Mailbag: Who are the top five blockers and defenders in the world? More fan questions
SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter29 Huhti 2020

Mailbag: Who are the top five blockers and defenders in the world? More fan questions

Typically, I’d be a bit neurotic by now. Short on sleep. Distracted. Mind ping-ponging back and forth, looking at the draw, then looking again – did it change did it change?

This, of course, is not the typical pre-AVP Huntington Beach qualifier eve. This is just a Wednesday like any other in the off-season: no events on the foreseeable horizon. Nothing specific to train for.

Sleep comes easy.

In such a strangely uncertain sports world, Tri and I opened up SANDCAST: Beach volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, to fan questions, and we did our best to answer, or at least opine, on them. A few I’ve written our responses to. Because nobody wants to read 3,000 words of me answering questions, you can find our answers to the rest on our episode.

Question one: Who are some younger players to watch out for (not obvious ones like Eric Beranek, etc.) Where do you think the season will begin? Where have you been training? (and we know you have, wink)

This is always such a difficult list for the men, because there really aren’t many youngsters who would willingly commit to beach over indoor. Kawika Shoji discussed that very thing last week on SANDCAST, and the list of reasons is nearly endless, with financial security being the most obvious. However, there are a handful. Miles Partain is the obvious candidate here. At just 18 years old and still in high school, he already has a fifth-place AVP finish to his name, at AVP Chicago with Paul Lotman. He made the final three AVP main draws of the season – Manhattan, Chicago, Hawai’i – and trained the entire off-season under coach Tyler Hildebrand and our top national teams. He’s a can’t-miss up-and-comer.

The women, meanwhile, are nearly endless. Peruse the top two courts at any of the top 15 or so college programs and you have AVP main draw talents. The names I’ll point you to, however, are these: Savvy Simo and Abby Van Winkle (UCLA), Alaina Chacon and Molly McBain (Florida State), Haley Harward (USC), Brook Bauer and Deahna Kraft (Pepperdine), Julia Scoles and Morgan Martin (Hawai’i), Delaynie Maple and Megan Kraft (committed to USC), Torrey Van Winden (Cal Poly), Reka Orsi Toth and Iya Lindahl (LMU), Sunniva Helland-Hansen and Carly Perales (Stetson), Dani Alvarez (TCU), Kristen Nuss and Claire Coppola (LSU), Mima Mirkovic (Cal).

Of the bunch, my breakout selection would be Simo, UCLA’s dynamic court one defender and unquestioned leader of the team I would have bet a fair amount of American dollars to win the National Championship. She has all the potential to become this year’s version of a Sarah Sponcil, who made the finals in her first AVP event, or Zana Muno, another Bruin who made an AVP semifinal in her rookie season.

Question two: Should the AVP start a Dino Division for players post 50 who still want to compete 3-4 times per year? Golf has masters, AVP has dino?

I thought this question was hysterical in the best of ways. Idealistically, this sounds great. Who wouldn’t want to watch Tim Hovland yap with Sinjin Smith, while the always-quiet Mike Dodd digs balls and Randy Stoklos yells about how he was the first person to ever hand set? I’m game. But it is, let’s all be honest here, a bit quixotic. The AVP does well enough to put on eight events for the best, most explosive players in the world, and when compared to the major sports, there’s a niche market at best.

Would there really be a market for old men with big mouths and small verticals?

The dino is such a great event because it’s the only one – and it’s given a shot of life with younger players such as Tayor Crabb to help carry their older counterparts. It’s fun, competitive, and a little heartwarming.

Golf’s Champions Tour works because guys like Tom Watson and Fred Couples can still compete at close to the same level they could when they were in their primes. There’s no impact on their bodies, and the level of play is still astonishingly high. Watson, for example, finished second at The Open Championship in 2009, losing in a four-hole playoff, 26 years after his most recent major win, when he was 60 years old.

I have no doubt that Sinjin can still ball. But could he get out there with Stoklos and take Jake Gibb and Crabb to three sets in the finals of the Manhattan Beach Open? Doubtful.

I think p1440 nailed an older-aged event when they hosted a four-on-four match featuring two legends and two current pros on either team. There’s certainly a market and space for something whimsical like that to happen a few times per year.

Until then, keep the Dino the great, annual event that it is.

Question 3: Will there be a new BVB book (got my copy signed by Tri in Hamburg)?

Yes. Maybe. I can’t tell you for sure. But all I can say is that there could, potentially, be a possibility of an upcoming beach volleyball book to be released in early summer.

