No Medals at Stake, but Youngs Still Wins

Misty May is the local player who is headed for the Olympics next month, but Elaine Youngs is the hottest player on the women’s pro volleyball tour. And it doesn’t seem to matter with whom she plays.

Youngs, who graduated from El Toro High and lives in Escondido, has won three of the last four tournaments in which she has played, including last weekend’s Beach Volleyball America event at Long Beach. There, she teamed with Nancy Reno to win their first title, and they will play this weekend in San Diego in what figures to be the final event of Reno’s career.

Youngs teamed with Reno after breaking up a three-plus-season partnership with Liz Masakayan, a pairing that resulted in nine tournament championships. They won two of the final three FIVB events this season and just missed qualifying for the Olympics.

After narrowly being edged for the final berth in the U.S. Olympic qualification points race by May--from Newport Harbor High and Long Beach State--and Holly McPeak, the fiercely competitive Youngs said she split amicably with her long-time partner.

“Liz and I have been together so long and after an up-and-down season, we decided to change it up a little,” Youngs said. “She’s been great to play with and it was a great parting. There are no hard feelings.”

VOLLEYBALL THIS WEEK

The BVA has its season-ending event--and the last tuneup before the Sydney Olympics--in San Diego this weekend. Although Annett Davis and Jenny Johnson Jordan, the top-ranked U.S. team heading to the Olympics, are scheduled to play, May and McPeak will sit out the event.

May is nursing a stomach muscle injury and said she will not play until the Sydney games. McPeak played with Carrie Busch last weekend.

The Assn. of Volleyball Professionals men’s tour is in Manhattan Beach this weekend in another final Olympic tuneup.

U.S. Olympians Dain Blanton, a former Laguna Beach High standout, and Eric Fonoimoana are entered along with the world’s top-ranked team and Olympic gold-medal favorites, Brazil’s Jose Loiola and Emanuel Rego, who defeated Blanton and Fonoimoana last weekend in the final of the U.S. Open at Seal Beach, 19-17.

The top-ranked U.S. team on the international tour--Kevin Wong and Rob Heidger--will not play in Manhattan Beach but will represent the U.S. in Sydney.

SURF SHORTS

Hawaii’s Sunny Garcia remained atop the Assn. of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour rankings with a fifth-place finish in Lacanau, France last weekend. Rob Machado won the event.

Australians Luke Egan and Michael Campbell are in second and third behind Garcia. San Clemente’s Cory Lopez is ranked fourth, and his brother Shea, who finished third last weekend, is ranked 14th. San Clemente’s Shane Beschen is ranked 19th and Laguna Beach’s Pat O’Connell 37th.

Both the men’s and women’s WCT are in Hossegor, France this weekend, before moving on to Anglet, France and Mundaka, Spain for another event Aug. 30-Sept. 9.

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