AVP Chicago - Friday Results, Men's Final on NBC TV SATURDAY 1:30PM CDT
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Day One of Crocs Cup Championship
Top Seeds Advance
Olympic gold medalists and top seeds Phil Dalhausser / Todd Rogers
advanced undefeated to the semifinals at the AVP Crocs Cup
Championship Kentucky Grilled Chicken Chicago Open Friday, while
fellow Beijing Olympians and top seeds on the women’s side Nicole
Branagh / Elaine Youngs also advanced undefeated. Sixth-seeded two-
time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh and partner bronze medalist
Holly McPeak also advanced to Saturday’s play undefeated.
Dalhausser / Rogers steamrolled 32nd-seeded Jake Elliot/ Jonathan
Guida 21-7, 21-11, then 17th-seeded Jeff Carlucci / Larry Witt 21-13,
21-11, then eighth-seeded Billy Allen / Matt Fuerbringer 21-13, 21-13.
They advanced to Saturday’s semifinals with a fourth-round 21-10,
21-13 rout of fourth-seeded Brad Keenan / Nick Lucena.
Top seeds on the women’s side Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs sailed
through the first two rounds of the competition, with easy wins over
32nd-seeded Dariam Acevedo / Yarleen Santiago, 21-10, 21-16, and 17th-
seeded Nancy Mason /Whitney Pavlik 21-18, 21-17. They face eighth-
seeded Angie Akers / Tyra Turner Saturday morning.
McPeak / Walsh first defeated 27th-seeded Dana Fiume / Shayna Munson
21-10, 21-18 then 11th-seeded Ashley Ivy / Lauren Fendrick 21-16,
23-21. They face third-seeded Annett Davis / Jenny Johnson Jordan
Saturday.
In addition to the Chicago Open title, the top athletes on Tour will
battle it out for the Crocs Cup. The Crocs Cup awards $75,000 in bonus
money to the top four teams of each gender based on their top 10 2009
finishes as a team through this weekend. Dalhausser / Rogers and
Branagh / Youngs have already locked up the $45,000 first-place bonus.
$15,000, $10,000, and $5,000 will be awarded to second-, third-, and
fourth-place teams, respectively, so Saturday’s competition is sure to
be intense.
In bonus beach volleyball action, the Four-Man Challenge and the Four-
Woman Challenge will rock Stadium Court Saturday and Sunday,
respectively, between each day’s semis and finals. Each match will
consist of one game to 25, switching sides when the first team gets to
13. The men’s challenge is scheduled to pit Aaron Wachtfogel, Billy
Strickland, Ty Tramblie, and Russ Marchewka against John Mayer, Matt
Prosser, and Coney Island champions Ty Loomis and Casey Patterson. The
Four-Woman Challenge will include Alicia Polzin, Saralyn Smith, Carrie
Dodd, and Heather Lowe versus Nancy Mason, Jenny Kropp, Paige Davis,
and Priscilla Lima. Each exhibition is scheduled to take place from
12:20-1:00 p.m.
The AVP Crocs Cup Championship Kentucky Grilled Chicken Chicago Open
continues Aug. 29-30 in Chicago at Oak Street Beach. Men's finals are
set to take place Saturday at 1:30 p.m. CT, while women's finals will
take place Sunday also at 1:30 p.m. CT. Both finals will be broadcast
LIVE on NBC. Semifinals each day will be tape delayed on Universal
Sports at 11 p.m. CT. Tickets start at $10 and are available at www.avp.com
or during the event at the onsite box office.
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