It was a topsy-turvy day at the beach for the team of Phil Dalhausser and Sean Rosenthal at the AVP Santa Barbara Open.
The second seeds and 2012 Olympians, who were stunned on Friday by a qualifying team, won two contender’s bracket matches before being knocked out of the pro beach volleyball tournament in the last match of the day on Saturday at West Beach.
Billy Allen and Braidy Halverson pulled out a tight three-set victory over Dalhausser-Rosenthal, 21-23, 23-21, 19-17. That earned the winners a final-four matchup with fouth-seeded Tri Bourne and John Hyden at 11 a.m. Sunday.
Jake Gibb and partner Casey Patterson advanced to the semifinals of the AVP Santa Barbara Open.
In the other men’s semifinal, top-seeded Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson got past qualifiers Russ Machewka and Derek Olson (21-14, 25-23) in the contenders’ bracket to reach the semifinals. They’ll play another surprise team, No. 7 Adrian Carambula and Stafford Slick at noon.
The men’s final is at 4:30 p.m.
The women’s side was slightly more predictable
Three-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings and 2012 Olympic silver medalist April Ross, the top-seeded women?s team, advanced unscathed into Sunday?s semifinals, as did third-seeded Jennifer Fopma and Brooke Sweat.
Walsh Jennings and April Ross will face second-seeded Lauren Fendrick and Brittany Hochevar at 1 p.m., while Fopma and Sweat will meet fourth-seeded Emily Day and Summer Ross at 2 p.m.
The women’s final is scheduled at 3:30 p.m.
Day-Ross battled back through the contenders? bracket, winning four matches Saturday after being upset Friday in the first round of the double-elimination tournament. Fendrick and Hochevar won twice Friday, so after a loss Saturday in the quarterfinals, had to play just once more to reach the semis.
Dalhausser-Rosenthal started the day outlasting Todd Rogers and Ryan Doherty in three tough set that took over an hour to play. Rogers and Dalhausser played seven years together and won several tournaments around the world, including the 2008 Olympics. They also won three Santa Barbara Opens.
Dalhausser-Rosenthal were at the top of their game in sweeping John Mayer and Brad Keenan, but they couldn’t score the big points against Allen-Halverson and lost.
All Sunday matches will be played on stadium court. Gates open at 10 a.m.
General admission to the $150,000 AVP Santa Barbara Open at West Beach is free, and Club AVP tickets are available for purchase at the gate or at www.avp.com for $40 per day.
