FIVB Cancun Hub 3: KWJ-Sweat, Claes-Sponcil get big victory as 4 USA pairs gain playoff byes

Kerri Walsh Jennings and Brooke Sweat and Kelly Claes and Sarah Sponcil scored upsets Thursday, while April Ross and Alix Klineman took a tough loss, as four American teams earned playoff byes in the 4-star FIVB Cancun Hub pro beach volleyball event.

While pool play continues Friday in the Mexican resort, so far Walsh Jennings and Sweat, Claes and Sponcil, Taylor Crabb and Jake Gibb, and Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena have earned playoffs byes.

Conversely, four other American pairs — Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb, Chaim Schalk and Theo Brunner, Emily Stockman and Kelley Kolinske, and April Ross and Alix Klineman — play must-win pool play matches Friday.

Friday’s USA pool play schedule (all times local, equivalent to U.S. Central time):

9 a.m. — Stockman and Kolinske vs. Norway’s Ingrid Lunde and Emilie Olimstad
10 a.m. — Ross and Klineman vs. Germany’s Victoria Bieneck and Isabel Schneider
11 a.m. — Bourne and Trevor Crabb vs. Poland’s Grzegorz Fijalek and Michal Bryl
Noon — Schalk and Brunner vs. Switzerland’s Marco Krattiger and Florian Breer

Playoff opponents and schedules will be drawn randomly following the completion of pool play.

Sweat and Walsh Jennings, seeded 15th, won their pool after beating Argentina’s Ana Gallay and Fernanda Pereyra (21-14, 21-15) and then upsetting second-seeded Canadians Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan (21-18, 21-16).

Fifth-seeded Ross and Klineman’s loss was at the hands of 28th-seeded Finland’s Niinna Ahtianen and Riikka Lehtonen (19-21, 21-15, 15-12), who came out of the qualifier.

Crabb and Gibb topped pool A with wins over Mexico’s Miguel Sarabia and Raymond Stephens (21-19, 19-21, 15-7) and Germany’s Nils Ehlers and Lars Fluggen (21-16, 17-21, 16-14).

Dalhausser and Lucena earned their bye with straight set wins over Brazil’s Arthur Mariano and Pedro Solberg (21-13, 21-17) and Canada’s Grant O’Gorman and Ben Saxton (21-14, 21-17).

Claes and Sponcil advanced their Olympic chances by defeating rivals Kolinske and Stockman (21-14, 22-20), then defeating top-seeded Brazilians and Hub 2 gold medalists Agatha Bednarczuk and Eduarda “Duda” Lisboa (22-20, 21-11).

Bourne and Trevor Crabb are in a must-win situation after a loss to Canada’s Sam Pedlow and Sam Schachter (21-19, 21-13).

Brunner and Schalk’s lost their opening pool play match to Spain’s Adrian Gavira and Pablo Herrera (21-19, 21-15),

