fontana
3. Annett Davis/Jenny Johnson Jordan
3. Lisa Arce/Linda Hanley
Title Match (winners split $14,500; losers split $9,750) - McPeak/Youngs (No.
1-seeded main Draw Team) def. DeNecochea/Fontana (2), 21-18, 20-22 and 15-9 (69
minutes).

Hermosa Beach, Calif. (June 7-9)
1. McPeak/Youngs
2. DeNecochea/Fontana
3. Davis/Johnson Jordan
3. Carrie Busch/Leanne Schuster
Title Match (winners split $17,400; losers split $11,700) - McPeak/Youngs (1)
def. DeNecochea/Fontana (2), 21-15 and 21-14 (38).

Santa Barbara, Calif. (June 14-16)
1. McPeak/Youngs
2. DeNecochea/Fontana
3. Davis/Johnson Jordan
3. Busch/Schuster
Title Match (winners split $14,500; losers split $9,750) - McPeak/Youngs (1)
def. DeNecochea/Fontana (2), 21-15 and 21-13 (45).

Belmar, N. J. (June 28-30)
1. McPeak/Youngs
2. Davis/Johnson Jordan
3. Nancy Mason/Rachel Wacholder
3. Busch/Schuster
Title Match (winners split $14,500; losers split $9,750) - McPeak/Youngs (1)
def. Davis/Johnson Jordan (3) 16-21, 21-14 and 15-12 (60).

MEN'S

Huntington Beach, Calif. (May 24-26)
1. Eric Fonoimoana/Dax Holdren
2. Canyon Ceman/Mike Whitmarsh
3. Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong
4. Brent Doble/Karch Kiraly
Title Match (winners split $14,500; losers split $9,750) - Fonoimoana/Holdren
(3) def. Ceman/Whitmarsh (4), 21-18 and 21-14 (49).

Hermosa Beach, Calif. (June 7-9)
1. Albert Hannemann/Jeff Nygaard
2. Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong
3. Eduardo Bacil/Frederico Souza
3. Scott Ayakatubby/Brian Lewis
Title Match (winners split $17,400; losers split $11,700) - A.
Hannemann/Nygaard (6) def. Metzger/Wong (1), 18-21, 29-27 and 27-25 (100).

Santa Barbara, Calif. (June 14-16)
1. Doble/Kiraly
2. Fonoimoana/Holdren
3. Eduardo Bacil/Frederico Souza
3. Mike Lambert/Lee LeGrande
Title Match (winners place first, split $14,500; losers place second, split
$9,750) - Doble/Kiraly (5) def. Fonoimoana/Holdren (2), 21-12 and 21-18 (50).

Belmar, N. J. (June 28-30)
1. Ceman/Whitmarsh
2. Fonoimoana/Holdren
3. Metzger/Wong
3. Doble/Kiraly
Title Match (winners split $14,500; losers split $9,750) -Ceman/Whitmarsh (6)
def. Fonoimoana/Holdren (121-18 and 21-16 (50).

PLEASE ENJOY LAST YEAR'S 2001 BELMAR AVP SEASON COVERAGE BELOW AS THE 2002 SEASON UNFOLDS ABOVE !!!!

TO SEE BELMAR'S PAST 2000-2001 EVENT COVERAGE SCROLL TO BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE
BUT CHECK OUT THE LINKS AS THEY ARE STILL INFORMATIVE FOR THIS YEAR

AVP-PRO BEACH VOLLEYBALL ANNUAL EVENT

AVP TOUR EVENT INFORMATION BELMAR 2001

VOLLEYBALL.ORG BELMAR 2001 EVENT INFO

DIRECTIONS TO BELMAR NJ SUNKIST AVP EVENT FOR FANS & PLAYERS

DIRECTIONS TO THE OFFICIAL EVENT HOTEL Ocean Place Conference Resort

Partys and What's Going On :
Wednesday July 19th 2000
6pm clinic/Meet the players @ Headliner

Thursday July 20th 2000
10pm Rage @ Reggies

Friday July 21st 2000
5-6:30pm Sunkist AVP Free Youth Clinic
7:30pm Player Dinner/Party D'Jais

Saturday July 22nd 2000
9am Sunkist AVP Belmar Open Begins
9pm Official Tour Party @ Bar A

Sunday July 23rd 2000
8:30am Sunkist AVP Belmar Open Begins Play
9am Sunkist AVP Youth Tour Begins
4pm AVP Finals Begins

The Belmar Photo Gallery:

BELMAR AVP 2003 PHOTO ALBUM

Subscribe to the IAN_CLARK_VOLLEYBALL Yahoo Group by entering your e-mail address in the box above
then goto the Photos link on the left hand side of the page to see many more photos from past years BELMAR events.

SUBSCRIBE ABOVE FOR MORE PHOTOS !!!

Photos AVP Belmar 2001 Open

Sunset on the Shark River Inlet in Belmar,New Jersey

"Images of America: Belmar I&II"(click on the pic above)

AVP-Pro Beach Volleyball on the Jersey Shore(click on pic for current event info)

Right click on images then view image to see the pictures full size in Netscape

Uncle Nick & The I-MAN in Belmar July 1998

Adam Jewel, Albert Hanneman & Danny Belmar 1999

Ian Clark & young fan Danny at Belmar July 1998

David Swatik Belmar 1999

Belmar Beach AVP 1999

Mike Cole & David Valenti "IMANFANS4EVER" Belmar 2000

Local Asbury Park Press article about the 1999 AVP Belmar Beach Open

Sam Lagana AVP Voice Of Belmar's Past

Chris "Geeter"McGee

HERE'S DA BEEF Bill AKA "Beef" Boullianne 2001

Chad,Adam & Ian give a thumbs up to Belmar's nitelife

Some Joisey Girls!!!

FRIDAY JULY 21ST-2000-10PM MEET THE COORS LIGHT GIRLS
AT PAT'S TAVERN IN BELMAR(last year)see Bar Event schedule for current events)
July 2001 Meet the Coor's Lite Girls Schedule
Click on the picture for the girls......

Asbury Park Press Photos
By Tanya Breen

Mister Belmar"MIKE WHITMARSH"wins again last year 2000 with Canyon Ceman!!!
4 Time and current record holder tying Karch Kiraly who has also won 4 events here!!!
1997 Mike Whitmarsh/Canyon Ceman
1998 Mike Whitmarsh/Kent Steffes
1999 Mike Whitmarsh/David Swatik
2000 Mike Whitmarsh/Canyon Ceman

Volleyball Magazine-November1998
Your Serve Section
Volleyball Magazine
Click on this link above during the Belmar 2000 AVP event
for scores and discussions in the outdoors forums.

AVP TOUR LAUDED

My wife and I took our three children to Belmar,N.J.,for the AVP tournament this past weekend-and what a great day! In this time of overpaid,underappreciative athletes,the AVP Tour is a gem amongst professional sports.I don't know how this sport can be in trouble.The younger players are following Karch's lead of being great ambassadors of the game. After signing thousands of autographs in his career,Karch still has a pleasant smile and greeting for the kids.Dain,Fonoi,Lewey and Canyon all took time out from their exhausting schedules to have photos
taken with my kids.Thanks to everyone involved with the AVP and good luck.

Larry,Kim,Kevin,Kyle and Brandon Mariano
Kendall Park,New Jersey

*courtesy of Volleyball Magazine

LOCAL WEATHER REPORT
Find out what the weather will be like for the Belmar,NJ AVP annual tour event or before heading for your favorite local Jersey Shore beaches !!!

Watch The AVP Volleyball Live!!!! at the
BELMAR SUNKIST OPEN
Belmar, New Jersey July 20th,21st,22nd,2001
The Belmar AVP Web Cam

Belmar Beach on the Belmar Cam Newly Refurbished Belmar Marina

Sandcastle Building on Belmar Beach Beachgoers Soaking Up The Rays

Community Resources City Of Belmar,NJ

BELMAR.COM

BELMAR NJ SHOPPING,MAIN STREET & MORE

Shore Area Nitelife To Try
During The Event

Play Volleyball with the Playboy Playmates Xtremeteam at BAR-A July7th,2001
South Belmar,NJ
July 7th,2001
Bar Anticipation
Pre-register your team one week prior to the
tournament
703-5 16th Ave
BELMAR,NJ
10 AM Signups ($10) fee
Noon-4:00PM-Games,Parties

Click on the dog above for photos of the Xtreme Team....

Click the Banners above for Belmar,NJ Nitelife during the event!!!

BELMAR CAM BARS,PUBS & CLUBS

In South Belmar, they love the night life

Concerts:

James Taylor
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Friday -- July 6th;Saturday--July7th, 2001 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Cost:$25

The Beach Boys
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Tuesday -- July 10, 2001 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM
Cost:$25

Rod Stewart
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Wednesday -- July 11, 2001 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Cost:$25

Chicago
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Saturday -- July 14, 2001 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Cost:$25

Paul Simon/Brian Wilson
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Friday-- July 20, 2001 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Cost:$25

Stevie Nicks/Jeffrey Gains
PNC Bank Arts Center
Holmdel, NJ
Saturday-- July 21, 2001 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Cost:$25

Places to stay while in Belmar,New Jersey

Places to eat while in Belmar,New Jersey

This week's recipe: Belmar baked fluke

Event Links: (Year 2000results) BELMAR BEACH AVP SUNKIST OPEN
AVP Tour Event Coverage

Matt "Mattio" UNGER Ian AKA "I-MAN" CLARK

Format:
Double Elimination

Event Scores:

