Jennings, Fuerbringer Take Title at Hermosa

It was so hot on the sand at Hermosa Beach on Saturday that Casey Jennings’ toenails began to fall off by the end of the men’s final of the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals Hermosa Beach Open.

Jennings’ partner, Matt Fuerbringer, was cramping so much after playing through the loser’s bracket that he asked for an IV between the semifinals and the final.

The pair persevered for a 19-21, 21-16, 15-13 victory over Dax Holdren and Jeff Nygaard to win their second title of the season, then afterward breathed a sigh of relief.

“We were both hurting, you know,” Jennings said. “It means so much more to battle through like that for sure. It shows you how far you really can go when your brain and body are saying stop, stop, stop. You realize that you can keep going more than your body and mind will tell you.”

Complicating matters was the deep sand at Hermosa Beach, among the deepest on tour, which makes maneuverability more difficult. Still, Jennings and Fuerbringer won four matches Saturday and were 3-1 on Friday.

They were sent to the loser’s bracket with a third-round loss to Sean Rosenthal and Larry Witt, which meant extra matches. Of their seven matches, five went three games and four lasted longer than an hour. On Saturday, they played matches that lasted 78, 40, 78 and 68 minutes.

They got revenge on Rosenthal and Witt in a semifinal that was among the best matches on tour this season, but the 78-minute, 21-18, 25-27, 15-12 victory took its toll. Jennings and Fuerbringer had only a half-hour to recover for the final, which was broadcast live on Channel 4.

“We were tired, we were hurting and we started off not playing that well,” Fuerbringer said. “We did it today when maybe we shouldn’t have. The chips were down and we still did it and that means a lot to me.”

Nygaard and Holdren, playing their fifth final in eight tournaments this season, also had to come through the loser’s bracket and were dealing with fatigue. They played one fewer match than Fuerbringer and Jennings Friday, but needed four matches Saturday to reach the final.

Their Saturday matches in grueling conditions lasted 45, 40, 70 and 68 minutes, including a 21-18, 12-21, 15-13 semifinal victory over top-seeded Stein Metzger and Jake Gibb.

But Nygaard had a poor performance in the final, making 12 hitting errors, and that allowed Fuerbringer and Jennings to stay in the match.

“You can only make so many errors and stick in it,” Holdren said. “You’re playing against a blocker who’s cramping and barely getting over the net and we’re hitting balls out of bounds and getting stuffed.

“If we side out at a decent clip against that team, then we probably win pretty easily, but we didn’t do it.”

In women’s play, Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh remain on a collision course for a finals matchup with their rivals Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder. Both teams, the only two with AVP victories this season, were 2-0 Saturday and advanced to today’s semifinals.

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Today’s matches

What: Hermosa Beach Open.

Where: Hermosa Beach Pier.

When: Today. Consolation matches at 10 a.m. -- Holly McPeak and Jennifer Kessy vs. Leanne McSorley and Carrie Busch; Tyra Turner and Makare Wilson vs. Brooke Niles and Sarah Straton. Semifinals at 11:30 a.m. -- Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh vs. winner of McSorley-Busch/McPeak-Kessy; Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder vs. winner of Turner-Wilson/Niles-Straton. Final at 1:30 p.m.

TV: Semifinals live on Outdoor Life Network; final live on Channel 4.