Results courtesy BVBinfo.com
MEN
Pool A
Round 1
Alison Cerutti/Alvaro Filho Brazil (1) def. Ben O’Dea/Sam O’Dea New Zealand (32, Q14) 21-13, 21-15 (0:40)
Aleksandrs Samoilovs/Janis Smedins Latvia (16) def. Esteban Grimalt/Marco Grimalt Chile (17) 21-14, 20-22, 17-15 (1:03)
Round 2
Alison Cerutti/Alvaro Filho Brazil (1) def. Aleksandrs Samoilovs/Janis Smedins Latvia (16) 23-21, 21-11 (0:39)
Pool B
Round 1
Taylor Crabb/Jake Gibb USA (2) def. Miguel Sarabia/Raymond Stephens Mexico (31) 21-19, 19-21, 15-7 (0:55)
Nils Ehlers/Lars Fluggen Germany (15) def. Nikita Liamin/Taras Myskiv Russia (18) 21-15, 21-17 (0:47)
Round 2
Taylor Crabb/Jake Gibb USA (2) def. Nils Ehlers/Lars Fluggen Germany (15) 21-16, 17-21, 16-14 (1:03)
Pool C
Round 1
Cherif Samba/Ahmed Tijan Qatar (3) def. Andrea Abbiati/Tiziano Andreatta Italy (30, Q12) 21-16, 21-18 (0:38)
Piotr Kantor/Bartosz Losiak Poland (19) def. Andre Loyola/George Wanderley Brazil (14) 21-14, 21-15 (0:42)
Round 2
Piotr Kantor/Bartosz Losiak Poland (19) def. Cherif Samba/Ahmed Tijan Qatar (3) 23-21, 22-20 (0:45)
Pool D
Round 1
Stefan Boermans/Yorick de Groot Netherlands (29, Q11) def. Michal Bryl/Grzegorz Fijalek Poland (4) 24-22, 21-13 (0:46)
Sam Pedlow/Sam Schachter Canada (20) def. Tri Bourne/Trevor Crabb USA (13) 21-18, 17-21, 15-9 (0:58)
Round 2
Stefan Boermans/Yorick de Groot Netherlands (29, Q11) def. Sam Pedlow/Sam Schachter Canada (20) 20-22, 21-18, 15-13 (0:55)
Pool E
Round 1
Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena USA (5) def. Arthur Mariano/Pedro Solberg Brazil (28, Q9) 21-13, 21-17 (0:37)
Grant O’Gorman/Ben Saxton Canada (21) def. Mirco Gerson/Adrian Heidrich Switzerland (12) 21-19, 21-13 (0:43)
Round 2
Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena USA (5) def. Grant O’Gorman/Ben Saxton Canada (21) 21-14, 21-17 (0:34)
Pool F
Round 1
Adrian Gavira/Pablo Herrera Spain (6) def. Theo Brunner/Chaim Schalk USA (27, Q7) 21-19, 21-15 (0:42)
Steven van de Velde/Christiaan Varenhorst Netherlands (11) def. Florian Breer/Marco Krattiger Switzerland (22, Q1) 21-17, 21-14 (0:41)
Round 2
Steven van de Velde/Christiaan Varenhorst Netherlands (11) def. Adrian Gavira/Pablo Herrera Spain (6) 21-12, 21-15 (0:36)
Pool G
Round 1
Alexander Brouwer/Robert Meeuwsen Netherlands (7) def. Christoph Dressler/Alexander Huber Austria (26, Q4) 22-20, 21-19 (0:48)
Ilya Leshukov/Konstantin Semenov Russia (10) def. Lombardo Ontiveros/Juan Virgen Mexico (23) 21-15, 23-21 (0:45)
Round 2
Ilya Leshukov/Konstantin Semenov Russia (10) def. Alexander Brouwer/Robert Meeuwsen Netherlands (7) 21-15, 21-16 (0:35)
Pool H
Round 1
Josue Gaxiola/Jose Rubio Mexico (8) def. Gustavo “Guto” Carvalhaes/Arthur Da Silva Brazil (25, Q2) 21-19, 21-16 (0:45)
Adrian Carambula/Enrico Rossi Italy (9) def. Quincy Aye/Arnaud Gauthier-Rat France (24) 21-12, 21-15 (0:37)