Round Of 32
Holdren, Rogers (15)Def., Barnes, Rose (3)
Delahoz, Luyties (15)Def., Poolman, Williams(11)
Hribar, Fischer (17)Def.,Clark, Unger (15)
Bacil, Souza (15)Def., Pollard, Tourigny(6)
Lewis, Johnson(15)Def., Kumgisky, Bellandi(1)
Smith, Ivie (15) Def.,Goers, Taylor (11)
Davenport, Makos(16)Def., Baxter, Paaluhi (14)
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def., Jennings,Fuerbringer (11)
Neto, LeGrande (15)Def., Salmon, Elliot (9)
A.Hannemann,Boullianne (15)Def., Friederichsen,Boldt (7)
Garrido, Azevedo(15)Def., Priddy, Taliaferro(4)
Doble, Metzger (15)Def.,Daniel, Gibb (2)
Witt, Frohoff (15)Def.,Torsone, Convis(6)
N.Hannemann, Jewell(15)Def., Geibel, Addy (9)
Koerv, Agi (15) Def.,Boss, Castillo (13)
Fonoimoana,Blanton (15)Def., Rodriquez,Silberstein (11)
Round Of 16
Holdren, Rogers (15)Def.,Delahoz, Luyties (3)
Bacil, Souza (15)Def., Hribar, Fischer (8)
Lewis, Johnson(17)Def., Smith, Ivie (15)
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def.,Davenport, Makos(10)
Neto, LeGrande (19)Def., A.Hannemann,Boullianne (17)
Doble, Metzger (15)Def.,Garrido, Azevedo(6)
N.Hannemann, Jewell(15)Def.,Witt, Frohoff (10)
Fonoimoana,Blanton (15)Def., Koerv, Agi (3)
Quarter Finals
Bacil, Souza (15)Def., Holdren, Rogers (12)
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def.,Lewis, Johnson(4)
Doble, Metzger (15)Def.,Neto, LeGrande (3)
N.Hannemann, Jewell(15)Def.,Fonoimoana,Blanton (7)
SemiFinals
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def.,Bacil, Souza (9)
N.Hannemann, Jewell(15)Def.,Doble, Metzger (12)

Winners Finals
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def.,N.Hannemann, Jewell(9)

Tournament Finals
Ceman, Whitmarsh(15)Def.,N.Hannemann, Jewell(11)

Tournament Champions 2000>> Mike Whitmarsh/Canyon Ceman

Mike Whitmarsh Olympic Silver Medalist Canyon Ceman

Losers Round 1
Salmon, Elliot(15)Def., Friederichsen,Boldt (7)
Priddy,Taliaferro (15)Def., Daniel,Gibb (3)
Geibel, Addy (15)Def., Torsone,Convis (8)
Boss, Castillo(15)Def., Rodriquez,Silberstein (10)
Poolman,Williams (15)Def., Barnes,Rose (5)
Clark, Unger(15)Def., Pollard, Tourigny (6)
Kumgisky,Bellandi (15)Def., Goers,Taylor (10)
Jennings,Fuerbringer (15)Def., Baxter, Paaluhi (5)
Losers Round 2
Salmon, Elliot(15)Def.,Davenport,Makos (3)
Priddy,Taliaferro (15)Def., Smith,Ivie (11)
Hribar, Fischer(15)Def., Geibel,Addy (10)
Delahoz,Luyties (15)Def., Boss,Castillo (10)
Poolman,Williams (15)Def.,Koerv,Agi (3)
Witt, Frohoff(15)Def.,Clark,Unger (13)
Garrido,Azevedo (15)Def., Kumgisky,Bellandi (5)
A.Hannemann,Boullianne (15)Def.,Jennings,Fuerbringer (7)
Losers Round 3
Salmon, Elliot (15)Def.,Priddy,Taliaferro (12)
Delahoz,Luyties (15)Def.,Hribar, Fischer(11)
Witt, Frohoff(15)Def.,Poolman,Williams (13)
Garrido,Azevedo (16)Def., A.Hannemann,Boullianne (14)
Losers Round 4
Neto, LeGrande (15)Def., Salmon, Elliot (5)
Fonoimoana,Blanton (15)Def.,Delahoz,Luyties (11)
Holdren, Rogers (16)Def.,Witt, Frohoff(14)
Lewis, Johnson(15)Def., Garrido,Azevedo (12)
Losers Round 5
Neto, LeGrande (15)Def., Fonoimoana,Blanton (13)
Lewis, Johnson(15)Def., Holdren, Rogers (12)
Losers Round 6
Bacil, Souza (15)Def.,Neto, LeGrande (7)
Doble, Metzger (15)Def.,Lewis, Johnson(13)
Losers Semifinals
Doble, Metzger (15)Def.,Bacil, Souza (12)
Losers Finals
N.Hannemann, Jewell(15)Def.,Doble, Metzger (12)

Final Results:2000
1st -Ceman/Whitmarsh                                                 $16,000
2nd-N. Hannemann/ Jewell                                           $10,000
3rd -Doble/Metzger                                                        $ 7,500
4th -Bacil/Souza                                                            $ 5,500
5th -Legrand/Neto                                                          $ 4,000
5th -Lewis /Johnson                                                       $ 4,000
7th -Holdren/Rogers                                                      $ 3,000
7th -Fonoimoana/Blanton                                             $ 3,000
9th -Salmon/Elliot                                                         $ 2,000
9th -Delahoz/Luyties                                                      $ 2,000
9th -Witt/Frohoff                                                            $ 2,000
9th -Garrido/Azevedo                                                    $ 2,000
13th-Priddy/Taliaferro                                                     $ 1,000
13th- Hribar/Fischer                                                         $ 1,000
13th- Poolman/Williams                                                  $ 1,000
13th- A.Hannemann/Boullianne                                       $ 1,000
17th- Davenport/Makos                                                     $500
17th- Smith/Ivie                                                                 $500
17th- Geibel/Addy                                                              $500
17th- Boss/Castillo                                                             $500
17th- Koerv/Agi                                                                 $500
17th- Clark/Unger                                                                $500
17th- Kumgisky/Bellandi                                                    $500
17th- Jennings/Fuerbringer                                                  $500

Articles:

The Boys are Back in Belmar!!!
Courtesy of the AVP
Jul 21,2000
Saturday at the Sunkist Belmar AVP Open was not a good day for the AVP’s elite. The only top four seeded team surviving in the winners bracket after Saturday’s play was the 4th seeded squad of Canyon Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh who advanced to the semifinals with a convincing 15-4 win over Brian Lewis and Adam Johnson. Also slipping into the wrong bracket on day 1 was top seeds Dax Holdren and Todd Rogers who fell victim to Brazilians Anjinho and Fred 15-12. The fourth installment of the LeGrande/Neto vs. Doble/Metzger saga was played out here in Belmar, with Doble/Metzger squaring the season series to two games a piece with a 15-12 win and a place in the semis on Sunday. Belmar marked the return of Eric Fonoimoana and Dain Blanton to the AVP Tour after a few weeks playing abroad on the FIVB’s Olympic chase. Dain and Eric were not treated kindly by Nick Hannemann and Adam Jewell who sent the pair to the losers bracket with a 15-7 victory.

Whitmarsh is King of Belmar!!!
Courtesy of the AVP
By Dan Vrebalovich
Jul 22nd,2000

Sunday was again no picnic on the court for the top seeds at the Sunkist AVP Belmar         Open. The top seeded team of Dax Holdren and Todd Rogers managed only one victory in the losers bracket on Sunday, narrowly beating Brent Frohoff and Larry Witt 16-14. Their
run ended in the next match as Brian Lewis and Adam Johnson advanced with a 15-12 victory over last weeks champions, giving them a 7th place finish in Belmar.
The #2 seeded team of Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana also found themselves making an early exit on Sunday as they also finished in 7th place after being eliminated from
the tournament by LeGrande and Neto 15-13. The victory for #3 seeds LeGrande and Neto would be their last as Eduardo Bacil and Fred Souza would send them packing with a 15-7 defeat and a 5th place finish. On the winners side it was the #4 seeded team of Mike
Whitmarsh and Canyon Ceman who were in control of the tournament after winning the winners finals over the surprise team of the weekend, #10 seeds Adam Jewell and
Nick Hannemann. Jewell/Hannemann notched victories over Fonoi/Blanton in the quarters and Doble/Metzger in the semis, before going down to Ceman/Whit in the winners           finals by a score of 15-9. During the match, Mike Whitmarsh rolled his ankle, but was able to gut it out for the victory. Whitmarsh, who has won the Belmar event the past four years was gunning for his 1st victory in 2000 and hoped to do it here in Belmar. Ceman and Whitmarsh won the event together in 1997, the two hooked up as teammates again last week, as the partner shuffle seems to have been positive for both players.
In the losers bracket Brent Doble and Stein Metzger were charging towards the finals with a narrow victory over Lewis/Johnson 15-13 giving that team a 5th place finish.
Brent and Stein then tangled with Souza/Bacil again coming out on top with a 15-12 win, earning a rematch with Jewell/Hannemann who had beaten the team earlier in the
day in the winners semis. The match was a brawl from start to finish with big serves and bigger hits exploding all over the court. In the end, it was Hannemann and Jewell who
would earn a spot in their first finals ever as AVP pros, with a 15-12 win over Doble/Metzger. There were many questions to be answered in the finals.
Would Whitmarsh win his first tournament in what might be his last season as a pro? Would his ankle hold up for one more match to fend of the young challengers who had many questions to answer themselves. Getting to the finals is a big hurdle, winning a final is an even bigger one. A huge Belmar crowd stayed with us well past 5:00pm EST, enjoying a great day of perfect summer weather and awesome volleyball. The match was close throughout with score tied at 5-5. Mike and Canyon took advantage of the good side to push the score to 10-5 in their favor. Each team would score a point to make it 11-6, with Nick Hannemann playing some great volleyball despite having little gas left in his tank. Whit/Ceman would take control 13-6 before Han/Jewell would close to 13-10.
A Whitmarsh block put his team at game point, but Nick and Adam would make it interesting by switching back to the good side, down 14-11. Canyon and Mike would finish the job from there with a Ceman dig and a Whitmarsh hit on two the Sunkist AVP      Belmar Championship was theirs. Another new team has been added to the list of winners on the 2000 AVP Tour. Congratulations to Canyon Ceman and a special thanks to Mike Whitmarsh who has given the sport so many wonderful memories. Please show Mike all the appreciation he deserves if you come to one of the remaining events on the tour this year.

