The AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) officially opened it?s 2005 season April 1-3 with a successful, jam-packed opening event on the beach outside the Yankee Clipper Hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Even though the weather was cool and overcast on Saturday, the fans were not disappointed with the quality of the matches. Then on Sunday, the weather cleared and it was perfect beach weather for the weekend?s final matches.

Trying to build off the growing success of its first 3 seasons and the 2004 Olympic gold and bronze medal performances of Misty May, Kerri Walsh, Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs, the AVP is looking to continue it?s incredible growth and success this season. With growing attendance figures, a 14-city schedule, and a larger television deal than last year, the AVP management team has certainly gotten the tour headed in the right direction.

In the season opener, with fans cheering them on, May and Walsh proved why they are still the No. 1 team on the beach and defeated Youngs and her new partner, Rachel Wacholder, to take home the women?s title. On the men?s side, Jake Gibb and Stein Metzger defeated Dax Holdren and Jeff Nygaard to win the men?s title.

There were a lot of returning teams, as well as new teams, on both the women?s and men?s side of the game going into the Ft. Lauderdale event. However, based on the last two years on the women?s side of the game, everyone knew it was still May and Walsh that everyone had to beat.

Women?s Teams to Watch
(The number was their seed at the AVP Ft. Lauderdale event)

1. Misty May / Kerri Walsh
2. Jennifer Kessy / Holly McPeak
3. Carrie Busch / Nancy Mason
4. Rachel Wacholder / Elaine Youngs
5. Angie Akers / Jenny Pavley

Other teams to watch:
6. Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson
16. Masakayan and DeNecochea

May and Walsh, the AVP 2004 Best Team award winners, come into the 2005 season after an incredible run in 2004, which saw them win 10 events (7 on the AVP and 3 on the FIVB Tour), along with a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The only thing that stopped them cold was a stomach injury to May in the summer prior to the Games. However, while May recuperated, Walsh went out and won two more events with Wacholder in Norway and France.

With their all around strong playing skills (both players can play offense and defense equally well), May, the 2004 AVP Best Offensive Player, and Walsh, the tour?s MVP, will still be the team to beat and, short of injury, they are capable of winning every event.

Last year?s No. 2 team and Olympic bronze medalists, McPeak and Youngs, decided to part ways during the off season. It was an amicable split, as the two just couldn?t find a way to beat May and Walsh. Even though they won six events last year (4 on the AVP and 2 on the FIVB), they did it against other teams. They just couldn?t seem to figure out May and Walsh, so they decided to go another direction with different partners this year.

McPeak, the tour?s 2004 Best Defensive Player and Outstanding Achievement award winner, teams up with the 2004 Most Improved award winner, Jennifer Kessy. Kessy is a young player, who is a solid blocker and strong hitter. With McPeak covering the backcourt, the two should be a tough team to beat.

Youngs will team up with Wacholder, another up-and-coming star on the tour. Wacholder won the first 2 tournaments of her pro career last year when she teamed up with Walsh while May was recuperating. She has strong, all-around skills and has been on the verge of reaching the upper echelon of teams the last few years. With Youngs as her partner, she will achieve that this year, as this team should be fighting Kessy and McPeak every week for the right to play in the finals.

Carrie Busch and Nancy Mason are definitely a strong team to watch. They also have been on the threshold of reaching the top of the tour the last few years, and this might just be the year for them. With eight 3rd place finishes in 2003, these two will be right there battling to make it into the finals every week, and if any of the other teams are having an off-week, this team could slip right past them and into the championship match.

Angie Akers and Jenny Pavley are another young team to keep an eye on. Akers, the 2002 AVP Rookie of the Year, and Pavley, are two strong players who have slowly developed their skills and are ready to move into that upper echelon as well. If they can come together as a team and challenge the top teams on the tour, this team just might make it to their first final.

Two other teams to watch on the women?s side of the game:

* Dianne DeNecochea and Liz Masakayan. Masakayan retired after the 2003 season and spent 2004 coaching McPeak and Youngs to their bronze medal. She then decided she?d like to play a little more this year, and when DeNecochea, her former partner, had her partner (Tammy Leibl) suffer an injury prior to the start of the season, the two decided to play together until Leibel was fit enough to play. Masakayan won her last tournament with DeNecochea (2002?s AVP Santa Barbara Open), and the two are hoping to pick up where they left off and have some early success. This could be a last chance to watch Masakayan, one of the game?s greatest players, play one more time before she retires for good.

* Tyra Harper and Makare Wilson. This is a very young and up-and-coming team. Harper will be playing in her third season, while Wilson will be playing her second. They played together throughout the 2004 season and scored three fifths. Keep an eye on these two because they will only get better.

Men?s Top Seeds
(The number was their seed at the AVP Ft. Lauderdale event)

1. Karch Kiraly / Mike Lambert
2. Todd Rogers / Sean Scott
3. Dain Blanton / Kevin Wong
4. Eric Fonoimoana / Adam Jewell
5. Dax Holdren / Jeff Nygaard

Other teams to watch:
6. Jake Gibb / Stein Metzger
* George Roumain / Jason Ring. However, currently, Roumain is out with an injury to start the season.