Question 4: Rate your top 5 male defenders/blockers internationally.

This was such a fun one to discuss. Everybody keeps talking about how much parity there is on the world tour, and with good reason. Attempting to nail down the top five defenders is, to me, like trying to rank my favorite golf courses in Myrtle Beach – they’re all the best courses.

The top five blockers came a little easier. We decided on:

  1. Anders Mol, Norway
  2. Oleg Stoyanovskiy, Russia
  3. Phil Dalhausser, United States
  4. Alison Cerutti, Brazil
  5. Evandro Goncalves, Brazil

Honorable mentions included: Paolo Nicolai, Italy; Michal Bryl, Poland; Jake Gibb, United States; Tri Bourne, United States; Julius Thole, Germany.

The defenders weren’t so clear-cut. It’s impossible to rank them because they’re all playing behind blockers of varying sizes and abilities. But we wound up pinning it down to:

  1. Taylor Crabb, United States (we are prepared to duke it out from six feet away with those who disagree)
  2. Christian Sorum, Norway
  3. Clemens Wickler, Germany
  4. Viacheslav Krasilnikov, Russia
  5. Grzegorz Fijalek, Poland

Honorable mentions included: Alvaro Filho, Brazil; Bruno Schmidt, Brazil; Adrian Carambula, Italy; Nick Lucena, United States; Daniele Lupo, Italy.

Jaksot(500)

John Mayer, Billy Allen: Navigating the Complexities of Coaching College Volleyball

John Mayer, Billy Allen: Navigating the Complexities of Coaching College Volleyball

This episode of SANDCAST features John Mayer and Billy Allen, hosts of the Coach Your Brains Out podcast as well as coaches in NCAA Beach Volleyball. Mayer is the head coach at LMU, leading the Lions to six straight WCC titles and a berth in the National Championship. Allen is an assistant at Stanford, helping the Cardinal to a single season wins record and an MPSF Championship. With the NCAA season over, they chat about: - How to navigate the art of playing time vs. winning at all costs (hint: nobody knows) - Billy Allen's recent entertaining run through AVP Huntington Beach with Taylor Crabb - John Mayer reflecting on the most successful season to date with LMU - Travis Mewhirter's first season at Florida State and what he learned SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

14 Touko 1h 23min

TCU Makes History; AVP League Comes Down to The Wire; April's New Coaching Role

TCU Makes History; AVP League Comes Down to The Wire; April's New Coaching Role

Welcome back to another solo episode of SANDCAST, where Travis Mewhirter breaks down all the happenings in the world of beach volleyball. This week, Mewhirter chats: - TCU's historic NCAA Championship win in Gulf Shores, the first in program history and a long time coming - This week's AVP tournament in Huntington Beach, which will decide the final two spots per gender in the 2025 AVP League - Volleyball World's proposed rules changes, including, yes, no doubles. Yikes - April Ross' new role with USA Volleyball, and why it's her dream job SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

7 Touko 31min

NCAA Championship Preview: Can The East FINALLY Beat The West? | SANDCAST U

NCAA Championship Preview: Can The East FINALLY Beat The West? | SANDCAST U

Welcome back to SANDCAST U, where Madison Fitzpatrick breaks down all things NCAA Beach Volleyball. This is an AWESOME edition, where Madison is literally on the sand of Gulf Shores, shooting our preview episode of this weekend's NCAA Championships. She chats about: - Is this finally the time TCU takes home the first non-West Coast title in NCAA history? - Why she thinks Stanford is the hottest team in the country at just the right time - Will UCLA alas get back on top after watching rival USC win four straight? - Can USC manage to make it an absurd FIVE STRAIGHT NCAA Championships?! That, and more. SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

1 Touko 6min

NCAA Champs Are Here! AVP League Coming Down to the Wire; The Beach Pro Lucky Loser Tour

NCAA Champs Are Here! AVP League Coming Down to the Wire; The Beach Pro Lucky Loser Tour

Welcome back to another solo episode of SANDCAST, where Travis Mewhirter recaps a wild weekend, and previews a hectic one to come, with the NCAA Championships descending upon Gulf Shores again. Meanwhile, the AVP League had two more tickets punched, and the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour is hereby renamed the Lucky Loser Tour.  Mewhirter chats about: - How Kristen Nuss simply wills gold medals into existence sometimes - James Shaw and Chaim Schalk demolishing folks to clinch their AVP League bid - The wild run of Lexy Denaburg and Julia Scoles into the AVP League - How the new Elite16 format can be changed for the better instead of being the Lucky Loser Tour And, per usual, more SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