                                                  Adam Jewell digs a ball
                                                  Photo by Tanya Breen

ARTICLES:2000
Courtesy of the

Witts keep busy schedule
By Fred Siegle
Staff Writer

BOB AND KELLEY WITT are leading the life of the sports parent times four.
The Witts' four sons all participate in volleyball at various levels. Last week, they were at the USA Boys Junior Nationals Championships in Reno, Nevada, watching son Tommy play in the 16-under division with the Santa Ynez Valley VBC of Las Olivos,Ca.
This week, two of those son's schedules intersect in New Jersey,and of course, the Witts will be at both.The oldest son, Andy, will be playing with the U.S. Men's National Team tonight as it takes on Bulgaria at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. Then, on Saturday and Sunday, second son Larry will be playing in the Association of Volleyball Professionals $75,000 Sunkist Open in Belmar. "Larry's game is well-suited to the beach, he has such an all-around game," said Andy Witt."lt's a natural fit for him to play on the beach." Larry Witt, only 20, has quickly risen through the AVP ranks in his first year. Playing with veteran Brent Frohoff, Witt has three consecutive fifth-place finishes.
They are the seventh-ranked team heading into the Belmar event that begins tomorrow with a qualifier event and continues with opening rounds on Saturday and the semifmals and final on Sunday. The final is set to start at 4p.m. "The last four, five tournaments, Larry Witt has really started putting it together." said tour veteran Mike Whitmarsh who has teamed with three different partners to win the last three Belmar events. "Fro is the perfect partner for him, he's one of the few guys who've been around longer than me. Those two playin together is the perfect situation for both. I can see Larry Witt being one of our players in the 2004 Olympics."

Play LOCAL VOLLEYBALL IN NEW JERSEY

So you want to enter a volleyball tournament???
Published in the Asbury Park Press 6/17/00
By Fred Siegle

        PLAYERS CAN enter tournaments in advance or on the day of
        tournaments. Prior to the day of the tournament, the easiest way to enter is
        by telephone. For the Jersey Shore Volleyball Association, call (732)
        506-9449. For East End Volleyball, call (631) 728-0397. To enter on the
        day of the tournament show up at the check-in tent before 8:30 a.m. At
        most tournaments, men's and women's divisions are held on Saturdays,
        coed and 4-player on Sundays. At bigger tournaments, men's pro divisions
        can play over both days.

        THINGS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER: What division should you play in?
        Jersey Shore Volleyball Association tournaments have competition for
        players at many levels -- novice, B, BB, A, AA and pro for men; BB, A, AA
        and pro for women. In general, if you've never played a tournament, you
        shouldn't start at a level higher than BB (unless you have indoor
        experience or have played at a decent level in non-tournament settings on
        the beach). Novice is for players whose only volleyball experience is high
        school gym class and at backyard barbecues. B is for players who at least
        know the general rules and want to try to use three hits on every play
        (bump, set, spike). BB players should have enough control to use three hits
        on nearly every play and the ability to spike the ball and play decent
        defense. A players should be able to spike the ball on every possession and
        play solid defense. AA players should have excellent ball control, defense
        and spiking ability. The only first-time players who should even consider
        playing in the pro division are those who have played collegiate volleyball
        or on USA volleyball BB level or higher indoor teams.Be prepared for a workout. Tournaments are run under a pool-play format-- four or five teams play against each other on each net. You'll be on the court 20 to 60 minutes at a time and should be in decent shape. Remember to bring the entry fee (usually about $40 per team, but can fluctuate depending on tournament and division), water or sports drinks,sun block and a ball, if you have one.

        WHERE TO LEARN TO PLAY VOLLEYBALL: Spikesport-TLC
        Volleyball is offering free instruction for those 13 to 18 years old from 6
        to 8 p.m. Tuesdays at Third and Ocean avenues in Belmar. The clinics are
        sponsored by the Belmar Youth Summer Program with instruction by Russ
        Lukas. For information, telephone Lukas at (732) 295-0292.

Sports Action is offering instruction for all ages on Wednesday evenings at
Duke Island Park, Bridgewater. Telephone Rich Drake, (908) 534-7737.

        SPECTATORS GUIDE FOR LOCAL TOURNAMENTS: Where can you
        find the best players? The top pro division players can generally be found
        on the courts closest to the sign-in and results tent for the tournament
        (tournaments include many divisions, so some games that draw attention
        could be at a lower level). The pros are also usually placed on courts
        nearest the boardwalk as a courtesy to spectators.

        When can you see the best games? Play at tournaments begins around 9
        a.m., but initial action is pool play (teams competing against each other to
        make the playoffs). The playoffs could begin any time between 3 and 5
        p.m. The best games, the semifinals and final, can be any time between 5
        and 7 p.m.

        TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN: The Jersey Shore Volleyball Association
        runs beach tournaments every weekend until Sept. 24, with men's,
        women's, coed and 4-player divisions at many levels. All remaining
        tournaments are in Point Pleasant Beach except July 1 and 2 (North
        Wildwood) and Aug. 5 and 6 (Long Branch). Specialty divisions
        (parent-child, age group, high school) are offered at some events.
        Telephone (732) 506-9449.

        East End Volleyball has a beach tournament today and tomorrow in
        Belmar, July 21 to 23 in Belmar, Aug. 5 and 6 in Point Pleasant Beach,
        Aug. 12 and 13 in Wildwood and Sept. 16 and 17 in Atlantic City, with
        men's, women's and coed divisions at several levels. Tomorrow's Belmar
        event includes an 18-and-under junior tournament. A junior tournament is
        also offered on July 23 in conjunction with the AVP tournament. East End
        also runs tournaments on Long Island and at other East Coast sites.
        Telephone (631) 728-0397.

        Parsippany Volleyball offers grass tournaments at Volunteers Park,
        Parsippany, on July 2, July 23, Aug. 20 and Sept. 3. Divisions for reverse
        coed (men can spike only from behind the 10-meter line) 2-player teams
        and men's and women's 3-player teams. Telephone (973) 263-5843.

        The North Jersey Volleyball Association offers grass tournaments at
        Overpeck Park, Leonia, on July 8, July 29 and 30, Aug. 26 and 27, Sept.
        16 and 17, Sept. 23 and 24 and Oct. 7. Men's, women's and reverse coed
        (men can spike only from behind the 10-meter line) divisions are offered at
        several levels. Visit the website at http://www.njva.com/.

        Sports Action offers grass tournaments at Duke Island Park, Bridgewater,
        today and on July 16, Aug. 27 and Sept. 24. Divisions are for 3-player
        teams. Telephone (908) 534-7737.

AVP Belmar Open: Some area teams bow out on first day - Asbury

Volleyball: An old and new partner for champ

AVP Belmar Open notes: Kiraly not here, but his mom is

AVP Belmar Open: To its surprise, Jersey team reaches main draw

Favorites sand-blasted

AVP Belmar Open notes: A timely win for Whitmarsh

Volleyball: An old and new partner for champ - Asbury Park Press

Feeling right at home in Belmar - Asbury Park Press -Nick Hannemann

A net gain in Belmar

Volleyball tournament gets underway in Belmar

Mr. Belmar: Whitmarsh wins fourth straight at the Joisey Shore

BELMAR SUNKIST OPEN
July 18-19,1998 - Belmar, New Jersey - June 26-27,1999 - Belmar, New Jersey - July 21st, 22nd,23rd 2000 - NEXT EVENT: July 20th, 21st,22nd 2001 !!!!!!
BELMAR 2001 EVENT COVERAGE

As always The AVP remains a great event on the beaches and in the town. The Belmar Cam AVP Web Cast supports all sponsors, fans and players. The championship tournament,
held in front of the original 5th avenue cam in Belmar is exciting, fun, and always competitive. The AVP in Belmar is part of Beach Volleyball community and tradition.
This tournament traditionally draws large crowds and is a covered on national television. The local community truly embraces this event, and with Belmar's help, the AVP has
created a major championship event for the millennium.The Belmar Cam AVP Web Cast lets you watch the entire week before the event, as they set up the bleachers and main courts,see the games as they happen live via the Belmar Cam. Visit again to find out more about this Live Web Cast.Be a part of the best action on the beach as AVP Volleyball returns to Belmar on July 21-22, 2001.The Open begins on Saturday. General admission tickets will be sold at the event, with bleacher seating available. Also planned are "meet the pros" nights when visitors will be able to meet the world's best beach volleyball players at some of Belmar's liveliest hot spots.

Format:
2001 COMPETITION NOTES - For the 2001 AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, the
following rules will be used:

· Each match will be the best of three rally-scoring sets.
· First two sets are to 21 points.
· Third eventual set is to 15 points. When the first team to reach 14 in the
third eventual set, side out scoring will be used until one team has scored the
15th point or wins by two points.
· Must have a two-point advantage to win the set.
· No caps for all sets.
· Two timeouts per set with a duration of 30 seconds each
· Injury timeout - only one injury timeout per match is allowed per player.
· A side change will occur every 10 points in the first two sets and every five
(5) points in the third eventual set. The side changes will be direct without
delay
· Time between sets will be one (1) minute.
· Court dimensions are 8-meter (26-feet, 3-inches) by 8-meter per side.
· The AVP has approved the implementation of "Let the serve in play" for all
events in 2001.
- For those VB fans who hadn't heard, the sideout freeze (new AVP rule this week)occurs when one team reaches 14 in the third and final game of a match,both teams scores are then frozen from rally scoring and sideout scoring is used to finish up the game and match.

Belmar Sunkist AVP Open 2001
13th - Ian Clark/Adam Jewell $850
Match Record:2 Wins-2Defeats
Saturday’s Main Draw Results
Winner’s Bracket, First-round (9 a.m. start)
· Ian Clark, Boulder, Colo./Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif. (6) def. Morgan Mainz, Santa Barbara, Calif./Dancer Styles, Sausalito, Calif. (27), 21-18 and 21-19 (40);
Winner’s Bracket, Second Round
· Davenport/Nygaard (11) def. Clark/Jewell (6), 21-16 and 24-22 (43);
Loser’s Bracket, Second-round (losers eliminated, place 17th, split $500)
· Clark/Jewell (6) def. Fuerbringer/M. Williams (21), 23-21 and 21-13 (38);
Loser’s Bracket, Third-round (losers eliminated, place 13th, split $850)
· Elliott/Soldano (14) def. Clark/Jewell (6), 21-19, 19-21 and 15-12 (56);

Men's Main Draw Entries (28 teams, four to qualify, seedings to be announced
following Friday's qualifier)
Seeding:

