Manhattan Beach Open Volleyball Tournament

AVP Pro Beach Volleyball returns to one of its marquee events this weekend, in Manhattan Beach, amid fresh optimism about the struggling sport's future. The series hopes this year's Manhattan Beach Open, part of the AVP Crocs Tour, will capitalize on the excitement of having two of its top teams win gold medals at the Beijing Olympics. Tour operator AVP Inc. also received a $3.

Hit 'em where they ain't. The top-ranked AVP pro beach volleyball team of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh relied more on soft, untouchable drop shots between defenders than brute force to advance Friday in the Manhattan Beach Open. The Olympic gold medalists finished the day with a 21-16, 21-14 win over eighth-ranked Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana to reach today's final rounds. The second-ranked team of Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs also advanced.

Much of Manhattan Beach was still having breakfast Saturday when top-ranked Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh succumbed to the unusual: They lost a match. But you get a second chance in AVP Pro Beach Volleyball, and the Olympic gold medalists stormed back to win an unprecedented fourth consecutive Manhattan Beach Open and their third consecutive AVP Crocs Cup Championship.

Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor have a way of stealing the spotlight during beach volleyball tournaments, but even hours after they finished play Friday on the opening day of the Manhattan Beach Open, fans were gawking at the scoreboard with dropped jaws.

Karch Kiraly, the all-time leader in pro beach volleyball victories with 148, returns today for the Manhattan Beach Open after missing the last four events because of a knee injury. He said he is leaning toward playing another season on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour. Kiraly, 45, had arthroscopic surgery to repair ligament damage in his right knee after the Sacramento Open in June.

The sun shone brightly on the action at the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour's Manhattan Beach Open this week, but off the courts, a cloud lingered with the threat that this might be the last installment of beach volleyball's crown jewel. And if Sunday indeed marked the last time the AVP visits the hallowed sands of Manhattan Beach, the purists must be cringing about how the granddaddy of beach volleyball came to an end.

Manhattan Beach's website says the city "is probably most famous for its beach volleyball." Its public library mentions the Manhattan Beach Open volleyball tournament prominently on its website, and winners' names are placed on a plaque on the city pier.

The Manhattan Beach Open begins today with all the pomp befitting the crown jewel of the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals, but it's also shrouded in sadness. This will be the first Manhattan Beach Open played without Charlie Saikley, the "godfather of beach volleyball." Saikley died of cancer in June at 69. "It's going to be really strange this year," said Karch Kiraly, who has won the Manhattan Beach Open a record eight times. "It's not going to feel quite like Manhattan without him.

The top two women's teams in beach volleyball arrived at the Manhattan Beach Open in different frames of mind Friday, but left the courts near the Manhattan Beach Pier undefeated after opening day, on course for an anticipated final clash. Top-seeded Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh breezed through three matches, giving up 15 or fewer points in each game as they tried to shake off last week's 21-16, 21-15 loss -- the most lopsided defeat of their four-year tenure as teammates.

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh were reeling, their confidence was flagging and the aura of invincibility that had surrounded them for much of the last three years was slipping away. The Olympic champions delivered a much-needed victory Saturday with a hard-fought 21-23, 22-20, 15-11 decision over Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder in the women's final of the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals Manhattan Beach Open.