Coming into the season, last year?s AVP Team of the Year, Karch Kiraly, the 2004 Outstanding Achievement award winner, and Mike Lambert, the 2004 AVP MVP and Best Offensive Player, looked like the team to beat once again. Last year, the two played in nine events, winning three of them, and finishing second in two and third in two others. Amazingly, they achieved all that success even though Kiraly played a good part of the season with an injured shoulder. He had off-season surgery to repair it and everything seemed ready for this season. However, in an early round match in Ft. Lauderdale,, Kiraly re-injured his shoulder and, at the time of this writing, is not sure if he will continue.

Whether these two continue to play together remains to be seen, but either way, Lambert has slowly become the best player on the tour. If Kiraly is down for the year, the shakeup of the top teams will change the face on the men?s side of the game.

After Kiraly and Lambert, the field is wide open -- can you say parity -- as a number of strong returning teams, along with some top players who have teamed up with different partners, are all looking for that perfect combination that will take them to the top of the game.

Todd Rogers, the 2004 Best Defensive Player, and Sean Scott teamed up for eight events last season and had some good results, including a win in Tempe and two seconds in Austin and Santa Barbara. The two look to continue to improve on that success this season.

Dain Blanton and Kevin Wong are one of the new teams to watch this season. Blanton, a two-time Olympian (gold in Australia in 2000, 19th with Jeff Nygaard last year in Athens), teams up with Wong, who played in the 2000 Olympics and finished 5th with Rob Heidger. Individually, these two have excellent skills. Wong can block with the best players on the beach, and both players can hit and serve as strong as anyone. The question will be ? how do they perform as a team. If they can come together, they have the potential to be in the finals every week. This is definitely a team to watch.

Dax Holdren and Nygaard form another strong team this year. Last year, Holdren played with Stein Metzger and scored two thirds in Austin and Santa Barbara, while Nygaard played mostly with Blanton and had one win (Chicago) and four 3rd place finishes. Blanton and Nygaard also had some very low finishes as well, especially the 19th at the Olympics, which caused them to look for new partners this year. Holdren and Nygaard are two solid individual players, but like some of the other teams, it will come down to how quickly they can come together and get some early success that will determine if they stick together.

With their win in Ft. Lauderdale two weeks ago, Jake Gibbs and Metzger proved they are definitely a team to keep an eye on this year. Gibbs, the 2004 AVP Most Improved Player, played with Adam Jewell last year and together they scored a win in Austin, two seconds (Belmar and Hawaii) and four thirds. Metzger is a little better than Jewell, and more consistent. These two should be fun to watch, as they proved in Florida.

Two other teams to watch on the men?s side of the game:

* Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings. These two have been one of the most consistent teams over the last two years, reaching six finals. The knock against them was that they just couldn?t get a win. Well, they finally did that last year at Belmar, winning their first event and keeping them near the top of the standings. They also had two seconds (Ft. Lauderdale and Manhattan Beach) and are always hovering around the Top 5 (7 times out of 12 events last year). This is definitely a team everyone will need to watch because they can beat you in a number of ways and at any time. They also are one of the most exciting teams to watch (Jennings is in the mold of one of the greats ? Tim Hovland) and the crowds are stacked around their court when they are playing.

* George Roumain and Jason Ring. Last year, Roumain, the 2004 Rookie of the Year, and Ring took the beach by storm, playing in 11 tournaments together and getting their first tour wins at Huntington Beach. Then, the injury bug hit them, as Ring was injured for a good part of the rest of the season, while Roumain is out right now with an injury of his own. If these two can stay healthy and keep improving, they have the potential to become the No. 1 team on the men?s side of the game.

The season opener had many exciting matches and gave a glimpse of what is to come on the beach this year. The next event will be this week in Tempe, Arizona (April 22-24). Be sure to check here for a tour recap early next week. (For results during the weekend, go to www.avp.com).

2005 AVP Schedule
April 1-3: AVP Ft. Lauderdale, Fl.
April 22-24: AVP Tempe, Az
April 29-May 1: AVP Austin, Tx.
May 19-20: AVP Santa Barbara, Ca.
Jun 10-12: AVP San Diego, Ca.
June 30-July 3: AVP Cincinnati, Oh.
July 8-10: AVP Belmar, NJ
July 21-24: AVP Hermosa Beach, Ca.
August 11-14: AVP Huntington Beach, Ca.
August 18-21: AVP Manhattan Beach, Ca.
August 26-28: AVP Boulder, Co.
September 1-4: AVP Chicago, Il.
September 8-11: AVP Las Vegas, Nv.
September 30-October 2: AVP Honolulu, Hi

AVP on Television

All events will be televised on Fox Sports. Semifinals will be shown on Saturday?s on OLN (Outside Living Network).

In addition, six events will be on NBC live (Cincinnati, Hermosa Beach, Huntington Beach, Manhattan Beach and Chicago)

Check local listings for dates and times.

Here are the results from the AVP Ft. Lauderdale tournament.

