Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan, the No. 1 team in the world with an even higher ceiling
SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter20 Juni 2018

Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan, the No. 1 team in the world with an even higher ceiling

The pause, so slight, so innocuous, but present nonetheless, said more than words could. And, to be fair, Melissa Humana-Paredes did put a nice verbal spin on her and Sarah Pavan’s quarterfinal loss against Brooke Sweat and Summer Ross in Fort Lauderdale earlier in the year.

She called it thrilling.

“But…” and then came the pause, ever so brief, just enough to know that a fifth place for Canada’s top team, even in an FIVB Major, even in the first big event of the year, is nowhere near this team’s expectation. And justifiably so.

In their previous six international tournaments, their worst finish had been fourth, in a run that included a silver in Poland, bronze in one of the top events of the year in Gstaad, and a gold in Porec.

“I can tell you guys are cringing about it,” Tri Bourne said on SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter.

“We don’t want people to think ‘Oh, fifth, terrible,’” Pavan said. “Like, for all intents and purposes, it is a good finish but our goal is to be in the semifinals or on the podium every tournament, because that means we are playing well. Fifth is not bad, but we have high expectations.”

It hasn’t taken long to build them. This is just the second year of the Pavan-Humana-Paredes partnership, and in that short time they have already raced to the top of the FIVB rankings and finished on a podium in six different countries, three of those podiums resulting in medals of the gold variety.

“We kind of became addicted and wanted it to happen all the time,” Pavan said. “Even though we are in a second year and every team is elevating their level, we still have been able to hold onto that spot. And we still have so many things we want to get better at and that we’re working on and we know that we can still get so much better so we’re excited about that. The first year was about laying the foundation, now it’s time to find our identity as a team.”

As it goes in a search for identity, and switching sides, and switching partners, there are inevitable stumbles along the way. And as it goes with exceptional, world-class athletes, sometimes those stumbles, such as a fifth place in one of the biggest events of the year, are to most accomplishments.

And, of course, sometimes those stumbles may seem more obvious, such as their upset at the hands of Delaney Knudsen and Jessica Sykora in the AVP New York qualifier a week ago.

“We’re having some ebbs and flows,” Pavan said, as Humana-Paredes laughed in the background. “Some ups and downs, which I think is normal in the second year of a partnership. We are having moments where we are playing great and amazing and we are having moments where we finished the game wondering ‘What the heck just happened? What were we doing?’

“Obviously, we always want to win. We all do. But I’m glad it’s happening now because we do have time to work out those kinks and have those hard conversations because we’re always learning and always looking at the opportunities in front of us. So yeah, it’s been a little up and down but heading into this next phase of the season, we’re looking to get our feet under us and make some big strides.”

Those strides will, however, be taking place exclusively on the FIVB, and no longer on the AVP. According to Pavan, due to a new rule instated by the USAV, unless the AVP, or any domestic tour, pays a fee to the USAV for each event featuring international players, said international players will not be permitted to play on the AVP Tour.

“This has never been a rule before,” Pavan confirmed. “So yeah, Mel and I talked about it and if we were in the AVP’s position, we would find it hard to reason paying that much money too.”

Twelve hours prior to New York, Pavan and Humana-Paredes didn’t know if they were even allowed to play. So they missed their initial flight from Canada to New York because they weren’t sure. Then they moved it back and missed their next for the same reason.

Then they got the OK from the AVP. They were good to go.

So they woke up at 3 a.m., jumped on a plane at 6, landed at 8, rolled into Manhattan at 9, snuck in a quick nap, grabbed some oatmeal, jumped onto the court and attempted to play the world-class volleyball they were accustomed and expected to play.

“We’re not going to make excuses,” Humana-Paredes said. “Those qualifiers are deadly. They are crazy. We had three games within a span of three or four hours, which I haven’t done since youth. It was definitely a challenge, both physically and mentally.”

Indeed. Physically, they – somewhat hilariously – may have mixed up creatine and electrolytes. Mentally, they were playing a brutal qualifier with no sleep, little food, no warm ups – and with a freeze rule Humana-Paredes had never experienced before.

And though the loss is fresh, and it is not difficult to see the disappointment, they cannot help but laugh a bit at the mania of it all, from the missed flights to the quick nap to the accidental nutritional mishap.

