After a few weeks off, we once again have AVP player Ryan Mariano giving us a recap of the AVP Crocs Tour from Ocean City Maryland:

Ocean City, Maryland, one of the smallest “big” cities on the east coast, played host to our newest AVP Crocs Tour stop. Located on a peninsula, Ocean City, has become a tourist hotspot over the last 20 years. Locals embrace being outnumbered by families and young adults on summer break from the first glimpse of summer to the last week in July. With less than 4000 year round residents, Ocean City boasts a population of 320,000 in the peak of the summer. The AVP took advantage of this great influx of people, holding the event downtown next to the amusement park. Thursday through Sunday was a tremendous test for the players as we hopped into the deepest sand on the east coast and battled the weather!

True to form, we were attacked by crazy weather for the Thursday qualifier, howling 30mph winds and horizontal rain made for circus rallies and less than graceful volley. From the first whistle, winds were whipping and rain was falling creating havoc for the players. Though this is the weather for upsets, the top seeds held their spots, even after a few dramatic endings.

 

Friday was a beautiful summer day. The sun burned away any cloud cover and marine layer, making the day perfect for volleyball. The top ten seeds from both the Men’s and Women’s event held their seeds and the day went on as expected.

Saturday was tattered with rain and at noon the event was stopped due to lightning and a tornado warning. The event was looking like the U.S. Open as players stood around just waiting for the horn to bring it in. The only difference was at 4:45 the volleyball event continued and somehow finished on schedule. A sad note for Saturday, at the Boardwalk Amusement Park, a bungee swing (a bungee swing is a two-seated ride surrounded by iron bars) was launched into the air by two huge rubber band-like cables and took the lives of a few sea gulls as they, unfortunately, flew a little too close to the iron ball as it rocketed into space. After that, I didn’t feel the need to go on any rides!

Sunday was enough of a ride for me! The Gold Medalists squared off against their nemesis of Sean Scott and John Hyden in their second consecutive final; the day was electric! Scott and Hyden came out of the gates on fire and never looked back as they gave Phil and Todd a solid beating 21-13, 21-18 to clinch their second win in a row. On the women’s side, the final pairing was as predicted – Kessy and Ross taking on Ey and Nicole Branagh. With electricity in the air the duo of Kessy and Ross won their second title; a 21-12, 21-15 smashing over the number 1 seed. I guess 10 service aces per match might help! Now I know what I need to work on.

It was a great event die hard fans and the unbelievable hospitality will hopefully be a determining factor in our return. Special thanks to the Harrison family for their hospitality! We look forward to seeing you again when the AVP comes through OC next year!