AVP Manhattan Beach Open: Taryn Brasher, Kristen Cruz capture 3rd straight title

MANHATTAN BEACH — The top remaining seeds left no doubt Sunday at the AVP Manhattan Beach Open.

No. 1 seed Taryn Brasher and Kristen Cruz completed a three-peat with a 21-18, 21-16 victory over Kelly Cheng and Megan Kraft in the women’s championship, while No. 2-seeded Andy Benesh and Taylor Crabb rolled past Gage Basey and Thomas Hurst 21-14, 21-13 to claim the men’s title.

Both pairs went 6-0 over the three-day AVP Heritage Major, neither dropping a set.

Brasher and Cruz are now 18-0 in the Manhattan Beach Open, having only competed in the event in the three years they’ve won.

Crabb is now a two-time champion of the Open, previously winning alongside Taylor Sander — who was in the stands Sunday — in 2023.

“I was super lucky to have Taylor on my side,” Benesh said. “He’s already been through it and he knew how to get it done and he played freaking unbelievable in that final. Just absolutely took over and dominated the match. So, super happy with how we performed and how we competed as a team and looking forward to keeping it going.”

Directly after the match, Benesh told AVP emcee Mark Schuermann — and the crowd — he thinks Crabb is the best volleyball player in the world.

Benesh won the Manhattan Beach Open for the first time, previously appearing in the tournament final alongside Miles Partain in 2024.

Cheng and Kraft reached the women’s final with a 21-13, 21-10 semifinal victory over No. 12 seed Madelyne May Anderson and Alaina Chacon.

Kraft lost to Brasher and Cruz in last year’s final and suffered the same fate despite changing partners.

Cheng moved to 0-3 in the Open’s title match, previously falling short in 2018 and 2022.

Brasher and Cruz reached the championship with a 21-17, 23-21 semifinal victory over No. 14 seed Torrey Van Winden and Abby Van Winkle.

On the men’s side, No. 12 seed Basey and Hurst — who brand themselves the Colorado Cupcakes — outlasted No. 6 seed Partain and Paul Lotman 22-20, 15-21, 15-13 in the semifinals.

“A lot of those opportunities they got in the third were on us,” Hurst said. “It feels really bad in the moment, but remembering that, ‘Hey, we’re in control of this. We can stop these points and we can execute.’”

But Benesh and Crabb laid waste to the sweet treats in favor of champagne, 21-14, 21-13.

“We got up on them early both sets,” Benesh said. “They were kind of in that position where it was like, ‘All right we’re happy to be here,’ and obviously they want to win too but they had nothing to lose and they played like it. They served really well and I was just super happy we were able to get it done.”

Lotman played with his right shoulder taped for the second day in a row after reaggravating a shoulder injury in his first match Saturday.

The dessert-themed moniker is the pair’s attempt at starting the Savannah Bananas of men’s volleyball. The Bananas added choreographed dances, trick shots, props and more to create a more entertaining variant of baseball they call Bananaball.

Partain has previously expressed interest in starting a beach volleyball version of the Bananas himself, adding that he’d like to make a volleyball career that’s more focused on fan entertainment and enjoyment playing the sport than purely wins and losses.

“When I was talking to him in the tent before, I was like, ‘Once I get it going, I’ll bring you into it,’” Basey said. “It would be like a celebrity appearance.”

Sunday’s winners seemed to suggest that victory isn’t sweet; it’s tasteless.

“I don’t even know if I tasted it,” Cruz said, despite the pair’s celebration including Brasher pouring the celebratory champagne in her teammate’s mouth.

Benesh added: “I don’t really (know), I kind of black out in the moment. We’re just trying to chug it as fast as possible.”