Pro Beach Volleyball League Debuts at UCLA this Weekend

Beach volleyball and Hollywood... what could be better to close out the summer of '24 following the Paris Games? Los Angeles will roll-out the red carpet for the AVP League's debut this Saturday, September 14-15, a 2-day event on sand at the UCLA Tennis Center. The Inaugural will feature Olympians Kelly Cheng, Sara Hughes, Chase Budinger and Miles Evans and stars such as Julia Scoles playing for the home team LA Launch.

"We can't wait to... show fans just how exciting this new concept in beach volleyball will be," said Bobby Corvino, COO of the AVP. "... a terrific format to showcase our Olympians and stars of the AVP to existing fans and those who may just be catching the bug for beach volleyball after watching this dynamic and exciting sport in Paris earlier this summer."

The AVP naturally throws the lights on four of the eight franchises representing the two largest media markets for its debut. Showcased on the Westwood courts are the L.A. Launch, San Diego Smash, New York Nitro and Brooklyn Blaze.

"I'm beyond excited to be representing L.A., where I currently live and where it's home for me now," said Scoles, originally from North Carolina who played her last two seasons of college eligibility for the USC Trojans. "My last two years at USC were incredibly special. Just the people that I was surrounded with. That my teammates are still my best friends to this day, and I truly believe relationships are what life is all about."

Other teams in the league include the Austin Aces, Dallas Dream, Miami Mayhem, and Palm Beach Passion. The AVP League Initiating with two teams from each of the four locations is simplicity with a nice touch while offering instant local rivalries for the fans.

"I'm just really looking forward to the prospect and the potential of the AVP growing in this league and kind of changing the format," said Evans, the Santa Barbara native who teamed-up with Chase Budinger from Encinitas to represent the United States in this Summer Olympics. Evans and Budinger will also team-up for LA Launch rival San Diego Smash this season.

Budinger notably played in the NBA for seven years for the Rockets, Timberwolves, Pacers, and Suns. He was named 2018 AVP Rookie of the Year and Most Improved Player and won his first AVP title in Hermosa 2019. Evans played indoor volleyball at UC Santa Barbara for two years before joining the AVP Tour for seven seasons.

Both got together in 2023 and won the Gold Medal in the 2024 NORCECA Continental Tour Final in the Dominican Republic in May of this year. Evans: "Chase and I got together last year and we've been playing together for a bit now, so we've developed a good team chemistry and a good system. So, I love playing with Chase, is a phenomenal athlete, brings a lot of professionalism from the NBA."

The AVP League format: each team is made up of one women's pair and one men's pair. Each pair will play one match Saturday and one match Sunday. Matches will consist of best-of-three sets played to 15, with the winning team required to win by two points.

Saturday's AVP League debut opener at 6:00 p.m. presents the women's match between the New York Nitro and Brooklyn Blaze. The teams' respective men's match immediately follows. The nightcap contest features the LA Launch and San Diego Smash, with the action expected to end by 10:00 p.m.

Sunday's matches scheduled from 12:00 – 4:00 open with the Brooklyn Blaze taking on the San Diego Smash followed by the an instant classic LA/NY showdown between the New York Nitro host LA Launch.

"Yes, I love that it will provide some stability as well as predictability for our schedules. It allows us to prepare in advance for opponents and is also easier for fan buy-in," responded Scoles to the league format. "Commitment wise, it's more accessible for people schedules and you're able to market event events weeks in advance."

Scoles is paired up with teammate, Betsi Flint, a two-time All-American in beach volleyball from Loyola Marymount, and a six-time winner on the AVP, including the 2023 Manhattan Beach Open and the 2019 Huntington Beach Open. "Betsi and I have been playing together for the past two seasons. We made a run for the Paris Olympics together. We were the third team out."

"Some of our strength as teammates is that we are both committed to just growth and understanding one another as players and one another as people, and constantly just showing up for our team to put ourselves in the best position possible to be successful."

Tim Bomgren and Troy Field will hit the sand for the LA Launch men's side. Bomgren is a Minneapolis native, played more than 10 years on the AVP and won the 2022 Virginia Beach Open. He advanced to the semifinals in both Huntington Beach and Chicago earlier this season. Field, the 30-year-old native from Laguna Beach is one of the most dynamic and exciting players on the beach. He finished third or better in three tournaments this season.

