<a
href=http://mu.mlive.com/news/index.ssf?/news/stories/20010716mavpmondaymnewm.fr\
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ewm.frm</a><br><br>Top volleyballers have a fantastic time in Muskegon
<br><br>Monday, July 16, 2001<br>By Tom Kendra<br>CHRONICLE
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR<br><br>The Association of
Volleyball Professionals & Pere Marquette Park beach appear
to be a match made in heaven. Ideal weather once
again greeted the country's best beach volleyball
players this weekend, & the 2-day crowd of more than
6,000 had a blast.<br><br>"This is impressive," said
Roger Skrabut of Bay City, who was in town for the
beach & just stumbled upon the $125,000 Association of
Volleyball Professionals Sunkist Open.<br><br>"The whole
setup here, the announcer & the players make it a great
event."<br><br>With everyone on the tour was so upbeat about
Muskegon, it appears likely the AVP will sign a new
contract to appear here in the future.<br><br>This year's
event culminated with a victory by former Grand Haven
resident Brent Doble & partner Lee LeGrande in the men's
championship match. Linda Hanley & Sarah Straton won a
thrilling, marathon women's championship match.<br><br>The
only people who had a better time than the fans may
have been the players themselves.<br><br>West Michigan
has become one of the regular stops on the AVP Tour,
hosting an event 11 of the past 12 years, & the players
seem to genuinely appreciate the knowledgeable fans &
the area's sugar-sand beaches.<br><br>"The crowd
knows what's going on & they cheer at the right times,"
said Los Angeles-area resident Barbra Fontana, who
teamed with Elaine Youngs to place 3rd. "I love the sand
here & the lake looks a lot like the ocean to me. I
think it's great."<br><br>The weather cooperated, as it
seems to every year.<br><br>Sunny skies, temperatures
in the 70s & a light breeze were perfect for
volleyball. The only bad-weather day in the 4 years the AVP
has come to Muskegon was in 1998 for Friday's opening
round.<br><br>The crowd was about the same size as last year, but
was noticeably smaller than the 1st 2 years in
Muskegon in 1998 & 1999.<br><br>AVP Tour Director Matt
Gage said he was pleased with the crowd, but
acknowledged it could have been larger if a schedule &
marketing plan had been in place sooner. The tour was
purchased in the off-season & the 8-event schedule wasn't
finalized until April, about 7 months later than
normal.<br><br>The Muskegon event is the only Midwest stop on the
AVP Tour this season, which brought many die-hard
beach volleyball fans from around the region to the
event. One of those was Chris Wolf of East
Lansing.<br><br>"We're pretty serious volleyball players," said Wolf,
who has been driving to the local AVP event since it
1st came to Grand Haven in 1990. "I'm disappointed
there's not another Midwest event, but since there isn't,
we definitely had to come here."<br><br>The only
other AVP events not on the West Coast this year are in
Belmar, N.J. (July 20-22) & Virginia Beach, Va. (July
27-29).<br><br>This year's event was the 3rd in a 3-year contract
between the AVP & the city of Muskegon. Muskegon City
Manager Bryon Mazade & Gage said discussions are under
way on a new contract.<br><br>"I think it's safe to
say the AVP will be in this area for years to come,"
said Gage, who has been with the AVP since 1984. "It's
one of the 1st sites we talk about when we sit down
to do the schedule.<br><br>"There's great fans here
& our players love it. There's no reason not to
keep coming back."<br><br>Fox Sports Net was on site
Sunday filming the women's & men's championship matches,
with highlights from both to be televised July 23.