Seed Name Points Ranking Qualifying Status

· Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif.
· Brent Doble, St. Paul, Minn./Lee LeGrande, Honolulu, Hi.
· Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif./Sean Scott, Kailua, Hi.
· Scott Akayatubby, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif.
· Aaron Boss, Oak Park, Calif./Collin Smith, Hermosa Beach, Calif.
· Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, Calif./David Swatik, Manhattan Beach, Calif.
· Ian Clark, Boulder, Colo./Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.
· Daniel Cardenas, Los Angeles, Calif./Jim Nichols, Encinitas, Calif.
· Paul Baxter, Columbia Heights, Minn./Jason Ring, Bend, Ore.
· John Anselmo, Manhattan Beach, Calif./David Smith, Venice, Caif.
· Scott Davenport, Redondo Beach, Calif./Jeff Nygaard, Madison, Wis.
· David Fischer, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Brad Torsone, Hermosa Beach, Calif.
· Jacob Elliott, Georgetown, S. C./Brian Soldano, Freehold, N. J.
· Jerry Graham, Playa del Rey, Calif./Chad Mowrey, Redondo, Calif.
· Casey Jennings, Huntington Beach, Calif./Scott Lane, Las Vegas, Nev.
· Adam Roberts, Myrtle Beach, S. C./Colin Wellman, Los Angeles, Calif.
· Chris Makos, Costa Mesa, Calif./Chad Turner, Clearwater Beach, Fla.
· Matt Fuerbringer, Costa Mesa, Calif./Mark Williams, Santa Monica, Calif.
· Jeff Carlucci, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Sean Rosenthal, Redondo Beach, Calif.
· Jeff Bellandi, Hermosa Beach, Calf./Bill Boullianne, not available
· Pepe Delahoz, San Diego, Calif./Juan Ibarra Rodriguez, Mexico
· John Hribar, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Alika Williams, Santa Barbara, Calif.
· Anthony Medel, Santa Barbara, Calif./John Moran, Phoenix, Ariz.
· Tom Black, Reseda, Calif./Andrew Vazquez, Manhattan Beach, Calif.
· Elvis Rodriguez, New York, N. Y./Jim Walls, Cape May, N. J.
· Morgan Mainz, Santa Barbara, Calif./Dancer Styles, Sausalito, Calif.
· Tom Lauterbeck, Santa Monica, Calif./Mark Sokolowski, Redondo Beach, Calif.
· Brian MacDonald, Newport Beach, Calif./Leland Quinn, Redondo Beach, Calif.

Men's Qualification Tournament Entries(37 teams,seedings to be finalized Thur.PM)

· Mike Daniel, Pleasant Grove, Utah/Jacob Gibb, Salt Lake City, Utah
· Brett Becker, not available/Anthony Mihalic, Belmar, N. J.
· Brian Duff, Rochester, N. Y./Jeff Smith, San Diego, Calif.
· Dale Davis, Austin, Tex./Tim Wooliver, Austin, Tex.
· Chris Kosty, Fountain Valley, Calif./Ed Ratledge, Fountain Valley, Calif.
· Mike Dipierro, Pompano Beach, Fla./Jim VanZwieten, Pompano Beach, Fla.
· Tom Barber, Hermosa Beach, Caiif./Gary Barnes, Hermosa Beach, Calif.
· Mark Fay, Grandville, Mich./John Vestal, Clinton Township, Mich.
· Romano Dasilvo, not available/Jason Greenlaw, Torrance, Calif.
· Chad Winterhalter, Grandville, Mich./Zach Winterhalter, Grandville, Mich.
· Corey Glave, Hermosa Beach/Scott Kaedish, El Segundo, Calif.
· Andre Melo. Manassas, Va./Jason Wight, Fairfax, Va.
· Pete DiVenere, Palwey's Island, S. C./James Fellows, Naples, Fla.
· Jon Barner, Mount Laurel, N. J./Jon Rose, Hoboken, N. J.
· Adam Brosius, Sterling, Va./Ed Bross, Holland, Pa.
· Tim Chittenden, not available/Fred Fauhl, Seaside Heights, N. J.
· Keith Craig, not available/Todd Hart, Hopewell, Pa.
· Ihor Akinshyn, Hackensack, N. J./Wayne Gant, Wall, N. J.
· Jamie Drum, Long Branch, N. J./Brian Gulick, not available
· Colin Kaslow, Austin, Tex./Jason Miller, Denton, Tex.
· Kristopher Fraser, Lakewood, N. J./Nick Kitchen, not available
· Peter Frey, Syracuse, N. Y./Timothy Ko, North Syracuse, N. J.
· Joe Barrier, Toms River, N. J./Wes Moore, not available
· Keith Miklas, West Long Branch, N. J./Shawn Nason, Rumson, N. J.
· Arbel Meidav, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Gary Neiditch, not available
· Williams Narath, Parsippany, N. J./Adam Niemczynowicz, not available
· Bryan Hoopes, Wilmington, Del./Chris Patrick, Baltimore, Md.
· Daniel Mullen, Princeton, N. J./Brian Reiner, Mount Laurel, N. J.
· Mike Potts, not available/Will Rohde, not available
· Miguel Salazar, Rye, N. Y./Sander Saijanlan, not available
· Justin Hersey, Irving, Tex./Kyle Schultz, not available
· Williams Govea, North Bergen, N. J./Justin Stack, not available
· Will Johnson, Irving, Tex./Kelly Sterne, not available
· Mike Vajo, Hamilton, N. J./Don West, Perkasie, Pa.
· Matt Heagey, Rockville, Md./Zak Hollman, Rockville, Md.
· Alex Kutsy, Philadephia, Pa./Leon Lucas, Philadelphia, Pa.
· Andrew Balodis, New York, N. Y./to be determined

Top Belmar Pro Beach Volleyball Money Leaders

Player Played 1st     2nd     3rd     4th     Money
1. Karch Kiraly 8       4       2       1       0       $54,075
2. Mike Whitmarsh       8       4       2       0       0       $53,163
3. Kent Steffes 7       5       0       1       0       $51,448
4. Brian Lewis 10      1       3       2       0       $41,694
5. Adam Johnson 10      1       3       1       0       $37,590
6. Canyon Ceman 7       2       1       0       0       $34,488
7. Bill Boullianne      9       1       0       0       1       $24,712
8. Randy Stoklos        4       1       0       1       1       $20,613
9. Troy Tanner 6       0       0       2       1       $19,155
10. Eric Fonoimoana     9       0       0       0       2       $18,326

15. David Swatik        7       1       0       1       0       $16,223
22. Ian Clark   6       0       0       0       0       $11,358
23. Eduardo Bacil       7       0       0       0       1       $10,923
26. Scott Ayakatubby    4       0       1       0       0       $10,503
36. Lee LeGrande        7       0       0       0       0      $7,791
37. Nick Hannemann      6       0       1       0       0       $7,726
40. Aaron Boss 6       0       0       0       0       $7,293
42. Brent Doble 5       0       0       1       0       $6,041
44. Adam Jewell 2       0       1       0       0       $5,813

2001 Pro Beach Volleyball Earnings through July 15, 2001

Here's a listing of domestic and international pro beach volleyball money
leaders for men and women. The Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP)
next event is July 20-22 at The Sunkist Open at Belmar (N. J.). The Belmar
stop is a men's event.

Men's Domestic Money Leaders

Rank, Player, hometown (titles) Earnings
1. Dax Holdren, San Diego, Calif. (2)   $17,625
        Todd Rogers, Santa Barbara, Calif. (2) $17,625
3. Dain Blanton, Laguna Beach, Calif. (1)       $13,125
        Eric Fonoimoana, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (1)      $13,125
5. Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif.        $10,350
        Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif.       $10,350
7. Brent Doble, St. Paul, Minn. (1)     $10,250
8. Lee LeGrande, Honolulu, Hi. (1)      $9,350
9. Scott Ayakatubby, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (1) $9,125
10. Stein Metzger, Honolulu, Hi.        $8,850
        Kevin Wong, Pearl City, Hi.     $8,850
12. Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif. $8,275
13. Sean Scott, Kailua, Hi.     $8,275
14. Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif. (1)       $7,525
15. Colin Smith, Hermosa Beach, Calif. $6,737
16. Aaron Boss, San Diego, Calif.       $5,950
17. Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, Calif.       $4,600
        Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.        $4,600
19. Rob Heidger, Redondo Beach, Calif. $4,150
        Chip McCaw, Tulsa, Okla.        $4,150
21. Matt Lyles, Los Gatos, Calif.       $4,050
        Brian Soldano, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.    $4,050
23. Adam Roberts, Myrtle Beach, S. C.   $3,750
24. Carl Henkel, Redondo Beach, Calif. $3,663
        Sinjin Smith, Pacific Palisades, Calif. $3,663
26. Chad Turner, Clearwater Beach, Fla. $3,525
27. Jeff Nygaard, Madison, Wis. $3,300
28. Daniel Cardenas, Los Angeles        $3,075
29. Gaston Macau, Miami, Fla.   $3,000
30. Jim Nichols, Encinitas, Calif.      $2,925

2001 AVP POINTS
Here's a listing of men and women point leaders for the Association of
Volleyball Professionals (AVP). The Association of Volleyball Professionals
(AVP) next event is July 20-22 at The Sunkist Open at Belmar (N. J.). The
Belmar stop is a men's event. The points are based upon an of a player's best
eight finishes for the 2000 season plus accumulated 2001 points.

Men AVP Points

Rank, Player, hometown, Points

1, Dax Holdren, Santa Barbara, Calif., 670.00
1, Todd Rogers, Santa Barbara, Calif., 670.00
3, Stein Metzger, Honolulu, Hi., 544.50
4. Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif., 543.00
5, Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif., 527.25
6, Dain Blanton, Laguna Beach, Calif., 501.75
6, Eric Fonoimoana, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 501.75
8, Lee LeGrande, Honolulu, Hi., 465.25
9, Brent Doble, St. Paul, Minn., 428.00
10, Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif., 378.00
11, Sean Scott, Kailua, Hi., 375.75
12, Kevin Wong, Pearl City, Hi., 373.50
13, Carl Henkel, Redondo Beach, Calif., 369.00
13, Sinjin Smith, Pacific Palisades, Calif., 369.00
15, Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 351.00
15, Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif., 351.00
17, Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif., 341.00
18, Larry Witt, Santa Ynez, Calif., 337.50
19, Colin Smith, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 335.75
20, Scott, Ayakatubby, Hermosa Beach, Calif., 324.00

SUNKIST OPEN AT BELMAR CHAMPIONS

Season Belmar Championship Team
1991 Karch Kiraly/Kent Steffes
1992 Kiraly/Steffes
1993 Kiraly/Steffes
1994 Adam Johnson/Randy Stoklos
1995 Brian Lewis/Bill Boullianne
1996 Kiraly/Steffes
1997 Canyon Ceman/Whitmarsh
1998 Steffes/Whitmarsh
1999 David Swatik/Whitmarsh
2000 Ceman/Whitmarsh
2001 Brent Doble/Lee LeGrande
2002 Ceman/Whitmarsh

65 & COUNTING - Depending on any late entries for the Qualification Tournament,
The Sunkist Open at Belmar could attract the season's most men's entries. The
AVP opener in Hermosa had 65 entries, followed by 62 in Huntington Beach and 53
in Muskegon.

