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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

February beaches


April Ross makes a dig during a match for the AVP Crocs Hot Winter Nights Tour at Spokane Arena.
 (Rajah Bose / The Spokesman-Review)

Board shorts, bikinis and flip-flops – all in February, and all in Spokane.

It doesn’t get much better than that.

Professional volleyball players stayed true to their sandbox roots when they packed 250 tons of sand into the Arena Wednesday night and performed in front of an enthusiastic crowd in hopes of extending their brand through the AVP Crocs Hot Winter Nights Tour.

The beach-party atmosphere was executed as promised, from the Jose Cuervo beer garden to the sponsorship displays underneath tents, warm temperatures under pseudo-sun lighting and – of course – an 85x60 foot sand court that allowed some of the sport’s finest to showcase their skills in the form of crushing serves, spectacular spikes and dynamic digs.

“We get to go to different markets that we normally don’t get to go to,” said Annett Davis, one of four female players to make the Spokane stop.

“There’s only so many places that we can go during the summer, so this allows us the opportunity to take beach volleyball somewhere else.”

The three-hour event, in its first year on tour, kicked off with three men’s games in which Casey Jennings, Mike Lambert, Stein Metzger and Brad Keenan squared off, playing three games to 15 points and trading partners after every game until they had all played with each other once.

Jennings and Lambert each won two games, becoming the No. 1 and 2 seeds, respectively, which allowed them to pick their partners for the final.

Jennings and Keenan won the championship 15-11, giving Jennings his second tour victory and the top prize of $4,250. Lambert, who played with Metzger in the final, took home $3,500.

One of the most animated players to tour with the AVP, Jennings quickly became the crowd favorite, raising his hands high above his head after points, turning to the crowd and yelling. Jennings, who is married to Kerri Walsh – one of the game’s biggest stars – was the AVP’s Most Improved Player in 2002 and 2003 and Best Defensive Player in 2003.

“There’s no pressure,” Jennings said, explaining why he likes the event so much. “We’re usually out there working – not that we weren’t working tonight – but no matter what you get to play every round, and the other things is that we get to interact with the crowd a lot.

“I like to do that anyways, but here – in this format – I can do it 10 times more.”

Davis, the second seed after round-robin play, teamed up with University of Tennessee alumni Diane Denecochea for the women’s final. They played opposite the duo of top-seeded April Ross, who won all three round-robin games, and Jen Boss.

An AVP veteran and former Pac-10 Player of the Year in 1994 at UCLA, Davis is probably best known for ending Olympic gold medalists Walsh and Misty May-Treanor’s record-setting 89-match win streak with partner Jenny Johnson-Jordan.

In the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Davis finished fifth with Johnson-Jordan. The two finished third among U.S. women in qualifying for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, where Walsh and May-Treanor struck Olympic Gold.

“It’s a lot of fun for the players, especially because of the format,” added Davis. “We get to play with different people that we never get to play with during the year. It makes it a lot of fun.

“It’s nice and short and we all like that the fans (were able) to come up and talk to us, it really (made) it special. It’s very unique and I think the fans love that.”

Boss and Ross – both former USC standouts – play together during the regular AVP season. They won the women’s final 15-12.

Ross took home the $4,250 while Davis earned $3,500. Players paired with the champions, Keenan and Boss, earned the third-place prize of $2,750 while last-place finishers, Denecochea and Metzger, collected $2,000.

The tour hits Everett today before stopping in Portland on Saturday and wrapping up in Las Vegas on Feb. 23.

“This crowd was awesome,” said Jennings of the Spokane fans. “You could hear them yelling our names and really getting into it – we had a lot of fun playing here and interacting with the fans.

“It was a good time had by all.”