The 2009 Crocs AVP Riverside Open officially started today and there were some surprising results from the qualification tourney. Here is a quick recap:
the #1 seed of Mesko/Jensen lost their first match of the day to the 33rd seed. This was a huge upset, not only because of their seed, but because the team that qualified had never qualified before. In a way there was some personal redemption since Jensen dumped me a week ago to play with Mesko; however, both guys are personal friends of mine and good people so it is hard to see them go out so early and take a 41st. That is going to hurt their points dramatically. I didn't see the match, but I heard it wasn't close. Ouch!
in another shocker, the #3 seed of Engle/Fuller lost their first match to the 30th seed, another team that has never qualified for the main draw. This was not a shock to me, since this Fuller/Engle haven't gelled since forming the partnership. Engle wasn't digging enough balls and their sideout game had some holes...too many for the 6'10" Fuller to plug with his block.
two teams I predicted would make it to the final round and play for a chance to get in did exactly that...and qualified! Pearson/Haghihi and Morales/Delahoz both beat higher seeds en route to qualifying. Pearson/Haghihi is one of those "old school" ball-control teams that can give people fits! They run a quick offense, play great team defense, and just don't make many mental errors...skills they polished from over 10 years playing in AVP events.
Morales/Delahoz is a fun team to watch. The upper-30's (his exact age is still in question and we are waiting on documents from the Colombian embassy!) Delahoz famously got his name on the "Walk of Fame", the famed Manhattan Beach Pier where the stars of the sport have their names immortalized on plaques put into the Pier concrete. He and partner Sean Scott, a top 10 AVP pro, won the Open the year the AVP pros boycotted MB. Morales is a fiery Brazilian known more for his on-court theatrics than his steady play. It's a shame because he is a high flyer with loads of unrealized talent. Maybe this is the tourney that kick starts his evolution into a full time AVP pro.
The rest of the quali went as expected and there were no real stories of note. And with day one in the books, the "Big Dance" starts tomorrow. Bring your sunscreen and hard hats, because it is time to bring out the big guns and go to work! See you in the IE!!
To follow the tournament, check out www.avp.com
Thursday, April 16, 2009
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4 comments:
So I'm new to this...how does your partner from last week end up playing with a guy who makes them the number one seed? Is Mesko just that good? If he partnered with me are we still number 1? (yikes)
btw john i'm using my daughters email since i dont have a google account and couldnt figure out how to work this with yahoo. ace
Ha ha :-) Like the blog!
I might have to disagree with you on the final predictions for this weekend but we can settle this face to face!
Good luck!
The way the tourney works, there is a qualification tournament that allows new teams to try and get into the money rounds, which is called the main draw. The quali is held the day before the main draw begins and 8 teams advance. Mesko and Jenson were the #1 team in the qualifier but by losing, they did not earn any money.
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