AVP ON THE WEB - Information on the AVP Tour and the sport of volleyball can be
found at the following web sites:

· AVP Tour (www.avptour.com) - The site is maintained by Nick Cargill
(contact@Sniperdev.com).
· Beach Volleyball Data Base (www.bvbinfo.com) - The site is maintained by
Dennis Wagner (doctorono@home.com) of Virginia Beach, Va. Dr. Ono has tracked
1,091 events and 2,358 players.
· USA Volleyball (www.usavolleyball.org) - The site is maintained by Brent
Buzbee (brent.buzbee@usav.org) at the USA Volleyball Offices in Colorado
Springs, Colo.
· FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour (www.fivb.org) - The site is maintained by
the FIVB's beach department (beach@mail.fivb.ch) at the FIVB headquarters in
Lausanne, Switzerland.

Sunday’s Main Draw Results

Loser’s Bracket, Fourth-round (losers eliminated, place ninth, split $1,500)
· Aaron Boss, Oak Park, Calif./Collin Smith, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (5) def. Pepe Delahoz, San Diego, Calif./Juan Ibarra Rodriguez, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (16), 21-17 and 21-13 (38 minutes);
· Daniel Cardenas, Los Angeles, Calif./Jim Nichols, Encinitas, Calif. (9) def. Jacob Elliott, Georgetown, S. C./Brian Soldano, Freehold, N. J. (14), 18-21, 21-17 and 16-14 (52);
· Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, Calif./David Swatik, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (7) def. David Fischer, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Brad Torsone, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (12), 21-14 and 21-17 (47)
· Paul Baxter, Columbia Heights, Minn./Jason Ring, Bend, Ore. (8) def. Scott Davenport, Redondo Beach, Calif./Jeff Nygaard, Madison, Wis. (11), 21-15, 17-21 and 15-13 (58)

Winner’s Bracket, Fourth-round (winners to semi-finals)
· Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif./Sean Scott, Kailua, Hi. (4) def. Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif. (1), 21-19, 19-21 and 15-12 (63);
· Brent Doble, St. Paul, Minn./Lee LeGrande, Honolulu, Hi. (2) def. Scott Ayakatubby, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif. (3), 21-19 and 21-15 (46).

Loser’s Bracket, Fifth-round (losers eliminated, place seventh, split $2,500)
· Cardenas/Nichols (9) def. Boss/C. Smith (5), 21-18 and 23-21 (56);
· N. Hannemann/Swatik (7) def. Baxter/Ring (8), 17-21, 21-15 and 15-8 (54).

Loser’s Bracket, Sixth-round (losers eliminated, place fifth, split $3,500)
· Ayakatubby/Bacil (3) def. Cardenas/Nichols (9), 22-20 and 21-17 (47);
· Ceman/Whitmarsh (1) def. N. Hannemann/Swatik (7), 21-17 and 21-18 (46).

Semi-finals
· A. Hannemann/Scott (4) def. Ayakatubby/Bacil (3), 24-22 and 21-15 (42)
· Doble/LeGrande (2) def. Ceman/Whitmarsh (1), 21-18, 19-21 and15-10 (75)

Bronze Medal Match (winners place third, split $6,600; losers place fourth, split $4,850)
· Ceman/Whitmarsh (1) def. Ayakatubby/Bacil (3), 21-18 and 21-18 (35).

Gold Medal Match (winners place first, split $14,000; losers place second, split $9,250)
· Doble/LeGrande (2) def. A. Hannemann/Scott (4), 21-16, 20-22 and 15-9 (64).

Tournament Champions 2001>>Brent Doble/Lee LeGrande

Brent Doble & Lee LeGrande talk strategy during a timeout

Association of Volleyball Professionals
$62,500 THE SUNKIST OPEN AT BELMAR– MEN’S RANKINGS
July 20-22, 2001 at Belmar Beach, Belmar, N. J., Revised July 22, 2001, 2:47 PM

Rank, Team (Main Draw Seed, Qualification Tournament Seed) Record Points Earnings

1st Brent Doble, St. Paul, Minn./Lee LeGrande, Honolulu, Hi. (2) 6-0 360 $14,000
2nd Albert Hannemann, Torrance, Calif./Sean Scott, Kailua, Hi. (4) 5-1 324 $9,250
3rd Canyon Ceman, Manhattan Beach, Calif./Mike Whitmarsh, San Diego, Calif. (1) 5-2 288 $6,600
4th Scott Ayakatubby, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif. (3) 4-3 244 $4,850
5th Daniel Cardenas, Los Angeles, Calif./Jim Nichols, Encinitas, Calif. (9) 4-2 216 $3,500
5th Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, Calif./David Swatik, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (7) 4-2 216 $3,500
7th Aaron Boss, Oak Park, Calif./Collin Smith, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (5) 3-2 180 $2,500
7th Paul Baxter, Columbia Heights, Minn./Jason Ring, Bend, Ore. (8 4-2 180 $2,500
9th Pepe Delahoz, San Diego, Calif./Juan Ibarra Rodriguez, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (16) 3-2 144 $1,500
9th Jacob Elliott, Georgetown, S. C./Brian Soldano, Freehold, N. J. (14) 3-2 144 $1,500
9th David Fischer, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Brad Torsone, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (12) 3-2 144 $1,500
9th Scott Davenport, Redondo Beach, Calif./Jeff Nygaard, Madison, Wis. (11) 2-2 144 $1,500
13th Anthony Medel, Santa Barbara, Calif./John Moran, Phoenix, Ariz. (25) 2-2 108 $850
13th Ian Clark, Boulder, Colo./Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif. (6) 2-2 108 $850
13th Jeff Carlucci, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Sean Rosenthal, Redondo Beach, Calif. (19) 2-2 108 $850
13th Casey Jennings, Huntington Beach, Calif./Scott Lane, Las Vegas, Nev. (17) 2-2 108 $850
17th Chris Makos, Costa Mesa, Calif./Chad Turner, Clearwater Beach, Fla. (18 1-2 72 $500
17th John Anselmo, Manhattan Beach, Calif./David Smith, Venice, Calif. (10 1-2 72 $500
17th Matt Fuerbringer, Costa Mesa, Calif./Mark Williams, Santa Monica, Calif. (21) 1-2 72 $500
17th Dale Davis, Dallas, Tex./Tim Wooliver, Dallas, Tex. (29, 4) 1-2 72 $500
17th Adam Roberts, Myrtle Beach, S. C./Colin Wellman, Los Angeles, Calif. (20) 1-2 72 $500
17th Jeff Bellandi, Hermosa Beach, Calf./Bill Boullianne, Redondo Beach, Calif. (22) 1-2 72 $500
17th Brian MacDonald, Newport Beach, Calif./Leland Quinn, Redondo Beach, Calif. (26) 1-2 72 $500
17th . Jerry Graham, Playa del Rey, Calif./Chad Mowrey, Redondo, Calif. (15) 1-2 72 $500
25th Ihor Akinshyn, Hackensack, N. J./Wayne Gant, Wall, N. (32, 17) 0-2 36 $300
25th Tom Black, Reseda, Calif./Andrew Vazquez, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (24) 0-2 36 $300
25th Tom Slauterbeck, Santa Monica, Calif./Matt Sokolowski, Redondo Beach, Calif. (28) 0-2 36 $300
25th John Hribar, Hermosa Beach, Calif./Alika Williams, Santa Barbara, Calif. (13) 0-2 36 $300
25th Mike DiPierro, Pompano Beach, Fla./Jim VanZwieten, Pompano Beach, Fla. (30 6) 0-2 36 $300
25th Morgan Mainz, Santa Barbara, Calif./Dancer Styles, Sausalito, Calif. (27) 0-2 36 $300
25th Elvis Rodriguez, New York, N. Y./Jim Walls, Cape May, N. J. (23) 0-2 36 $300
25th Tom Barber, Hermosa Beach, Caiif./Gary Barnes, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (31, 7) 0-2 36 $300

