BEACH VOLLEYBALL MANHATTAN OPEN : Smith-Stoklos Beaten Again by Ayakatubby-Timmons Duo

The Off Shore Manhattan Beach Open is only Scott Ayakatubby and Steve Timmons’ second tournament together. And the duo has proved to be a thorn for the top-ranked pro beach volleyball team of Sinjin Smith and Randy Stoklos.

For the second consecutive week, Ayakatubby and Timmons upset No. 1-seeded Smith-Stoklos and sent them to the losers’ bracket. On Saturday, eighth-seeded Ayakatubby and Timmons managed to pull out a 15-13 victory after trailing 14-8 in the quarterfinal match on center court.

The vocal crowd was clearly cheering for Ayakatubby, a Manhattan Beach native.

“I’d have to say we’re not playing our best ball for sure, but I’d also have to say they play great against us,” said Smith, the winningest player in the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals. “They came up with some great serves.”

Ayakatubby-Timmons, who went on to beat Mike Dodd and Ricci Luyties, 15-13, in the semifinals, will face third-seeded Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes in the finals of the winners’ bracket today at 11 a.m.

Kiraly and Steffes beat Rudy Dvorak and Craig Moothard, 15-1, in the quarterfinals, and 10th-seeded Roger Clark and Eric Wurts, 15-9, in the semifinals. Clark-Wurts upset second-seeded Tim Hovland and Brent Frohoff, 15-10, in the quarterfinals.