Only Early Upsets Are Over Tournament Draw

There weren’t any first- or second-round upsets in the Ocean Pacific U.S. Open, the season’s first grand slam event on the Evian Women’s Professional Volleyball Assn. tour, Friday at the Huntington Beach Pier.

But some players were miffed about the draw for the double-elimination tournament.

That’s because one bracket features second-seeded Karolyn Kirby and Nancy Reno, and the WPVA’s second all-time leading money winner, Liz Masakayan, and her partner, four-time All-American Elaine Youngs. Also in that bracket are the 1996 Atlanta Olympics bronze medalists, Australia’s Natalie Cook and Kerri Pottharst, and Germany’s Maike Friedrichsen and Danja Musch, ranked eighth on the international tour.

“Someone screwed up,” Reno said. “I know they use a points system, but it’s not a well-thought out policy. We would have been better off seeded third, fourth or fifth.”

Instead, Kirby and Reno, who advanced with a 15-1 victory over Deanna Johnson and Corey Williams, will play Masakayan and Youngs in an 11 a.m. third-round match today. Masakayan and Youngs squeaked past Jackie Campbell and Charlotte Roach, 18-16, in a second-round match.

UCLA alums Masakayan and Youngs lost to Kirby and Reno in the semifinals at the June 15 Evian Open in Irving, Texas. but still finished third in only their first tournament together.

Other top teams advancing Friday included top-seeded Lisa Arce and Holly McPeak of Manhattan Beach, and third-seeded and defending U.S. Open champs Manhattan Beach’s Barbra Fontana and Pacific Palisades’ Linda Hanley.

Play resumes at 9 a.m. today and continues Sunday at 8 a.m. The tournament concludes Sunday with 11:30 a.m. semifinals and a 3 p.m. final. Admission is free.