2005 AVP Huntington Beach Open presented by Bud Light: Pro Beach Volleyball LIVE on NBC

The Huntington Beach Open presented by Bud Light is the 3rd stop of the 2005 AVP Nissan Championship Series with LIVE coverage on NBC. The Men’s Finals will air at 4:30 pm EST on Saturday August 13th. The Women’s Finals will air at 4:30 pm EST on Sunday August 14th. Log on to http://AVP.com for more information.

Gold Medalists Misty May and Kerri Walsh enter Huntington Beach having won seven titles in 2005 including the Hermosa Beach Open on July 24th. The duo has only lost one match since the 2004 Chicago Open, falling to Elaine Youngs and Rachel Wacholder in the opening AVP Championship Series event in Cincinnati on July 2nd. Last weekend, May & Walsh got their revenge by defeating Youngs & Wacholder in the Hermosa Beach Open Finals.

As Huntington Beach is the third of five AVP Championship events, several questions fuel the pre-event hype. Will May and Walsh grab the upper hand in the AVP Championship Series with a win in Huntington? Will Youngs and Wacholder serve as spoilers once again? Or will another AVP Women’s team win Huntington and establish themselves as a force to be dealt with in 2005?

The AVP Men have seen four winners in eight events in 2005. Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings captured their second win of the season in Hermosa, joining Olympian Stein Metzger & Jake Gibb as the only multiple winners on the men’s side this year. Metzger & Gibb won in Fort Lauderdale, Tempe and Belmar, while Fuerbringer & Jennings won in San Diego. Joining Metzger & Gibb and Fuerbringer & Jennings in the winner’s circle are Nick Lucena & Phil Dalhausser who won in Austin, Olympians Jeff Nygaard & Dax Holdren who won in Santa Barbara, and Mike Lambert & John Hyden who won in Cincinnati.

Tune in as more than 150 of the top professional beach volleyball athletes descend into Southern California for the AVP Huntington Beach Open presented by Bud Light. The Women’s side features 2004 Olympic gold medal winners May and Walsh, and 2004 Olympic bronze medal winners Holly McPeak and Youngs. The men’s side is highlighted by three-time Olympic gold medal winner Karch Kiraly, AVP MVP Mike Lambert and 2000 Olympic gold medalists Eric Fonoimoana and Dain Blanton.

The competition will be fierce as $250,000 is on the line in Huntington Beach.

Watch and Win: Catch all the action LIVE on NBC for your chance to win a 42” Flat Panel TV. Log on to http://avp.com for details.

The AVP will be LIVE on NBC throughout the summer. After Huntington Beach, the Championship Series continues:

• Manhattan Beach Open - August 20 and 21 at 4:30pm EST.
• Chicago Open - September 4th at 2pm EST.

Log on to http://avp.com for more information.