“It was definitely not our finest,” Humana-Paredes said. “It was really unfortunate because it was my first AVP, you’re on Pier 25, you can see the Freedom Tower in the background – gorgeous, it’s just beautiful. You wanted to soak it all in and get the whole AVP experience. We were bummed we couldn’t get to do all of that.”

They’re bummed with fifths. They’re bummed they can no longer play on the AVP.

But they’re infectiously excited about what the future has in store for their nascent yet impressively successful partnership. They’re excited about Olympic qualification, which begins as early as this fall. They’re excited about a three-week FIVB trip beginning next week in Poland. They’re excited for events in Vienna and Gstaad and Germany.

"We're still learning so much," Humana-Paredes said. "That's comforting for us and exciting for us because we have so much more that we need to improve on and that we can improve on and I think our potential -- it seems limitless right now."

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SANDCAST U: Cal Did What?! UCLA's Powerhouse Court 1; TCU Balling

SANDCAST U: Cal Did What?! UCLA's Powerhouse Court 1; TCU Balling

Welcome back to SANDCAST U, Madison Fitzpatrick's breakdown of all things NCAA Beach Volleyball. On this episode, she chats about: - The stunners that Cal's beach volleyball team pulled off -- an upset over USC? Come again? - UCLA's tour de force early in the 2025 NCAA Beach season, with headliners in Sally Perez and Maggie Boys - USC going 3-1, with a puzzling loss to Cal, extending the parity in the NCAA, while Zoe Henson and Maddie White are playing exceptional, as is Ashley Pater - Stanford dropping to USC and UCLA -- but beating Cal, with help from Taylor Wilson and Charlotta Bell And a whole lot 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 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/

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Audrey Koenig: The Indoor Player of the Year Who Chose Beach

Audrey Koenig: The Indoor Player of the Year Who Chose Beach

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12 Mars 53min

Toni Rodriguez: An All-Time High Leading to An All-Time New Beginning

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5 Mars 1h 2min

SANDCAST U | Madness In Hawaii: LMU's Historic Start; UCLA Dominates; USC Up And Down

SANDCAST U | Madness In Hawaii: LMU's Historic Start; UCLA Dominates; USC Up And Down

Welcome back to SANDCAST U, where Madison Fitzpatrick breaks down all things NCAA Beach Volleyball. On this week's episode, Madison goes through the madness in Hawaii, where it was bedlam: USC, UCLA, Stanford, ASU, LMU, Hawaii, and TCU all beating each other up. Nobody came unscathed -- and it was AWESOME! 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 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/

27 Feb 6min

Trevor Crabb: The Legacy-Chasing Chapter of A Beach Volleyball Career Begins

Trevor Crabb: The Legacy-Chasing Chapter of A Beach Volleyball Career Begins

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26 Feb 52min

John Mayer, Billy Allen: NCAA Coaching Our Brains Out

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19 Feb 1h 21min

SANDCAST U: Previewing the 2025 NCAA Beach Volleyball Season | Madison Fitzpatrick

SANDCAST U: Previewing the 2025 NCAA Beach Volleyball Season | Madison Fitzpatrick

Welcome to the debut of SANDCAST U! Our lovely new host, Madison Fitzpatrick, a former star beach volleyball player for Florida State turned next big media star in volleyball, provides a comprehensive preview of the upcoming 2025 NCAA Collegiate Beach Volleyball season. The episode covers key teams, players to watch, and the overall landscape of collegiate beach volleyball, highlighting the strengths and challenges of various programs. With insights into powerhouse teams like USC and UCLA, as well as dark horses like TCU, the episode sets the stage for an exciting season ahead. Let us know what y'all think!  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 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/

17 Feb 12min

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This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features Troy Field, one of our most popular recurring guests and one of the most popular players in all of beach volleyball. Troy has had one helluva journey, and now that he will be partnering with Theo Brunner, he has played with a who’s who of elite talent in USA Volleyball. Now with Brunner, Field has a tall task ahead of him: qualifying for the AVP League. Troy and Tri Bourne chat about all of that, as well as: How Troy and Theo came to be partners Their thoughts on the AVP League, and why growing pains were inevitable Tri’s refreshed view on the sport of beach volleyball as a whole The importance of the Contender Series, and other valuable information about what happens to players who do not make the AVP League And, as always, a whole lot 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 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/

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