SIX WOMEN'S & EIGHT MEN'S ADVANCE IN MERVYN'S BEACH BASH AVP MAIN DRAWS June 9, 2001
HERMOSA BEACH, CALIF. - The top two-seeded women's teams advanced as expected
to Sunday's semi-finals while only one of the four top-seeded men's teams escaped with an unblemished match mark here Saturday (June 9) as newly-acquired Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) "officially" launches its 2001 schedule at the Hermosa Beach Pier.Saturday's play also saw Sydney 2000 Olympic Gold Medallists Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana drop their second match of the season to the newly-formed team
of Stein Metzger/Kevin Wong.  However, the "Golden Boys from Bondi Beach"remained in contention for Sunday's men's title by winning their final match Saturday.Top-seeded Barbra Fontana/Elaine Youngs and second-second-seeded Lisa "Lazer"Arce/Holly McPeak each posted 3-0 match marks Saturday to earn "final four"berths in the $75,000 women's Union Bay AVP Hermosa Beach Open.  Sunday's women's play starts at 8 a.m. (PDT) with four teams competing for the last two spots in the semi-finals.Top-seeded Dax Holdren and Todd Rogers survived an upset bid by eighth-seeded Brent Doble and Matt Lyles to advance to the winner's bracket semi-finals where they face 12th-seeded Albert Hanneman and Sean Scott in Sunday's opening men's match at 8 a.m. with the winners advancing to the "final four." Blanton and Fonoimoana, the third-seeded men's team in the $75,000 men's Side Out AVP Hermosa Beach Open, dropped a quarter-finals match in the winner's
bracket to sixth-seeded Metzger and Wong (17-21, 21-17 and 15-12).  Metzger and
Wong also defeated Blanton and Fonoimoana in the domestic season opener in Clearwater Beach, Fla.Metzger and Wong face 10th-seeded Aaron Boss and Ian Clark in Sunday's second winner's bracket semi-final match with the winner also advancing to the "final
four."  Boss and Ian Clark upset second-seeded Canyon Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh
(21-13 and 21-17) to advance to Sunday's opening matches.The final two women's semi-final berths will be determined at 8 a.m. Sunday when 11th-seeded Diane DeNecochea and Wendy Stammer challenge eighth-seeded Linda Hanley and Sarah Straton while fifth-seeded Stephanie Cox and Katy Eldridge play third-seeded Nancy Mason and Leanne Schuster.Blanton and Fonoimoana face fifth-seeded Carl Henkel and Sinjin Smith in the second of two elimination matches to start Sunday's loser's bracket play.
Henkel and Smith advanced to Sunday's play by eliminating second-seeded Canyon
Ceman and Mike Whitmarsh.  Ninth-seeded Scott Akayatubby and Lee LeGrande, who
overcame a first match defeat to win three-straight elimination matches Saturday, challenge eighth-seeded Brent Doble and Matt Lyles.  Doble was expected to play this weekend with Karch Kiraly, who withdrew Thursday due to a calf injury.Part of the third annual Mervyn's Beach Bash, a record 105 teams entered the three-day AVP event.  Led by Leonard Armato, Management Plus of El Sequndo,Calif., acquired the AVP last month (May 31, 2001) to unite the world's best men's and women's professional beach volleyball players under one umbrella organization.  The unification has attracted the large domestic field for the
first of eight stops on the "new" AVP Tour.