Articles:2001

Volleyball: No limit on Wentworth's success
By FRED SIEGLE STAFF WRITER
Asbury Park Press June 2, 2001
Jeff Wentworth is doing pretty well with his new "hobby."Wentworth, Sea Bright, has been one of the top beach volleyball players on the East Coast for many years, and at one time took the sport very seriously. But he isn't able to devote as much time to training now and plans to play in a limited number of tournaments this summer.But that didn't stop Wentworth and long-time partner Ihor Akinshin, Ridgewood, from adding another top finish to their resumes on May 19 and 20 as they finished second in East End Volleyball's $3,000 Hilton Casino Big Shots Tournament in Atlantic City.Wentworth and Akinshin lost in the final to Jake Elliott, South Carolina, and Ahren Cadieux, Canada, in the final.
"We're going to play off and on this summer," said Wentworth. "I'm getting married in July and won't be playing much that month. We're going to play as many of the big tournaments as we can, and maybe a few others. We might try to play some in the Toyota Series in Ocean City (Md.) and we're planning to try the AVP qualifier in Virginia Beach -- I
won't be here for Belmar -- and also the Big Shots final in Atlantic City in September."
The second-place finish in Atlantic City came against some of the top competition from all over the East Coast. Wentworth and Akinshin reached the winners bracket final on May 19, beating Brian Soldano, Freehold Township, and Jim Walls, Cape May, who went on to place third. But they didn't fare as well on the second day of competition in losing twice to Elliott and Cadieux. "We played well on Saturday, we played a lot of guys who've been
training all winter long," Wentworth said. "The wind picked up on Sunday, and the matches got tougher. Their (Elliott and Cadieux) ball control in the wind was superior to ours."
Wentworth and Akinshin played indoors together at Rutgers-Newark, and at one time worked as hard at the outdoor game as many of the younger players from the Shore, like Soldano and A.J. Mihalic, Wall, do now. "This is more like a hobby for me now," said Wentworth, who graduated from Rutgers-Newark in 1993. "I don't need to play every weekend any more, and Ihor (a 1994 Rutgers-Newark graduate) and I don't intend to
play every week. But we still like the competition."
JSVBA results
Mike Emory, Cape May, and Ed Bross, Holland, Pa., won the men's pro division at the Jersey Shore Volleyball Association's Miller Lite Pro/Am in Seaside Heights on May 26. They beat Don Sachau, Somerset, and Wayne Gant, Wall, in the final.
The teams of Brian Gulick, Toms River, and Fred Fauhl, Seaside Heights,and Michael Mielcarz, Langhorne, Pa., and Paul Kadlubowski, Trenton,were third.
Lisa Ekmekjian, Montvale, and Ann Kraft, Yardley, Pa., won the women's pro division.
Volleyball: Gant is achieving success with mixed results
By FRED SIEGLE STAFF WRITER
Asbury Park Press June 23, 2001
Wayne Gant has had to mix things up this year -- involving both partners and the side of the court he plays -- but so far the results have been great.Gant, Wall, has played in seven tournaments this season and reached the final every time. He's 5-2 in championship matches, making it three in a row on June 16 at East End Volleyball's Peak Bar Big Shot Tournament in Belmar.He had won two in a row playing Jersey Shore Volleyball Association events with Graig Domanski, Freehold Township, then won at East End
with Don Sachau, Somerset. He has another first-place finish this year with Sachau, and was also first with Mike Emory, Cape May. He finished second once with Sachau and once with A.J. Mihalic, Wall.Gant's regular partners have been doing a lot of traveling this year, so he's had to adjust from week to week. He's played right side pretty much exclusively, and that's the spot he plays with Domanski and Mihalic. But Sachau is also a right-side player, so when they play together Gant shifts. "It's getting harder to get left-side partners," Gant said. "And I just figured it's easier for me to move than Don." Gant and Sachau beat Kamil Zitka and John Ferrari, both from NewYork, 15-8 in the final at East End's event. They defeated Ed Bross and Russ Mellott, both from Pennsylvania, 15-7, in the semifinals.
"The competition was real strong," Gant said. "I thought it would be more spread out with the JSVBA in Point Pleasant, but it seemed like most of the good players were at EastEnd."
Zitka and Ferrari beat Michael Mielcarz, Langhorne, Pa., and Paul Kadlubowski, Trenton, in the semifinals. Mielcarz and Kadlubowski had won the JSVBA's first tournament this year, beating Gant and Mihalic 17-15.Gant is making another shift -- to a grass tournament and another partner -- this weekend. He's playing at the Pottstown Rumble in Pottstown, Pa.,with Gary Neiditch, Fair Lawn. His plans include attempts to qualify into the main draw when the Association of Volleyball Professionals tour comes to Belmar July 20 to
22 and the following week in Virginia Beach, Va., and competition in several bigger regional events.He and Sachau -- who hasn't been big on travel -- are planning to play
together in East End's $2,850 Bud Light Big Shot Tournament at East Quogue, Long Island, next weekend, and Gant plans to participate in some of the Toyota Series tournaments in Ocean City, Md., and Virginia Beach this summer."I'm dragging Don out to Long Island," Gant joked. "He's great to play with, one of the most consistent players around. And I think he's playing even better this year than last." "When Graig and A.J. both get home, I have to decide who I'm playing with," Gant said. "I also hope to play with Ihor (Akinshin, another top player) sometime. And Don and I are doing well together, so we're going to keep playing together, too."
Freebie
June 16, 2001
Spikesport Volleyball is again offering free instruction and play for high school-age players at the Third Avenue Beach in Belmar starting on Monday from 6 to 8:30 p.m. The program is sponsored by the BelmarYouth Summer Program.For information, telephone Russ Lukas, (732) 295-0202 or visit the website, www.SpikeSport-Volleyball.net.

Miller Lite ProAm Open - Point Pleasant Beach,NJ - July 21-22,2001

THE 'KING' LEADS 65-TEAMS INTO THE SUNKIST OPEN AT BELMAR;
OLYMPIC MEDALLIST WHITMARSH SEEKS FIFTH-STRAIGHT NEW JERSEY TITLE;37-TEAM QUALIFIER STARTS AVP PRO BEACH VOLLEYBALL TOUR ACTION FRIDAY
BELMAR, N. J. - Led by Mike Whitmarsh, the "King of the Beach" and a four-time winner on this New Jersey beach, The Sunkist Open at Belmar has attracted a 65-team field for Round 4 on the eight-stop AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour this weekend (July 20-22) at Belmar Beach.Featuring the United States' top men pro beach volleyball players vying $62,500 in prize money, The Sunkist Open at Belmar will open Friday at 9 a.m. (EDT) on
six sand courts at Belmar Beach (Fourth Avenue and Ocean). Friday's 37-team Qualification Tournament will determine the final four berths in the 32-team
Main Draws.The first 48 Main Draw matches will be played Saturday starting at 9 a.m.
Sunday's competition starts at 8 a.m. with the final 14 matches being played.The final matches will begin approximately at 1 p.m. Sunday. Tickets for the event are $5 per day for general admission and $25 per day for reserved seating. Brighton Entertainment of New York, N. Y., will be taping The Sunkist Open at Belmar action for replay July 30 on FOX Sports Net.Whitmarsh, who captured the Silver Medal with Mike Dodd at the 1996 Atlanta
Olympic Games, is the Association of Volleyball Professionals' (AVP) reigning
"King of the Beach" after winning the crown last October in Las Vegas. Whitmarsh has been part of the winning team on Belmar Beach for the past four seasons, including crowns in 1997 and 2000 with Canyon Ceman.With six podium finishes in eight previous AVP Belmar starts, Whitmarsh needs one more win to tie Kent Steffes as the winningest player at Belmar Beach. Steffes won five AVP Belmar titles. A seventh-place or better finish by
Whitmarsh this weekend will also give him the record for earnings on Belmar Beach. Karch Kiraly earned $54,075 enroute to four titles on Belmar Beach. Whitmarsh has earned $53,163 in his eight Belmar starts.Ceman and Whitmarsh, who have placed ninth, second and second in the first three AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour events this season, defeated Nick Hannemann and Adam Jewell 15-11 for the 2000 Belmar title. Brent Doble teamed with Stein Metzger to place third last season.Doble and Lee LeGrande teamed last weekend (July 13-15) in Michigan to win The Sunkist Open at Muskegon by winning five-straight matches to capture the $14,000 first-place prize. Playing together for the first time this season,the fourth-seeded Doble and LeGrande scored a 21-16 and 23-21 upset win over second-seeded Ceman and Whitmarsh in the 49-minute finale.Other top men's team entered in The Sunkist Open at Belmar include; Scott Ayakatubby/Eduardo Bacil, Albert Hannemann/Sean Scott and Daniel Cardenas/Jim Nichols. Hanneman and Scott defeated Cardenas and Nichols for third-place last Sunday in Muskegon.Ayakatubby, who is returning to the AVP Tour after being sidelined much of the past four seasons with injuries, and Bacil won the Huntington Beach title after upsetting Ceman and Whitmarsh in the finals. Nick Hannemann and Jewell placed third in Huntington.
Digging out of a hole
Published in the Asbury Park Press 7/19/01
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER
The newest plan for the Association of Volleyball Professionals Tour emphasizes unity and harmony in the beach volleyball world.The tour, which makes its 11th annual stop in Belmar this weekend for the $62,500 Sunkist Open, has had its battles -- both inside its organization and with outside organizations -- in the past. But Leonard Armato, who took over as owner and CEO this year, says the best way to increase the tour's following and financial status is for everyone to get along.For the casual fan, things won't seem much different at this year's Belmar event, which starts with a qualifier tournament tomorrow and continues with main draw matches on Saturday and Sunday. There will still be top players battling it out in a 32-team, double-elimination tournament with plenty of skill, athleticism and drama on display. But the attempt at unity has brought many changes to the tour,
especially involving the rules, that hardcore fans will find noticeable.The AVP has switched to the Federation International de Volleyball's (FIVB) format -- rally scoring (one team or the other earns a point on each serve, as opposed to side-out scoring, in which you have to serve in order to score), a 20 percent smaller court, looser restrictions on hand sets (fewer
whistles for a carry), allowing the let serve (if the serve hits the net and goes over, it's in play) and even a new ball -- to move in line with the international tour.That's a big step, since when the FIVB tour began in the mid-1990s, the AVP philosophy had been that the AVP version of the game was the right, and only, way to play.And the AVP may very well have been correct, but while it fought that and other battles with the FIVB, it was sinking
financially here in the United States, while the FIVB's world tour is now well established.
"We wanted to eliminate confusion," said Armato, who helped originate the AVP tour in 1983 and served as executive director for six years. "The tour has been plagued by conflicts and infighting. We have to be collective in our vision, everyone has to be unified so we can put out a single positive vision. We're allies with them (the FIVB) now, and that's an important first step."Most of the players have fallen in line with the new regime.
"This is a four-year commitment by the new management company that took over majority interest in the tour," saidKarch Kiraly, a long-time tour leader who is probably the most recognizable player in the world. "And the players are making a four-year commitment to the company. Everybody is hoping good things happen over the next four years,starting with this season." The alternative can't seem too appealing, since there probably would be no tour if Digital Media Campus, the company that bought controling interest, hadn't taken over the AVP.(Armato, who also has his own management company and is Shaquille O'Neal's agent, is CEO.) Because of the sale, the tour got off to a late start with no events until late May. In its heyday in the early '90s, the AVP tour featured as many as 20 events per year."We're in economic circumstances that are a lot different then 10 years ago," said Kiraly. "The players and the new management company are hoping to build things up next
year, have more stops and more prize money. Everything came together so late this year, the option was to have no tour and no prize money, so the men are pleased we were able to get eight stops together." "We got into it late, and really took over as the season started," Armato said. "So we had to go with a modified schedule. We wanted to stop the bleeding, stabilize everything, and put together a road map for the future. We're looking at 2002 as a growth year, and 2003 as an explosion year. This year it was hard to change much financially, but we're trying to put the tour in position to grow."Not all the players went along with the changes. Kiraly said long-time star Brian Lewis isn't playing any more because he didn't agree with the new rules."Brian felt it was too tough a pill to swallow," Kiraly said. "He feels beholden to the classic AVP style. That's my first love too, but I'm trying to work in the spirit of cooperation to help the sport as well." "With time, we'll get more economic clout," Armato said."My message is we need to unify, harmonize, get our
collective energy working in the right direction. This is the only way we can do that. Not everyone in a group setting is going to agree with what's happening. But we have to put
ourselves in a position to succeed. Everyone has to understand that, and I think 95 percent do."Another change in the tour that won't be seen at Belmar, at least this year, is the addition of women's competition. The women will be playing at five of the eight AVP events this year. Armato actually started negotiations to buy the AVP after first getting involved with the Beach Volleyball America women's tour. "The owner of the women's tour asked for my help, and that led to taking over the women's tour," Armato said. "At same time, I heard the AVP was almost imploding. I felt if I could secure both and develop one tour, the economies of scale would make it worthwhile. We want to put together a
foundation for expansion so we can reclaim beach volleyball's territory as a hot and fast-growing sport."
SUNKIST BELMAR OPEN
           What : Top volleyball players, including Mike Whitmarsh
                  and Canyon Ceman, Brent Doble and Lee LeGrande, Scott
                  Ayakatubby and Eduardo Bacil, competing in a three-day
                  tournament.
           When : Qualifier (teams seeded 29 and above playing for
                  four main-draw berths) 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow; main
                  draw 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday;
                  championship match about 1 p.m. Sunday.
           Where : Fourth Avenue beach.
           Tickets : $5 per day general admission, $25 per day reserved
                  seating. Available at the gate.
           Top seeds : 1. Ceman-Whitmarsh; 2. Doble-LeGrande; 3.
                  Albert Hannemann-Sean Scott; 4. Ayakatubby-Bacil.
                  Local players in main draw: 13. Brian Soldano, Freehold
                  Township-Jake Elliott, Florida; 25. Elvis Rodriguez, New
                  York-Jim Walls, Cape May.
           Local players in qualifier: 30. A.J. Mihalic, Wall-Becker;
                  41. Jon Barnes, Mount Laurel-Jon Rose, Toms River; 43.
                  Fred Fauhl, Seaside Heights-Tim Chittenden, Belmar; 45.
                  Ihor Akinshyn, Fair Lawn-Wayne Gant, Wall; 46. Jamie
                  Drum, Long Branch-Brian Gulick, Toms River; 48. Kris
                  Fraser-Nick Kitchen, both Lakewood; 50. Joe Barrier,
                  Brick-Wes Moore, Rumson.
           TV : July 30, Fox Sports Net (check listings).

