MANHATTAN BEACH — The tournament favorite’s first loss of the day kicked them from the Manhattan Beach Pier stadium court, and quite literally, onto level playing field with the 31 other men’s teams.
If Trevor Crabb and Chase Budinger lost again, it would eliminate them from the AVP’s Manhattan Beach Open on the first day of main draw play on Friday.
But the top-seeded duo’s day ended with an emphatic scream – and an even larger sigh of relief.
Crabb and Budinger had their backs against the wall in their second contender’s bracket match – their third match of the day.
Crabb and Budinger, along with 15 other men’s duos and 16 women’s teams, advanced to Saturday following the combined 92 matches played on nine courts on Friday. No. 15 seed Cody Caldwell and Jacob LaBouliere’s effort to be giant slayers faltered in a 21-17, 17-21, 15-12 loss to Crabb and Budinger.
“You’ve got to have some mental will to go through the contenders (bracket),” Budinger said. “We’re not playing the best volleyball, so hopefully tomorrow (Saturday) that gets better for us. I’m still happy because we’re able to get wins when we’re not playing well.”
The pair shook off their opening loss and made quick work of their first elimination match, sending the 16th-seeded duo of Lars Basey and Ian Carlson packing, 21-12, 21-9.
Friday’s tournament opener was a different story.
Ric Cervantes and Jonah Seif won three qualifying matches on Thursday just to get into the main draw as the No. 32 seed, but they upset Crabb and Budinger with a reverse sweep, 18-21, 21-16, 15-11.
“Those two players are some of the best players ever,” Cervantes said. “We had to go out and take it from them, and that’s what we did. … Made some adjustments in the second set, started a little bit more aggressive, targeted a little bit more, and made some more moves on defense.”
Cervantes and Seif couldn’t build on the upset and were eliminated after losing their next two matches.
Crabb and Budinger will face No. 25 seed Markus Koppke and Daniel Leathers on Court 4 on Saturday at 8 a.m.
The women’s bracket wasn’t without tension of its own.
The 16th-seeded pair of Ella Connor and Marine Kinna were seven points away from eliminating No. 2 seed Kelly Cheng and Megan Kraft, opening an 8-4 lead in the third set. But just as Cheng and Kraft rebounded after a rough first set to win the second, the former USC standouts went on an 11-5 run for a 19-21, 21-10, 15-13 win that keeps their tournament hopes alive.
“That match is such a great example that you can win ugly,” Cheng said. “We’re very gritty, and you’ve got to find creative ways to win when everything’s not firing. It was a battle.”
Cheng and Kraft will face No. 26 seed Avery Jackson and Sarah Wood, who upset the No. 7 and No. 23 seeds on Friday, on Court 3 on Saturday at 9 a.m.
Jackson, 20, and Wood, 18, are still in the midst of their college careers at Stanford and USC, respectively – a stark contrast to Cheng, 30, who has already won an FIVB World Championship since she graduated and Kraft, 23, who first qualified for an AVP main draw in 2018.
Sixth-seeded Miles Partain and Paul Lotman were looking to turn the page on Friday after their 2026 AVP League season ended in Dallas last weekend – with back-to-back losses extending their losing streak to four and eliminating them from championship contention.
Lotman was due to serve with match point in their first-round match against No. 27 seed Chase Frishman and Billy Kolinske. The 40-year-old Southern California local spun into his serve and launched the ball high and way out of bounds – a failed attempt at a sky ball.
“At the end of the day, this is a show,” Lotman said. “We’re competing, but we’re also performing. We’re providing something for people to enjoy in front of the beach with friends and family. And it’s almost a given. If you’re up by a certain margin, and somebody from the crowd asks for a sky ball, you have to provide it.”
Lotman smiled, momentarily taking off his sunglasses and adjusting his cap before closing out the match on the next rally for a 21-14, 21-14 win.
The pair swept 11th-seeded Theo Brunner and Wyatt Harrison, 21-17, 21-18, and will face No. 3 seed Chaim Schalk and James Shaw on Court 1 on Saturday at 9 a.m.
The highest-seeded men’s team to be eliminated on Friday was the fifth-seeded duo of Hagen Smith and Logan Webber, while the fourth-seeded women’s team of Terese Cannon and Lexy Denaburg were also ousted.
Play resumes at 8 a.m. on Saturday, with the men’s and women’s finals scheduled for Sunday afternoon.