Eavesdropping

Who: Players with the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals. You can see 48 of them spike, dive, chuck, dink and joust at the Miller Lite U.S. Championships from Friday to Sunday (9 a.m. to 6 p.m.) on the beach at Hermosa Beach Pier. Admission is free.

Why: Because volleyball is the official sport of summer.

Today’s cast: Canyon Cemen, 25; Ian Clark, 26; Kevin Martin, 28; Matt Unger, 27.

Where: Duh! Where the girls are. On this day, at Santa Monica State Beach.

Annual pay in 1996, not including endorsements: The AVP’s top earner is Karch Kiraly, $492,081; Kent Steffes earns $387,581; Adam Johnson, $271,850; Cemen, $66,395; Clark, $46,605; Martin, $38,955.

Hours on the beach per week: 40; hey, it’s a job.

Average number of sunglasses owned: 20 per player. Favorites are Oakley, Killer Loop, Arnette and Dragon.

How many pairs of shorts? About 50. Hippest are board shorts.

Number of volleyballs worn out per player per year: 24.

Estimated amount of suntan lotion used by the 64 guys on the six-month tour: 15,360 12-ounce bottles.

Estimated cans of beer guzzled: 30,000.

Number of times the ball goes over the net during a game: About 185 (we counted).

Number of times a player hits the ball during a game: about 90.

Gallons of water each player drinks at a tournament: eight over a three-day tournament of five to seven games.

Average temp they play in: 85 degrees, but on the court, “the temp feels like 120,” Unger says.

Most frequent boo-boos: torn shoulder tendons (ouch!) and dislocated fingers (double ouch!!).

The best way to his heart: Cook him Italian. “We love chicken and pasta because of the carbos,” Cemen says.

The Dating Game: Some players have up to 10 girlfriends--a “bullpen” they date on “rotation” by category:

* “Starters are the best babes,” Martin says. “They’re not only good-looking, but they also know how to ‘hang’ with the guys and not be bimbos.”

* And, “Closers are secret chicks because they could be involved with another guy. So you make it a Blockbuster night with videos and order Chinese,” Martin says.

Volleyspeak:

Chuck: A ball that is pushed or thrown.

Coverage: Backing up a partner’s hit.

Dink: Ball played just over the net.

Facial: A spike to the face. Also called a six-pack because if you give a facial, you gotta buy the beer.

Flosser: A woman wearing a thong.

Hammer: A.k.a., a spike, which is a hard hit downward.

Hosedown: To crush the opposition.

Jed: A block.

Joust: A battle above net between hitter and blocker.

Nectar: A beautiful girl.

Nectar juice: Men’s cologne.

Scoop: A ball saved with any part of the body.

Shoot: Two-handed set shot used as a dink.

Spade: An ace serve.

Spray: Lustful look from a nectar.

Talent: A babe, as in “Check out the talent.”

Volley dolly: A groupie.

What do you want to do when you grow up? Says Clark: “Who wants to grow up?”