Volleyball: Hughes, Claes on top of the world

Costa Mesa resident Sara Hughes along with USC teammate and partner Kelly Claes cruised to victory at the World University Beach Volleyball Championships, completed Sunday in Parnu, Estonia.

Hughes and Claes, who as juniors helped USC claim the inaugural NCAA beach volleyball title last spring, defeated fellow Americans McKenna and Madison Witt, 21-16, 21-13, in a 27-minute final on Sunday to cap a dominant 7-0 run through the tournament.

Hughes and Claes, the No. 2 seeds, did not lose a set in the tournament, trouncing opponents by an average game score of 21-13.

Hughes and Claes, who finished second at the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals San Francisco Open and were third in the AVP New York City Open in their only two AVP appearances this summer, are clearly establishing themselves as the next great American tandem.

Before beating the No. 28-seeded Witt sisters in the final, Hughes and Claes dispatched No. 14-seeded Swedish sisters Kristina and Susanna Thurin, 21-17, 21-10, in Saturday’s semifinals.

Also Saturday, Hughes and Claes trounced No. 13-seeded Anja Dorfler and Julia Radle of Austria, 21-10, 21-12, in 26 minutes.

In their only match on Friday, the Americans handled the No. 17-seeded French tandem of Alexia Richard and Lezana Placette, 21-11, 21-9.

Hughes and Claes encountered their most competitive matches in pool play, including a 21-15, 21-17 victory over a No. 31-seeded Swiss tandem, and a 21-18, 21-10 triumph over the No. 15 seeds from Germany. Those two matches took 34 and 32 minutes, respectively, the only times an opponent lasted beyond 30 minutes.

Hughes and Claes, who have declined to accept $27,000 in prize money won in their AVP tournaments this season, will miss the season-ending AVP Chicago Open on Sept. 1-4, as they will be attending classes at USC and forbidden by college eligibility rules to play in outside competition.

— Barry Faulkner

— Barry Faulkner