Chris and Maren Austin seem to have found the right chemistry with their current version of the A* Team - the beach volleyball team that’s been rolling over opponents in the Comox Valley Sports & Social Club’s intermediate tier.
With a stellar supporting cast and a couple of bigger hitters to anchor the attack, the A* Team has compiled a near-perfect 10-0-1 record through the regular season and will face the 4th seeded Sand in My Shorts (6-4-1) for a shot at first place in the spring season. The Sand Diggers (9-2), captained by Doug Campbell, take on the Roger Grutzmacher’s Dirty Bandits (7-3-1) in the other semifinal that leads to a shot at first place.
Amy Veloso’s Team Awesome (5-6) is the fifth seed headed into the playoffs and will face the winner of the play-in between Carl Ketch’s Raise the Roof (2-9) and Jocelyn Duquette’s Bumpin’ Uglies (0-10-1). The other teams shooting for as high as fifth place are Jason Marchand’s I’d Hit That (5-6) and Phil Schalm’s Hammertime (4-7).
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Meanwhile, Show Us Your Tips had the opportunity to avenge the only blemish to their record in last night’s playoff final at the Standard Park beach volleyball courts, when they met again with the juggernaut team Nice Passes.
While much of the rest of the 12-team recreational tier was grouped together in the standings like sardines in a can, both Tips (11-1) and Passes (12-0) were the cream of the crop and didn’t have much problem advancing to the final. When the two teams met in the regular season, Nice Passes managed a straight sets victory.
The Land Pimps (8-4) faced This Won’t Take Long (8-4) for third place, while the fifth place game featured the Spikaholics (4-8) against the Ballisticats (6-6). The Spikaholics earned their shot at fifth place after a massive comeback in their semifinal game against Sandsational to win in the fifth set, dropping Sandsational (8-5) to play against the Miss Hits (4-8) for 7th place.
Four Play (4-8) took on Unprotected Sets (4-8) for ninth place, while the Recreational Hazards 2-10) faced off against Sets on the Beach (1-11) for 11th.
Registration is currently open until Monday, June 27 for the summer beach volleyball leagues, both the recreational and intermediate tiers, as well as leagues in ultimate Frisbee, soccer, slo-pitch, flag football, and kickball.
Visit www.comoxvalleysports.ca for more info, or contact Scott at 250-898-7286 or scott@comoxvalleysports.ca.