Last weekend ended on a sour note for two of the area’s top volleyball players when their top-seeded teams were defeated in the U18 finals at the 18th annual AAU Beach Volleyball National Championships held in Hermosa Beach.
For Christopher Orenic (Manhattan Beach) and Tiffany Morales (Redondo Beach), the 2010 Male and Female Players of the Year, the losses their teams suffered in the gold medal match were difficult to swallow since they had defeated the eventual champions earlier in the tournament.
Orenic, who will be a senior at Mira Costa this fall, partnered with San Clemente’s Dylan Hoffman for the first time this season after playing together in three previous tournaments. Orenic’s usual partner, Mustang teammate Kevin Inlow was unable to play last weekend.
The duo of Branden Clemens and Brendan Duff of Carmel, Ind. rebounded to defeat Orenic and Hoffman 28-16 to take gold medals home to the Midwest. Orenic and Hoffman beat the Indiana team 28-20 in the first match of pool play.
“In the first game against them, we took care of ourselves and had few errors,” Orenic said. “I think we may have gone into the final a little too confident. We made mistakes and they got into a rhythm we couldn’t get them out of.”
Orenic said he was disappointed with the loss, but “not too crushed.” He admitted he was still on cloud nine after earning MVP honors after leading the SCVC 17 team from Redondo Beach to the gold medal in the 17 Open Gold Division earlier in the week at the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships in Minneapolis, MN.
Erik Reed, of Manhattan Beach, teamed with John Oxnard of Yorba Linda to win silver in the boys U18 division.
For Morales and partner Alexa Strange (San Clemente), the pair met a similar fate. The team fell to Sara Hughes (Costa Mesa) and Justine Wong-Orantes (Cypress) 28-20 in the girls U18 title match.
Morales said she felt confident after the team’s semifinal win but knew they would be in for a battle despite beating Hughes and Wong-Orantes in pool play.
“They’re a strong team with a lot of experience,” Morales said. “They just got back from Croatia where they played in the FIVB.”
Hughes and Wong-Orantes were seeded second at the FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch Youth (Under-19) World Championships in Croatia. The team finished ninth in the world.
Playing for Mizuno Long Beach Rockstar, Morales had recently returned from competition in the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships in Atlanta, GA. Her team finished 18th, one spot below Strange’s Coast 17 squad, in the 17 Open Gold division.
The Redondo Union High School libero said that it takes a while to make the transition from hardwood to the sand.
“Because I don’t hit in the indoor game, the biggest transition for me going from indoor to the sand game is getting reps on cut shots and hits,” Morales said. “Also, the ball changes a lot. It’s much harder to pass outdoors because of the wind, sun and sand.”
Franny Hock (Manhattan Beach) and Christine Irvin (Pacific Palisades) tied for third place in the girls U18 competition.
In the girls U16 division, London Chow of Redondo Beach partnered with Makayla Taylor of Downey to win silver medals.
The Manhattan Beach team of Grace Campbell and Keala Rusher reached the championship match in the 14U division but had to settle for silver medals after losing to Hayley Hodson (Laguna Beach) and Chrissy Jones (Lakewood).
Tying for third place were local teams Katie Barkley (Manhattan Beach)/Emma Smith (Manhattan Beach) and Abril Bustamante (Redondo Beach)/Skylar Caputo (Manhattan Beach).
In the girls U12 competition, Lily Snyder (Manhattan Beach) and Devon Chang (Pacific Palisades) captured gold while the Manhattan Beach duo of Piper Monk-Heidrich and Lauren Kelly shared third place with Presley Forbes (Manhattan Beach) and Sunny Villapando (Hermosa Beach). Â It was the first AAU tournament this season where Forbes and Villapando failed to win gold.
The Manhattan Beach team of Lindsey Kelly and Ivy Stevens won gold in the girls U10 division.
In the boys U16 division, the Palos Verdes High duo of Cole Fiers and Brendon Hong captured gold medals with a 28-18 victory over Jackson Bantle (Loyola) and Matt Butler (Huntington Beach). Riley Mallon (Manhattan Beach) and Chris Kennedy (Playa Del Rey) took home bronze medals.
In the boys U14 division, the Manhattan Beach team of Roy McFarland and Casey McGarry won silver medals. The teams of Tanner Smith (Hermosa Beach)/Barron Mainz (Santa Barbara) and Trevor Liu (Manhattan Beach)/Kyle Jasuta (Manhattan Beach) shared third place.
Manhattan Beach residents Bobby Barkley and Sebastian Rodriguez won bronze medals in the boys U12 competition.
Tournament Director Gino Grajeda was impressed with the talent on this year’s tour.
“We’re really excited about the level of play and how many players are reaching that next level,” Grajeda said. “The number of out-of-state teams this year that have made the medal round has been impressive. This is the future of beach volleyball right here.”
With the acceptance of Sand Volleyball as a women’s sport on the collegiate level, opportunities have risen for female players
“Our numbers used to be 50-50 boys and girls teams but the girls team have really increased, especially at the high school level,” Grajeda said. “Our program is very important because whatever professional tour develops, the AAU is ready to provide the athletes.”
The AAU will hold two more events in Hermosa Beach this summer. The Best of the Beach presented by Kauai Bikini will feature girls 16U competition on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 20-21.
Qualified teams will participate in a two day event which includes pool play on the first day and playoffs the following day.
The final stop of the season will be the AAU Tour Championship on Sunday, Aug. 28 at the Hermosa Beach Pier. Boys and girls in 10U, 12U, 14U and 16U divisions compete for the title.
For more information, contact Gino Grajeda, ggrajeda181@msn.com or visit aaubeach.org.
