As the sun beamed down and Lake Michigan showed off its best sparkle, a nearly sold-out crowd of both tourists and locals filled temporary grandstands and a makeshift beer garden and laid out towels on the sand at Oak Street Beach Sunday to watch U.S. Olympians compete in the American Volleyball Professionals Chicago Open.
Ninth-place Paris finishers Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss faced off against fifth-place Paris finishers Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes in the first match of the day. Kloth and Nuss won, securing a spot in the 2 p.m. women’s final and a chance to win the AVP Chicago Open for the third consecutive year.
The winners of today’s women’s and men’s matches will join the AVP league, which has eight regular season games and will conclude with a championship match Nov. 9 and 10 in Los Angeles.
Beach volleyball returns to Chicago on Labor Day weekend — and features Olympic medalists
Kate Delaney, 30, was one of the many gathered outside the grandstands, where the breeze kept fans cool. She grew up playing volleyball and attends a different AVP tournament every year but was late to get tickets for the Chicago Open. General admission was sold out for today’s matches.
“There’s definitely more fanfare surrounding this one,” she said, motioning to the hordes of people peeking over the fencing at the court. Meanwhile, ticketholders roared inside. “We’re staying nearby and our hotel is completely sold out.”
Kloth and Nuss will play 2024 Olympic silver medalists Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson in this afternoon’s final. The Canadian pair clinched a win against Toni Rodriguez and Geena Urango in the second women’s semi-final match of the day.
Steve Stenberg, 59, has traveled from Seattle for the last four Chicago Opens. He was most excited to see Taylor Crabb and Taylor Sanders clinch a spot in the men’s final after an uphill battle out of the contender’s bracket yesterday. The longtime friends and partners beat Paris Olympians Chase Budinger and Miles Evans in Sunday’s first men’s semi-final match.
They faced off against fellow 2024 Olympians Andy Benesh and Miles Partain in the men’s finals at 3 p.m. following the latter’s win against Tim Bomgren and Troy Field in Sunday’s other men’s semi-final match.
In addition to attracting volleyball enthusiasts from Philadephia to Seattle, this weekend’s tournament inspired local players. Nora Halloran and Ava Shiels, both 9, just joined the volleyball team at Saint Clement School in Lincoln Park and hoped to learn a thing or two from Sunday’s competitors. They couldn’t contain their enthusiasm. Both girls jumped up and down as they waited in line for the merchandise tent with their parents.
“I’m really excited to watch and get little tips and tricks,” said Halloran. She’s keen to improve her serve, while Shiels wants to get more power behind her hits.