Scoles, who describes the sport "... as a chess game on the beach: Kim and Troy are so fun to watch. They have electric energy, are wicked competitors, and are also just incredibly skilled. So, I think that's another cool feature about the league that it allows us to partner with the guys team and support them and vice versa."

The AVP League season includes eight regular-season events followed by the AVP League Championships. Each event spans two days, and teams will play four of the eight regular-season weekends.

Teams will accrue points based throughout the season on results. The league finale neatly comes full circle in Southern California with the top four teams advancing to the 2024 AVP League Championship, November 9-10, at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson.

Los Alamitos native Geena Urango and Toni Rodriquez will represent the San Diego women's side for the weekend. Urango was the first-ever athlete to receive a full-ride scholarship for NCAA beach volleyball at USC. Her Saturday night match will pit her against Launch rival Julia Scoles, whom she won her first AVP event in 2022 with. Rodriguez took second place in Denver 2023 Tour Series with Savvy Simo, and finished third in Manhattan Beach and Chicago this season.

Geena is actually a good friend," revealed Evans. She's been in so many volleyball tournaments in general, so many finals. She has so much experience... at the end of the day, she's going to bring that experience into this league."

And Tony is kind of new to the AVP, but super physical, very athletic. And she's been working a ton on her mental side of the game. And I've noticed that she's getting very, very consistent and she works really hard. So, I'm excited to have this team represent us and San Diego."

Adding to the local flavor for the AVP League debut, no less than six of the eight players from New York and Brooklyn have Southern California roots. The Nitro roster includes Fullerton native Kelly Cheng, the 2024 and 2021 U.S. Olympian and Sarah Hughes of Costa Mesa.

Cheng starred for USC from 2014-2017, earned four national championships, three All-American awards, and two Player of the Year awards. Both teamed-up for Paris 2024. Hughes is a two-time pairs national champion at USC with Kirby Burnham and Kelly Cheng. She also happens to be a three-time team national champion, and a four-time All-American.

The Nitro men's team: Taylor Crabb is a three-time All-American from Long Beach State, and National Player of The Year. Crabb switched to beach volleyball in 2015 and earned third at the 2015 Manhattan Beach Open with his brother Trevor. He's teamed with Corona native Taylor Sander, the outside hitter and three-time All-American at BYU; He was the 2014 AVCA Player of the Year and switched to beach in 2022, winning the first-ever Phoenix AVP Championship.

The Brooklyn Blaze roster features Terese Cannon, who played beach from 2015-2019 at USC, winning three PAC-12 titles and two national championships. The two-time team captain, three-time PAC-12 All-Conference team pick, and 2019 AVCA All-American won her first AVP title in Hermosa in 2022. She'll be teamed with Megan Kraft, who won three NCAA national beach championships at USC, is a two-time All-American and 2021 PAC-12 Freshman of the Year.

The Blaze men's team is Seain Cook, who played on the National Scottish indoor team, and learned to play beach right next to the St. Andrews Golf Course. Cook played indoor professionally and competed at the Commonwealth Games in Australia alongside Robin Miedybrodzki. He's teamed with Cody Caldwell, who won AVP Tour Series events as both a defender and a blocker (Waupaca and Laguna Beach) with Cook). Caldwell was also a two-time NCAA champion for Loyola Chicago as an outside hitter.

This weekend will be the very first test for the upstart league whose motto is: Every Point Matters. But Evans is already "smashing" it: I don't know how they came up with the name (San Diego Smash), but I associate it with the Hulk... I'm just excited that I'm able to be one of the faces of the AVP and kind of one of the names. I'm really hoping to grow the sport and do anything possible to to get this sport kind of moving where we're intending to.

Scoles was adamant in support and encouraged about the possibilities: "I'm biased, obviously, with the sport of beach volleyball, but I think it's one of the best sports in the world and I think it is exciting."

It's such an exciting, fun game to watch even when I'm not playing. I love watching and seeing how other athletes can be. So, I hope that this provides the platform for our sport so that other people can get as excited about it as we are."