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June 9, 2007

Who will leave Atlanta as champions?
The top teams are in position to win on Sunday
By Monique Moyal / AVP.com

ATLANTA — Across the city on Sunday, the Braves will wrap up their series
against the Chicago Cubs before jumping headfirst into interleague play, and
the AVP will make its final mark on the 2007 Atlanta Open here at Atlantic
Station.

It will be the last day of this weekend's tournament in Atlanta, the city
which hosted beach volleyball in the 1996 Olympic Games.

Even though they didn't play during the 1996 Games, top-seeded Misty
May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh took the Gold Medal during the Athens Games in
2004.

After two days of main draw action in Georgia's only stop on the 2007 AVP
Crocs Tour, half of the semifinals are set from the winner's side of things.

Before Saturday's night session the first women's team to solidify their
spot in the semis came amidst 95-degree heat in a meeting of mothers. No. 3
Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana emerged victorious and, as a result
don't have to play again until Sunday afternoon.

Once the night session began, No. 1 Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers dropped
Kiraly down to the contender's bracket and secured themselves a semifinals
appearance. They too get to sleep in a little bit with a first-round bye.

The top-seeded women also rolled on Saturday night, as May-Treanor and Walsh
will be back in the final four after defeating No. 4 Jen Boss and April
Ross.

No. 3 Stein Metzger and Mike Lambert were the final pair to advance to the
semifinals from the winner's bracket. The only other time they did so was in
the Hermosa Beach Open, where they they also sent No. 2 Jake Gibb and Sean
Rosenthal into the contender's bracket.

The teams who lost in the night session are not done yet, as they play in
their first match of the contender's bracket at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.

After a successful weekend campaign in the contender's bracket, No. 9 Casey
Jennings-Mark Williams and No. 7 John Hyden-Brad Keenan will face Saturday
night's losers — Gibb-Rosenthal and Kiraly-Wong, respectively.

For the women, No. 7 Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson Jordan take on No. 9
Angie Akers and Brooke Hanson.

Davis and Johnson Jordan just missed earning an early bye into the
semifinals from the winner's bracket late in Saturday play, as they dropping
an arduous 34-32, 16-21, 16-14 affair to fellow mothers, DeNecochea and
Fontana.

Akers and Hanson earned a season-high finish. They last took fifth place to
kick off the year in Miami as the No. 12 seed.

No. 2 Tyra Turner and Rachel Wacholder take on Boss and Ross in the final
round of the contender's bracket.

As always, all four of the contender's bracket matches begin at 9:30 a.m.
EDT on Sunday morning. A fifth-place finish awaits the teams that fail to
advance into the semifinals.

The men's semifinals begin first with play at 11:15 a.m., followed by the
women's semifinals at 1 p.m.

All play comes to a climax with the men's and women's finals matches, set
for 2:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. respectively.
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Saturday's highlights: Karch Kiraly still has a shot at a 149th career win,
but he and partner Kevin Wong will now have to go through the contender's
bracket after losing Saturday night to Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser.
Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana are in position to crack through the
third-place barrier after holding their ground in the winner's bracket on
Saturday. The duo has finished third in five events this year.

Match of the day: It was a test of wills as DeNecochea and Fontana fought
off Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson-Jordan, 34-32, 16-21, 16-14, for a date
in the semifinals. The final game was 14-14 before DeNecochea and Fontana
applied the hammer.

Upset of the day: It was an exciting day for No. 9 Brooke Hanson and Angie
Akers. They managed to take out No. 5 Holly McPeak and Logan Tom, 21-18,
21-19, gaining an invitation to Sunday's competition in the process.

Weather forecast: The Sunday forecast for Atlanta calls for partly cloudy
skies and a high of 92 degrees. There is a 10 percent chance of
precipitation.
Speaking of the Olympics, Karch Kiraly won the Gold Medal that year with
partner Kent Steffes. He will be back on Sunday, looking for another taste
of victory in The Big Peach.

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