30 Huhti 35min

NCAA Beach Playoff Preview: Will Postseason Follow Craziest Regular Season Ever? SANDCAST U

NCAA Beach Playoff Preview: Will Postseason Follow Craziest Regular Season Ever? SANDCAST U

Welcome back to SANDCAST U, where Madison Fitzpatrick talks all things NCAA Beach Volleyball. In this episode, she chats about the end of the regular season, which she thinks is the wildest NCAA Beach Volleyball regular season she's ever seen. She chats about the regular season, and previews the upcoming: - MPSF Conference Tournament, which includes Cal, Stanford, USC, UCLA, and more - Why Florida State, Texas and LSU are in an absolute brawl in the CCSA, where the 'Noles traditionally reign supreme - How LMU can -- and is expected to -- continue dominating the WCC SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

24 Huhti 10min

Silila Tucker: The Man Linking The Beach Volleyball Community Nationwide

Silila Tucker: The Man Linking The Beach Volleyball Community Nationwide

This episode of SANDCAST features Silila Tucker, a longtime professional on the AVP Tour who chats with Tri Bourne about the development of yet another new beach volleyball league called the Community Circuit, and it's one you can certainly get behind. Fun development from Lila announced on this one, as well as chats about: - How the 15-15-15 style of the AVP League matches changes things - How to develop mental toughness in beach volleyball - Why Lila is obsessed with golf as a tool for mental toughness training - What makes Phil Dalhausser a legend of the game, beyond his obvious accolades SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, sandcastpod-20. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

23 Huhti 1h 2min

Recapping A Wild Weekend In Beach Volleyball: AVP Qualifiers, Saquarema Successes, NCAA Beach

Recapping A Wild Weekend In Beach Volleyball: AVP Qualifiers, Saquarema Successes, NCAA Beach

Welcome back to another SOLO EPISODE of SANDCAST, where Travis Mewhirter provides a comprehensive overview of a wild weekend in the world of beach volleyball, breaking down the AVP League qualifier, the Saquarema Elite16, and the Cal Poly Center of Effort Challenge. Namely, he chats: - The surprise success of Corinne Quiggle and Megan Rice - The more surprising success of Hagen Smith and Logan Webber - The puzzling decision of the AVP not to give Kelly Cheng an injury sub for Sara Hughes, so she'll have to qualify via qualifiers - Anders Mol and Christian Sorum returning to the Beach Pro Tour in style And a bit more! SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCASTVB. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

16 Huhti 30min

James Shaw and Molly Shaw: Living The American Volleyball Dream

James Shaw and Molly Shaw: Living The American Volleyball Dream

This episode of SANDCAST features James Shaw and Molly Shaw, the newest power couple in the world of beach volleyball, who just descended upon the Quintana Roo Elite16 and both came away with semifinal finishes. James and his new partner, Chaim Schalk, walked away with bronze, while Molly and her new partner, Kelly Cheng, took fourth in Molly's first Elite16. With Tri Bourne hosting, they chat about: - How each partnership came to be - Why James opted to play one final indoor season in Germany before returning full-time to the beach - How Molly handled the nerves of both playing with a World Champion in Cheng and also her first Elite16 (hint: well) - What it's like being a married couple traveling the beach volleyball world And so much more.  SHOOTS! *** WE'VE GOT NEW MERCH! Check it out here!! Get 20 PERCENT off all Wilson products with our code, SANDCASTVB. https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Get 10 PERCENT OFF VBTV using our discount code, SANDCAST10 Want to get better at beach volleyball? Use our discount code, SANDCAST, and get 10 percent off all Better at Beach products!  We are FIRED UP to announce that we've signed on for another year with Athletic Greens! Get a FREE year's supply of Vitamin D by purchasing with that link.  If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/

9 Huhti 1h 15min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

aikalisa
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
tervo-halme
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
politiikan-puskaradio
otetaan-yhdet
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
rss-kuka-mina-olen
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
rss-podme-livebox
aihe
the-ulkopolitist
rss-tasta-on-kyse-ivan-puopolo-verkkouutiset
rikosmyytit
rss-hyvaa-huomenta-bryssel
politbyroo
radio-antro
eevan-politiikkapodi-totuuksia-suomesta
rss-pykalien-takaa
rss-kaikki-uusiksi