King of the beach
Asbury Park Press 7/20/01
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER
It's no surprise that Mike Whitmarsh is looking forward to the Association of Volleyball Professionals $62,500 Sunkist Belmar Open this weekend.After all, four straight wins at a site can give someone's confidence a real boost. And that's something that can't hurt Whitmarsh, 39, right now. He and partner Canyon Ceman finished second to Brent Doble and Lee LeGrande last weekend at the AVP's tour stop in Muskegon, Mich.
"I know Doble and LeGrande are a good team, and they just played a little better than us last week," said Whitmarsh, who teamed with Ceman to win at Belmar in 1997 and last year and also won with Kent Steffes in 1998 and David Swatik in 1999.
"I told Canyon, 'Thank God Belmar is next week, so we can get the monkey off our backs.' For some reason I just have better success at some sites than at others."
It's not that Ceman and Whitmarsh have been playing poorly -- in three tournaments they have two seconds and a ninth-place finish. But Whitmarsh is the AVP's reigning King of the Beach, a title he won in Las Vegas at the end of last season, and he is used to earning titles, with 24 career wins.The King of the Beach crown is one of the most prestigious a player can earn, because it's bestowed after a tournament that's entered as an individual. Players compete in a round-robin format with and against each other, and a point system determines the winner."The King of the Beach title really capped things off for me," Whitmarsh said. "I'd always made it to final four there, but I was always third or fourth. Winning that gave me all the major titles I wanted to win, and that's also a big one to all the players, one they shoot for because it's a big payday."The individual title came at the end of a season in which Whitmarsh contemplated retirement."I really was thinking about it," he said. "I was very frustrated, playing with David (Swatik), and his knee was hurt and we just weren't playing well."Whitmarsh and Swatik finished fifth, seventh and 17th in the first three tournaments in 2000. And Whitmarsh began planning to call it quits. What caused Whitmarsh to change his mind? It was actually in taking one of the steps he felt he needed to take before leaving."Matt Unger is a good friend of mine and I'd promised him I'd play a tournament with him before my career was over," Whitmarsh said. "We ended up playing three tournaments together, and he actually made it fun to play again."
Whitmarsh and Unger finished fourth, fifth and seventh together. Then, the tournament before Belmar, he teamed with Ceman again and they finished fourth in Muskegon. The victory in Belmar was followed by a third-place finish in Virginia Beach, Va., a fourth at Seal Beach, Calif., and a second in the Manhattan Beach Open in California.
"Playing with Canyon, I felt like I had a chance to win every week, and winning brings happiness, I guess," Whitmarsh said."I feel like I have at least one more year. When I stop enjoying it, that's when I'll stop playing."
For Soldano, it's a new year
Asbury Park Press 7/21/01
By FRED SIEGLE
STAFF WRITER
BELMAR -- Brian Soldano was a happy spectator yesterday at the qualifier event for today's Association of Volleyball Professionals $62,500 Sunkist Belmar Open.
And why wouldn't he be? It's a big change from his position at this time last year, when he and partner Graig Domanski lost in the first round of the qualifier.Now, Soldano, Freehold Township, has an automatic berth in the main draw. He and partner Jake Elliott,Georgetown, S.C., are the No. 14 seed.Soldano and Domanski did qualify at the next AVP event last year, in Virginia Beach, Va., and finished 17th.Last fall Soldano began to concentrate on his career, traveling to South Carolina and then Florida for the winter to train. He played in a Federation Internationale de Volleyball World Tour event in Vitoria, Brazil, in November, and traveled to California for the start of the 2001 tour.
"From last year, it's a big difference," said Soldano, who finished ninth with Elliott in Muskegon, Mich., last week after reaching his second main draw (in three attempts) this year."Heading into this tournament last year, I really didn't train at all," he said. "I worked (a regular job) last year. I went out to California for the start of this season and paid my dues."
Soldano and Elliott will play the No. 19 seed, Jeff Carlucci, Hermosa Beach, Calif., and Sean Rosenthal, Redondo Beach, Calif., in the first round, about 10 a.m. today. If they they would likely play No. 3 seed Scott Ayakatubby, Hermosa Beach, Eduardo Bacil, El Segundo, Calif.Last week, Soldano and Elliott beat the No. 3 seed, Nick Hannemann, Hermosa Beach, and Adam Jewell, San Juan Capistrano, Calif., on their way to the ninth-place finish."Michigan basically sets us up for the rest of the year," Soldano said. "We shouldn't have to qualify again."Soldano is looking forward to some sort of home-court advantage in Belmar."I'm ready," he said. "Hopefully we'll get to play in front of a big crowd of local fans."
'Ack' is back in semis with Bacil
Asbury Park Press 7/22/01
By DEBBIE WALDEYER
STAFF WRITER
BELMAR -- The last time Scott Ayakatubby played regularly on the Association of Volleyball Professionals Tour was 1997. He was partnered with Brian Lewis when they had four consecutive second-place finishes and were a top-10 team. But even the success didn't help ease the pain in his right knee that season. Three separate surgeries on that knee,
and a hand surgery, forced him to sit out the past three years. But the man called "Ack" is back.Yesterday, he and partner Eduardo Bacil, seeded third, were one of four teams -- the top four seeds -- to go undefeated and gain bids into today's winners' bracket semifinals of the Sunkist Belmar Open on Fourth Avenue beach.Action continues this morning, 7:30. with the consolation bracket. Winners' bracket play begins at 8:30 a.m., with the final scheduled to be played at approximately 1 p.m. "When the knee starting hurting, it was all downhill after that," Ayakatubby said. Ayakatubby, now 36, has heard the whispers of retirement. But he strongly vetoed that idea. "The whole time I was sitting out, people kept asking me if I was going to retire," said Ayakatubby, who will turn 37 in September. "I kept saying 'No way.' I've got too much fire to stop playing. I love it too much."
Ayakatubby and Bacil came from behind in yesterday's third round on main court. They lost their first game to Scott Davenport and Jeff Nygaard 16-21, then battled back with a 22-20 win in the second game and a 15-12 win in the deciding game. They'll face the second-seeded team of Brent Doble and Lee LeGrande, who defeated Nick Hannemann and David Swatik 21-11, 21-19 in the third round yesterday. Doble and LeGrande won their first tournament of the season on the tour's previous stop, last weekend in Muskegon, Mich.Also advancing in the championship bracket was the top-seeded team, and
defending champs, Canyon Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh. The two have won a pair titles together in Belmar but Whitmarsh is also riding a four-year consecutive win streak here, dating back to 1996. Like every one of the top four seeds yesterday, Ceman and Whitmarsh had at least one match go three games. That one came in the second round against Casey Jennings and Scott Lane, 20-22, 21-16, 15-10. They beat Daniel Cardenas and Jim Nichols in the third round, 23-21, 21-17. "Nothing's been easy all year," said Whitmarsh, who is still looking for his first win this season. He and Ceman took second last weekend in
Muskegon. "We played OK (yesterday) and when we did give up a point or two, we were able to get back on track. But we need to play a lot better." Ceman and Whitmarsh are looking to end the drought today, but standing in their way is the fourth seed, Albert Hannemann and Sean Scott. Hannemann and Scott finished third in Muskegon after facing Ceman and Whitmarsh twice and splitting. Hannemann and Scott won the first meeting in Muskegon, the winners' bracket quarterfinal round, 16-21,21-17, 15-13. Ceman and Whitmarsh recovered after that, playing out of the losers' bracket and winning three matches to face Hannemann and Scott in the semifinal round last Sunday. Ceman and Whitmarsh won that match, 22-20, 19-21, 15-10 and advanced to the championship.
"We have a pretty good little rivalry going," Hannemann said. Hannemann and Scott's berth into today's championship bracket wasn't an easy bid. They went three games in their first round against Dale Davis and Tim Wooliver (20-22, 21-18, 15-8) and three games the second round against Adam Roberts and Colin Wellman (21-13, 17-21, 15-7).
But Hannemann and Scott, who played for three years together in college at Hawaii, defeated the fifth seed team of Aaron Boss and Collin Smith 21-17, 21-19 in the third round to advance.
Doble & LeGrande net Sunkist Open at Belmar,
winners capture second-straight crown on Jersey shore
Tim Simmons Jul 22,2001
On a picture perfect afternoon on Belmar Beach, second-seeded Brent Doble and Lee LeGrande increased their Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) winning streak to 12 matches after defeating fourth-seeded Albert Hannemann and Sean Scott in the finals here Sunday (July 22) of The Sunkist Open at Belmar.Brighton Entertainment of New York, N. Y., taped The Sunkist Open at Belmar action for replay July 30 on FOX Sports Net. The AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour now heads south to Virginia for the $62,500 Paul Mitchell Open at Virginia Beach starting next Friday (July 27). Doble and LeGrande will be seeking to become the first AVP team since August 1998 to win three straight titles when Karch Kiraly and Adam Johnson won events in Milwaukee, Atlanta and Hermosa Beach, Calif. Sunday’s title was the second-straight for Doble and LeGrande, who captured last Sunday’s The Sunkist Open at Muskegon (Mich.) by winning all six of their matches. Doble and LeGrande duplicated that feat this weekend by winning all six of their Sunkist matches, including a 21-16, 20-22 and 15-9 win over Albert Hannemann and Scott in 64 minutes. Featuring the United States’ top men pro beach volleyball players vying for $62,500 in prize money, The Sunkist Open at Belmar concluded with Doble and LeGrande sharing the $14,000 first-place prize. Albert Hannemann and Scott, who was playing in his first AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour final, split $9,250 for second-place.Playing in only their second event together this season, the Doble/LeGrande title was the third of their partnership in 16 career pro beach starts together. LeGrande’s title was his fourth championship since winning his first with Doble in April 2000 in Delray Beach, Fla.
