June 10, 2007

Twice as nice for Gibb, Rosie
By Monique Moyal / AVP.com

ATLANTA #151; No. 2 Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal were not the same team that
third-seeded Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger saw in the championship round of
the Huntington Beach Open one month ago.

Gibb and Rosie had more confidence than ever before, reeling off of their
second championship victory of the year. But then again, Metzger and Lambert
weren't the same team either, combining for 11 costly errors in the match,
which they dropped, 21-16, 17-21, 15-13.

"We want to serve tough, but we really put ourselves in a bad spot when both
guys are serving out," said Lambert. "Then you just have to keep it in and
serve really easy balls to them. It's hard to score points when you're
serving easy, so we kinda shot ourselves in the foot that first set by not
serving very good and me not passing very good."

The match started out with three straight errors, but Gibb and Rosie stayed
on top throughout the first game. They jumped out to a 2-0 lead after
Metzger executed a set that resulted in two touches, and Lambert ran into
the net while attempting a crosscourt shot.

All errors on Metzger and Lambert's side of the net totaled up to eight in
the first game. Had they exchanged those for points, they would have won the
first game and the match without any need for a decisive set.

After all that, Game 1 came to only a one-point deficit with a score of 4-3
in favor of the higher seed.

From there, Gibb and Rosenthal kept slowly climbing and maintaining
composure amid their opponent's errors, enjoying as much as a six-point lead
with game point at 20-16.

"We played well, so it's easier to smile when you're playing well," said
Rosenthal. "We're hoping we're getting there a lot more, so maybe it's a
little more calm and relaxed out there. We have a game plan and we're just
playing our game."

In Game 2, errors were costly again, but this time for Gibb and Rosenthal.
At 12-11, both teams switched off serving into the net and beyond the court
four times, until a tie at 13-13.

Like the first game, had Gibb and Rosenthal converted more than half of
their seven errors, they could have taken the match in two games.

But then Lambert got back into his 2004 MVP form and turned up the heat.
Block after kill, Metzger and Lambert enjoyed their first lead of the match
at 15-15 and stretched it out to a second game victory at 21-17.

"I'm going to have nightmares about Lambo all night the way he was hitting
me," said Gibb.

Game 3 proved to be more of the same story again, getting off to the same
exact start as the first two, with Gibb and Rosenthal on the board first.
While the two teams did tie up the score four times, Gibb and Rosie hung on
to their overall lead to win their second-straight AVP Open this year.

"The third set we were down 8-4 and then we somehow got back to 9-9, and I
thought that point we were gonna pull it out," said Lambert. "It's just a
quick game to six after that. They just kinda came up clutch when they
needed to, and I thought they played pretty good too."

And both times Gibb-Rosenthal did it without facing No. 1 Phil Dalhausser
and Todd Rogers in the finals.

Instead, they took care of business in the semifinals, sending home the
tour's top team in third place, 21-19, 21-19.

Fountain of youth: Age is only a number as Karch Kiraly, 46, knows. It was a
dogfight for ex-partners Lambert-Kiraly and Kevin Wong-Metzger in Sunday's
semifinals.

"We grew up idolizing the guy, so just to step on court with him was a
pleasure, and I think it really elevates our game," said Metzger.

To close out the first game, the Hawaiian Curtain descended on Kiraly and
Wong, as Lambert drove down two consecutive blocks to end the game 21-11.
Game 2 provided more of the back-and-forth scoring, as Kiraly and Wong came
back from an early deficit to knot the score five times in the game. But
their fate turned out just like the first match despite their 42-minute
heroics.

Metzger and Lambert sealed their championship appearance with a 21-11, 21-16
victory ,and Kiraly-Wong took third place in Atlanta — better than 20 other
teams in the main draw this weekend.

"Like in poker, you gotta be able to call someone's bluff," said Lambert.
"And he's been telling everyone he's gonna retire, but I bet he comes back
next year. If he's getting into the final four, he got a second last weekend
and a third this weekend — that's no reason to retire."

"So I think he enjoys the bantering we give him about not retiring. He's
just out here having fun, getting some good results and playing with a good
partner. It's good to see for the fans and from us players to see him having
a good time."

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