Beach Cities Dominate AAU Regional Volleyball

South Bay athletes showcased the bright future of beach volleyball, particularly in the Beach Cities, by winning five out of six gold medal victories at the Amateur Athletic Union’s (AAU) Southern Pacific Beach Volleyball Championships on Sunday.

Hermosa Beach, a beach volleyball mecca, played host to the event. 

Blake Markland of Manhattan Beach teamed with Tanner Smith of Hermosa Beach to win gold in the boys’ 14U division.

Markland and Smith battled Will Bantle of Manhattan Beach, and Matt Douglas of Pacific Palisades in the finals, where their 28-23 victory earned them the top podium spot. 

Kyle Jasuta and Trevor Liu, both of Manhattan Beach, rounded out the South Bay’s strong showing in the division with their bronze medal.

In the girls’ 14U Division, Manhattan Beach dominated all over again as natives Katie Barkley and Emma Smith grabbed gold by defeating Olivia Kocsis and Cait O’Connell, both of Huntington Beach. 

Ashley Anselmo and Gianna Genova, both of Manhattan Beach, capped their strong tournament run with a bronze medal finish.

For the boys’ 12U Division, Luke Grafton and Dane Johnson showed off more of the South Bay’s volleyball prowess as the duo captured another gold medal.

The Manhattan Beach partners defeated Claremont natives Johnny Abrolet and Christian Settles, who settled for silver.

The South Bay ruled again in the girls’ 12U division as the partnership between Presley Forbes of Manhattan Beach and Sunny Villapando of Hermosa Beach resulted in one more gold medal for the locals. 

Lauren Kelly and Pippa Monk, both of Manhattan Beach, settled for silver. Devon Chang of Manhattan Beach and Milan Stokes of Long Beach won bronze. 

In the boys’ 10U division, Johnny Anselmo of Manhattan Beach and Sebastian Rodriguez of Hermosa Beach won gold with their championship match victory over Kyle Johnson and Jake Wall, both of Manhattan Beach.

In the girls’ 10U division, Mikayla Crossley of La Palma and Jaclyn Sanchez of Huntington Beach claimed gold. Manhattan Beach duo Lindsey Kelly and Ivy Stevens finished with silver.

The girls 16U division finished off the tournament as the only final of the day without an all South Bay team—Kristie Hewko of Tustin and Sarah Metcalfe of Huntington Beach defeated Christian Jones of Lakewood and Lan Nguyen of Manhattan Beach to grab gold. 

The AAU Beach Volleyball Tour returns to the South Bay on Sunday, June 12 with AAU California Regional Championships in Manhattan Beach.