AVP Ft. Lauderdale Tournament Results
Friday-Sunday, April 1-3, 2005
On the beach just north of the Yankee Clipper Hotel

AVP Women

Women?s Top Finishers in Ft. Lauderdale
1. Misty M ay / Kerri Walsh $20,000
2. Elaine Youngs / Rachel Wacholder $14,000
3. Jennifer Kessy / Holly McPeak $8,450
3. Carrie Busch / Nancy Mason $8,450
5. Tyra Turner / Makare Wilson $5,000
5. Katie Lindquist / Tracy Lindquist $5,000
7. Angie Akers / Jenny Pavley $3,500
7. Linjun Ji / Whenhui You $3,500
9. Dianne DeNecochea / Liz Masakayan $2,200
9. Tanya Fuamatu / Heidi Ilustre $2,200
9. Saralyn Smith / Ann Windes $2,200
9. Nikki Audette / Jill Changaris $2,200

Semifinals
* Misty May / Kerri Walsh (#1 seed) def. Carrie Busch / Nancy Mason (3) 21-17, 21-10 (0:40 mins)
* Rachel Wacholder / Elaine Youngs (4) def. Jennifer Kessy / Holly McPeak (2) 21-14, 19-21, 15-13 (66 mins)

Finals
* May / Walsh def. Wacholder / Youngs 21-18, 21-19 (0:53 mins)

Women?s Statistical Leaders

Aces (aces, games played)
1. Elaine Youngs (14, 16)
2. Dianne DeNecochea (10, 12)
3. Katie Lindquist (10, 11)
4. Kerri Walsh (10, 12)
5. Angie Akers (8, 12)

Blocks (blocks, games played)
1. Tyra Turner (16, 15)
2. Kerri Walsh (14, 12)
3. Jennifer Kessy (13, 11)
4. Kimberly Coleman (12, 9)
5. Makare Wilson (12, 15)

Digs (digs, games played)
1. Rachel Wacholder (128, 16)
2. Holly McPeak (89, 11)
3. Nancy Mason (76, 13)
4. Tyra Turner (70, 15)
5. Makare Wilson (62, 15)
* 7. Misty May finished (60, 12)

Kill Pct. (kills, attacks, games played, percentage)
1. Whenhui You (36, 57, 8, .632)
2. Misty May (91, 147, 12, .619)
3. Kerri Walsh (66, 109, 12, .606)
4. Tracy Lindquist (58, 97, 10, .598)
5. Elaine Youngs (81, 136, 16, .596)

AVP Men

Men?s Top Finishers in Ft. Lauderdale
1. Jake Gibb / Stein Metzger $20,000
2. Dax Holdren / Jeff Nygaard $14,000
3. Dain Blanton / Kevin Wong $8,450
3. Sean Rosenthal / Larry Witt $8,450
5. Todd Rogers / Sean Scott $5,000
5. Matt Fuerbringer / Casey Jennings $5,000
7. Paul Baxter / Jason Ring $3,500
7. Philip Dalhausser / Nick Lucena $3,500
9. Karch Kiraly / Mike Lambert $2,200
9. Brent Doble / John Hyden $2,200
9. Aaron Boss / Brian Lewis $2,200
9. Jose Loiola / Fred Souza $2,200

Semifinals
* Jake Gibb / Stein Metzger (6) def. Sean Rosenthal / Larry Witt (8) 21-15, 21-15 (0:42 mins)
* Dax Holdren / Jeff Nygaard (5) def. Dain Blanton / Kevin Wong (3) 21-18, 21-7 (0:44 mins)

Finals
* Gibb / Metzger def. Holdren / Nygaard 21-14, 21-13 (0:53 mins)

Men?s Statistical Leaders

Aces (aces, games played)
1. Fred Souza (12, 12)
2. Hans Stolfus (12, 10)
3. Sean Rosenthal (11,11)
4. Stein Metzger (8, 20)
5. Paul Baxter (7, 14)

Blocks (blocks, games played)
1. Jake Gibb (49, 20)
2. Jeff Nygaard (39, 19)
3. Philip Dalhausser (23, 13)
4. Sean Scott (23, 15)
5. Mike Lambert (20, 8)

Digs (digs, games played)
1. Stein Metzger 135, 20)
2. Dax Holdren (84, 19)
3. Todd Rogers (81, 15)
4. Nick Lucena (76, 13)
5. Casey Jennings (71, 12)

Hit Percentage (kills, attacks, games played, percentage)
1. Matt Fuerbringer (72, 105, 12, .686)
2. Aaron Boss (73, 109, 11, .670)
3. Hans Stolfus (46, 71, 10, .648)
4. Fred Souza (50, 78, 12, .641)
5. Mike Lambert (39, 61, 8, .639)

Next Event: AVP Nissan Series Tempe Open
Friday-Sunday, April 22-24, 2005
Qualifiers on Friday, Main Draw competition Saturday and Sunday

The matches will be played in Tempe Beach Park, South Side of Mill Street Bridge (54 West Rio Salado, Tempe, AZ)

For information and live match results during the weekend, go to the AVP web site at www.avp.com.