Local Star Finally Makes Good

As a teenager, Eric Fonoimoana used to be part of the set-up crew at the Manhattan Beach Open, making sure the nets were tight and the sidelines were straight before the tournament began.

It was a good summer job for a kid who lived three blocks from the Manhattan Beach pier. And he always had a sweet seat to watch legends Mike Dodd and Tim Hovland win year after year the tournament dubbed the “Wimbledon of the sand” by beach volleyball fans.

But Fonoimoana never really envisioned winning one himself, even after a stellar career at Mira Costa High and UC Santa Barbara.

Making matters worse: In 11 seasons on the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals tour, Fonoimoana had never won his hometown tournament.

He won at Hermosa Beach. At Huntington. Heck, he even won a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics with Dain Blanton.

It all changed Sunday.

Fonoimoana and Dax Holdren defeated Mike Whitmarsh and Canyon Ceman, 21-15, 21-18, before an estimated crowd of 6,000 at Manhattan Beach.

Fonoimoana, now 33, compared it to winning the gold medal.

“This one is one I will cherish for the rest of my life as well,” Fonoimoana said. “Real close to the gold medal. It hits home. I would say my career wouldn’t be complete without wining here.”

Like past winners, Fonoimoana and Holdren will have their names engraved on a bronze plaque shaped like a volleyball on the pier.

“I’ll be able to show it to my kids [someday],” said Fonoimoana.

The match, the first AVP event televised live on NBC since 1997, was delayed almost 30 minutes because the preceding NASCAR race on NBC ran later than expected.

But Fonoimoana and Holdren came out strong on the way to a 15-8 lead. Fonoimoana had seven kills and no errors in nine first-game attempts.

Whitmarsh, one of the top blockers on the beach, was frustrated after getting only one block in the first game.

“They were on fire.... It was like I wasn’t even up there blocking,” Whitmarsh said. “We’re not going to win if I’m not blocking balls.”

Fonoimoana and Holdren held onto a slim 17-16 edge to gain the sweep and turn the tide on a recent inability to finish strong.

“Maybe it’s our turn to win some of these tight games,” Holdren said.

Whitmarsh and Ceman were good enough to defeat Karch Kiraly and Brent Doble in the semifinals, 21-14, 17-21, 15-13.

Kiraly and Doble couldn’t keep a 9-8 lead in the third game and were thrown off balance by a late switch in strategy.

“They served Brent a couple balls and that surprised us a little because I was getting every serve,” Kiraly said. “From that point on, we were down one or two points.”

Kiraly and Doble lost to Whitmarsh and Ceman by the same third-game score for the third time this season.

The other two losses were in semifinal matches at Huntington Beach and Belmar, N.J.

“It’d be nice not to go to a third game against that team,” Kiraly said. “I need to start playing better in the first game, and I’m not doing it.”

Fonoimoana and Holdren swept Eduardo Bacil and Frederico Souza in the other semifinal, 21-17, 21-18.