Doble and LeGrande advanced to the finals with a 21-18, 19-21 and 15-10 semi-final win over top-seeded Canyon Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh in 75 minutes. Ceman and Whitmarsh were the defending The Sunkist Open at Belmar champions after defeating Nick Hannemann and Adam Jewell in the 2000 finale. Whitmarsh had also won the last four Belmar titles, including the 1997 championship with Ceman.Albert Hannemann and Scott advanced to the finals with a 24-22 and 21-15 win over third-seeded Scott Ayakatubby and Eduardo Bacil in 42 minutes. Albert Hannemann and Scott opened their play Sunday by defeating Ceman and Whitmarsh 21-19, 19-21 and 15-12 in 63 minutes.Whitmarsh, the reigning AVP “King of the Beach”, and Ceman captured the third-place match and the $6,600 prize with a 21-18 and 21-18 win over Ayakatubby and Bacil in 35 minutes. Ayakatubby and Bacil, who captured last month’s AVP event in Huntington Beach, Calif., split $4,850 for fourth-place.With his third-place finish, Whitmarsh became the seventh pro beach volleyball player to surpass the $1.5-million mark in earnings. With 27 titles and an Olympic Silver Medal finish in 1996 at Atlanta with Mike Dodd, Whitmarsh has now totalled $1,501,716 in his career. He has earned $56,463 in nine Belmar starts (seven podium finishes) to rank first on the Belmar earnings list.
LeGrande, Doble go 6-0 to win title
Asbury Park Press 7/23/01
By DEBBIE WALDEYER
STAFF WRITER
BELMAR -- This season, Brent Doble and Lee LeGrande have only been playing partners the last two weekends. The results have been the same: better than anyone else.
Yesterday, Doble and LeGrande won their second consecutive Association of Volleyball Professionals event and became the newest kings of Belmar's 4th Avenue beach at the Sunkist Open. Doble and LeGrande, the second seed, defeated fourth seed Albert Hannemann and Sean Scott in the best two-out-of-three match, 21-16, 20-22, 15-9 in front of a capacity crowd at center court in yesterday afternoon's final. The pair finished this weekend with a perfect 6-0 record, matching their accomplishment from the previous weekend at Muskegon, Mich., and giving them a 12 match win streak in tour events. Doble and LeGrande will try to be the first AVP team since Karch Kiraly and Adam Johnson in
August 1998 to win three consecutive titles when they play in Virginia Beach, Va., starting on Saturday. "We've been playing pretty solid," said LeGrande. "It's the honeymoon right now. I may set him (Doble) terrible and he kills it and it's fine." Doble and LeGrande also had experience on their side. Having beaten top seed and defending champs Mike Whitmarsh and Canyon Ceman in the semifinal, 21-18, 19-21, 15-10, Doble and LeGrande had the edge in championship appearances over Hannemann and Scott. Doble has been in
three finals, and won them all. LeGrande has been in four finals and has won three. Hannemann and Scott, who beat third seed Scott Ayakatubby and Eduardo Bacil to reach the final (24-22, 21-15), had a combined total of one championship appearance:Hannemann in 1998.Despite this advantage, Hannemann and Scott, who was the AVP's 1999 rookie of the year, didn't yield easily to Doble and LeGrande. Doble and
LeGrande held the lead throughout the first game on the strength of LeGrande's power shots that tagged the back line and his finesse shots which found holes on the sides -- and Doble's serve. But Hannemann and Scott battled to win the second game thanks to Scott's timely blocks and sets for Hannemann's swing. "In the second game I felt really good," said Doble. "If Sean (Scott) didn't block me two or three times straight down I thought we'd win it there." Hannemann and Scott led to begin the final game, with LeGrande receiving a red card for bumping an official while leaving the court between the second and third games. The red card carries an automatic point to the opposition, giving Hannemann and Scott a 1-0 advantage in the 15-point game before the first ball was served.Later, in addressing the crowd, LeGrande thanked the AVP management and the refs "for dealing with me," he said. "I just want to win." Doble and LeGrande took their first lead of the last game at 4-3 when
Doble blocked Hannemann's shot at the net. Doble recorded the next two points, giving his team a 6-3 advantage and the pair never yielded the lead again. "They just played a little better," Hannemann said of Doble and LeGrande. "We worked hard and left it all out on the court." Hannemann and Scott, who have played together the entire season after having spent three years playing on the same team at the University of Hawaii, had their best finish as teammates. For Doble and LeGrande, yesterday marked their third title as teammates in 16 career pro beach starts together.
Fred Siegle: Doble faced with a dilemma
Asbury Park Press 7/23/01
BELMAR
Karch Kiraly is almost always right when it comes to choosing beach volleyball partners.
And Brent Doble is proving Kiraly right again -- without Kiraly.Kiraly is the sport's all-time leader with 142 wins, and aside from being a great player himself, he's always had a knack for teaming up with the right player at the right time. His longtime partnership with Kent Steffes (110 wins) is an example. So, when Kiraly made plans to compete with Doble this season, nobody should have doubted Doble, 30, and in his eighth season on the tour with one win in his career entering the season, was ready to break out. And Doble's done just that, although Kiraly is out with an injury. Doble and Lee LeGrande won the Association of Volleyball Professionals' $62,500 Sunkist Belmar Open yesterday, their second straight AVP win.Doble has become a leader in the AVP, and Kiraly and LeGrande probably both want him as a partner because they saw the same ability and strengths that have brought him there."It's just a love of the game, I love this sport," Doble said. "I'm willing to do the extra things you have to do, go out and practice hard, really work on my game, do the little things needed to win tournaments." Doble earned his first-ever win with LeGrande in the tour's 2000 season-opener in Delray Beach, Fla., but they parted ways later last season. He and Kiraly made plans to play together early this year, and they practiced together from February to May. Then, the day before the season-opening Hermosa Beach Open in California was to start, Kiraly suffered an achilles injury, ruining Doble's first chance at playing a tournament with the legend. Doble got Matt Lyles as a last-second replacement, and finished fourth. Then, they were 25th at Huntington Beach on June 17. And then LeGrande, who was struggling himself after a seventh-place finish with Scott Ayakatubby and a ninth with Mark Williams, called about last week's event in Muskegon, Mich. "It was really me begging," LeGrande said. "I knew I was playing well. I just needed a partner who believed in me and that I believed in." Doble is probably one tournament away from having to make what could be a career-turning decision. Kiraly said earlier this week there was a chance he'd return in time to play this weekend in Virginia Beach, Va., but
Doble said yesterday he'd bet the veteran waits until the next event, Aug.17-19 in Santa Barbara, Calif., which happens to be Karch's home town. So, what does he do? Stick with LeGrande in what has proven to be a winning combination? Or switch to the legend, the guy who's acknowledged to be the greatest volleyball player ever, the guy not many players have said no to? "We'll just see what happens, I can't make a prediction," Doble said. "It's
tough to look ahead."Kiraly thought his chances of getting Doble back would be slim after the win last week. Now, Doble and LeGrande are working off two straight victories.
"If he's doing well, it's probably wiser for him to play with a known quantity," Kiraly said last Monday. "It's up to him, though. Every situation is different, and Brent shouldn't feel beholden to me." "That's like Michael Jordan, just having my name in the same sentence
with Karch Kiraly is awesome to me," LeGrande said. "But there's no way you're going to dump someone after winning two straight tournaments. Lewey (Brian Lewis) did it one year, and the karma gods got him." Lewis is no longer playing on the tour, quitting because he disagrees with its new rules that make it more difficult for players his size (he's 6-1) to
compete.But what happens if Kiraly does wait until Santa Barbara, and Doble and
LeGrande don't win -- maybe even don't do too well? "I'm not feeling any pressure, pressure is just in the mind," LeGrande said. "I have confidence in myself, that's all I can control."

2001 Television Schedule
* Hermosa Beach Bash: espn2 on July 3 from 10:30-11:30 pm
* Huntington Beach: Fox Sports Net on July 16 from 3-3:30 pm
* Muskegon, MI: Fox Sports Net on July 23 from 3-4 pm in each regional market
* Belmar, NJ: Fox Sports Net on July 30 from 3-3:30 pm in each regional market
* Virginia Beach, VA: Fox Sports Net on August 6 from 3-3:30 pm in each regional market
* Santa Barbara, CA: Fox Sports Net on August 27 from 3-4 pm in each regional market
* Manhattan Beach, CA: Fox Sports Net on September 3 from 3-4 pm in each regional market
* King/Queen of the Beach: Fox Sports Net on September 19 from 3-4 pm in each regional market

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