WOMEN
Pool A
Round 1
Agatha Bednarczuk/Eduarda “Duda” Lisboa Brazil (1) def. Ingrid Lunde/Emilie Olimstad Norway (32, Q26) 21-18, 21-13 (0:42)
Kelly Claes/Sarah Sponcil USA (16, Q2) def. Kelley Kolinske/Emily Stockman USA (17) 21-14, 22-20 (0:41)
Round 2
Kelly Claes/Sarah Sponcil USA (16, Q2) def. Agatha Bednarczuk/Eduarda “Duda” Lisboa Brazil (1) 22-20, 21-11 (0:37)
Pool B
Round 1
Melissa Humana-Paredes/Sarah Pavan Canada (2) def. Maria Quintero/Susana Torres Mexico (31) 21-11, 21-11 (0:34)
Brooke Sweat/Kerri Walsh Jennings USA (15) def. Ana Gallay/Fernanda Pereyra Argentina (18) 21-14, 21-15 (0:36)
Round 2
Brooke Sweat/Kerri Walsh Jennings USA (15) def. Melissa Humana-Paredes/Sarah Pavan Canada (2) 21-18, 21-16 (0:38)
Pool C
Round 1
Mariafe Artacho/Taliqua Clancy Australia (3) def. Esmee Bobner/Zoe Verge-Depre Switzerland (30, Q16) 19-21, 17-14 retired (0:48)
Heather Bansley/Brandie Wilkerson Canada (19) def. Nina Betschart/Tanja Huberli Switzerland (14) 21-15, 21-14 (0:40)
Round 2
Mariafe Artacho/Taliqua Clancy Australia (3) def. Heather Bansley/Brandie Wilkerson Canada (19) 21-15, 21-12 (0:36)
Pool D
Round 1
Talita Antunes/Taiana Lima Brazil (4) def. Mariia Bocharova/Aleksandra Ganenko Russia (29, Q9) 21-8, 21-15 (0:31)
Katarzyna Kociolek/Kinga Wojtasik Poland (20) def. Karla Borger/Julia Sude Germany (13) 14-21, 21-18, 15-11 (0:57)
Round 2
Talita Antunes/Taiana Lima Brazil (4) def. Katarzyna Kociolek/Kinga Wojtasik Poland (20) 24-22, 21-16 (0:44)
Pool E
Round 1
Niina Ahtiainen/Riikka Lehtonen Finland (28, Q8) def. Alix Klineman/April Ross USA (5) 19-21, 21-15, 15-12 (1:01)
Sanne Keizer/Madelein Meppelink Netherlands (12) def. Victoria Bieneck/Isabel Schneider Germany (21, Q3) 21-15, 28-26 (0:55)
Round 2
Sanne Keizer/Madelein Meppelink Netherlands (12) def. Niina Ahtiainen/Riikka Lehtonen Finland (28, Q8) 13-21, 21-18, 15-8 (0:46)
Pool F
Round 1
Joana Heidrich/Anouk Verge-Depre Switzerland (6) def. Michaela Kubickova/Michala Kvapilova Czech Republic (27, Q6) 21-11, 15-21, 15-6 (0:53)
Barbora Hermannova/Marketa Slukova Czech Republic (11) def. Kim Behrens/Sandra Ittlinger Germany (22) 12-21, 24-22, 15-12 (1:01)
Round 2
Barbora Hermannova/Marketa Slukova Czech Republic (11) def. Joana Heidrich/Anouk Verge-Depre Switzerland (6) 19-21, 21-12, 17-15 (0:57)
Pool G
Round 1
Svetlana Kholomina/Nadezda Makroguzova Russia (7) def. Ksenia Dabizha/Daria Rudykh Russia (26) 21-19, 15-21, 15-12 (0:58)
Miki Ishii/Megumi Murakami Japan (23) def. Margareta Kozuch/Cinja Tillmann Germany (10) 21-17, 10-21, 18-16 (1:04)
Round 2
Svetlana Kholomina/Nadezda Makroguzova Russia (7) def. Miki Ishii/Megumi Murakami Japan (23) 21-15, 21-13 (0:39)
Pool H
Round 1
Marleen Van Iersel/Pleun Ypma Netherlands (25, Q5) def. Zaira Orellana/Martha Revuelta Mexico (8) 21-16, 21-17 (0:43)
Lidiannis Echeverria/Yanisleidis Sanchez Cuba (24, Q4) def. Fan Wang/Xinyi Xia China (9) 21-16, 21-12 (0:37)
Round 2
Marleen Van Iersel/Pleun Ypma Netherlands (25, Q5) def. Lidiannis Echeverria/Yanisleidis Sanchez Cuba (24, Q4) 21-14, 23-21 (0:42)

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