Olympics beach volleyball: Budinger-Evans lose, but move on; Cheng-Hughes win
Olympics Beach
Travis Mewhirter
August 2, 2024
Pablo Herrera blocks Chase Budinger/FIVB photo
The 40 or so minutes in which Chase Budinger and Miles Evans played Spain’s Adrian Gavira and Pablo Herrera in their final match of pool play was, for all intents and purposes, a 40-minute plea for help.
After opening the Paris Olympic Games with a thorough sweep over France’s Arnaud Gauthier-Rat and Youssef Krou (21-14, 21-11), Budinger and Evans have twice been swept just as thoroughly. First it was Stefan Boermans and Yorick de Groot, the top duo from the Netherlands, who dominated, 21-13, 21-15.
Then, on Friday afternoon in Paris, it was Spain, who ended a two-match losing skid to Budinger and Evans with a 21-18, 21-11 win.
Which meant that Budinger and Evans, in order to break pool and advance into the playoffs, required help.
In the current format, three teams from each pool advance into the playoffs. For Budinger and Evans to advance, they now required the services of Boermans and de Groot to do what they were heavily favored to do: beat Gauthier-Rat and Krou. Otherwise, it would come down to a tiebreak, decided by point and set differential, which were no longer too favorable for Budinger and Evans.
No tiebreak was needed. Boermans and de Groot did what was expected, sweeping France, 21-15, 21-16, to claim the top spot in pool. The win relegated Spain to No. 2 and Budinger and Evans to No. 3.
Budinger and Evans will break pool, though they will begin not in the ninth-place round of 16, but the lucky loser. Sweden’s David Ahman and Jonatan Hellvig took an unexpected third in Pool A, though one of their losses came in three, which puts them ahead of Budinger and Evans. The same applies to Brazil’s George and Andre, who similarly lost in three sets, which also gives them the edge.
This story will be updated with final results after Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes play their late-night match against Germans Svenja Muller and Cinja Tillmann.
Miles Evans cuts a shot past Pablo Herrera/FIVB photo
Kelly Cheng, Sara Hughes sweep through pool play
Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes needed no such help on Friday evening in Paris. Entering their final match of pool, against Germany’s Sevenja Muller and Cinja Tillmann, Cheng and Hughes had already assured themselves of a berth into the round of 16. A pair of sweeps against Bara Hermannova and Marie-Sara Stochlova and France’s Aline Chamereau and Clemence Vieira took care of that.
The bout with the Germans, who are coming off a gold medal at the Vienna Elite16, had little on the line, save for pride, the Olympic won-loss record, and seeding come playoff time.
As Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss did on the previous evening’s nightcap, Cheng and Hughes took care of business, sweeping Germany 21-18, 21-18 to remain perfect in these Olympic Games.
Pool play was, as expected, a tour de force for USA Volleyball. Six matches won, zero lost. Just one set dropped. Both teams finishing top in pool. When adding in the men, Andy Benesh and Miles Partain and Chase Budinger and Miles Evans, all four USA teams have broken pool and are moving into the playoff rounds.
Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes celebrate winning pool play at the Paris Olympic Games/FIVB photo
It will be a late night by the Eiffel Tower with the last lucky loser match set for 11 p.m. The lucky loser matches are chances for the best four third-place teams on each side to get into the round of 16.
Among the teams in action Friday are former USC great Tina Graudina and Latvian parter Anastasija Samoilova, who play Canadians Brandie Wilkerson and Melissa Humana-Paredes, who are fixtures on the AVP Tour. They are both 1-1 in Pool D.
The Spanish pair of Daniela Alvarez and Tania Moreno, who will return to TCU after taking the last year off to prepare for the Olympics, play Germans Laura Ludwig and Louisa Lippmann. Alvarez and Moreno are 1-1, while the Germans are 0-2 in Pool F.
All times are local. Paris is 6 hours ahead of U.S. Eastern and 9 hours ahead of Pacific: 9 a.m. — Ehlers/Wickler (Germany) vs.Bryl/Losiak (Poland) 10 a.m. — Hodges/Schubert (Austria) vs. Bassereau/Lyneel (France) 11 a.m. — Bobner/Verge-Depree (Switzerland) vs. Poletti/Valiente (Paraguay) Noon — Alvarez/Moreno (Spain) vs. Ludwig/Lippmann (Germany) 4 p.m.– Placette/Richard (France) vs. Huberli/Brunner (Switzerland) 5 p.m. — Wilkerson/Humana-Paredes (Canada) vs. Graudina/Samoilova (Latvia)] 6 p.m. — Lucky losers, TBA 9 p.m. — Lucky losers, TBA 10 p.m. — Lucky losers, TBA 11 p.m. — Lucky losers, TBA
