Friday at the MVP Manhattan Beach Open saw some extremely exciting action as the 32nd-seeded duo of of Chloe Loreen and Natalie Robinson upset top-seeded Betsi Flint and Julia Scoles. The victory marked the first time in AVP history that a top-seeded women’s team has been defeated by a 32nd seed.

The University of Washington duo Loreen and Robinson, in their first-ever AVP Gold Series appearance, fought through the qualifier to secure a spot in Friday’s main draw. In their opening match Friday, Loreen and Robinson pulled off a 21-19, 15-21, 15-12 upset over top-seeded Flint and Scoles. Then with a 21-14, 21-17 sweep over 16th-seeded Macy Jerger and Megan Rice later Friday, the underdogs reserved a spot in the third round of the winners' bracket Saturday morning.

On Saturday at 10:40 a.m., Loreen and Robinson will take on 8th-seeded Deahna Kraft and Zana Muno. 

Flint and Scoles will continue their battle through the contenders' bracket on Survival Saturday and can still fight their way back to win the title in the double-elimination tournament. They will take on Lili Maestrini and Larissa Maestrini Saturday morning at 10:40 a.m. on Stadium Court.

Meanwhile, top-seeded men Theo Brunner and Trevor Crabb kept up their winning streak, rolling into the third round of the winners' bracket Friday, with clean sweeps over 32nd-seeded John Schwengel/David Wieczorek, 21-17, 21-9, and 17th-seeded Andrew Dentler/Jacob Landel, 21-13, 21-15. 

If the two men claim victory on Sunday, this would be first plaque on the Manhattan Beach Pier for Brunner, while Crabb would join the ranks of Mike Bright, Mike O’Hara, Mike Dodd, Tim Hovland, and Karch Kiraly as the only male players to win the AVP Manhattan Beach Open at least four times in a row.

Competition for the AVP Gold Series Manhattan Beach Open is set to continue on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday just south of the Manhattan Beach Pier.

General admission is free every day, with the option to purchase premium seating tickets for Club AVP, Premium Club AVP, The Deck, and Courtside Boxes, all ranging in price. Tickets are available at www.AVP.com/tickets.

Live brackets for both the women’s and men’s competitions can be viewed here and will be updated in real time through each day of play. All matches on Stadium Court will stream live on ESPN+ in the US and on TSN+ in Canada, and all matches played on Courts 1 and 2 will be available live on the Bally Live app. The men’s and women’s finals of the AVP Gold Series Manhattan Beach Open are scheduled to air live on ESPN2 Sunday, August 20 starting at 1:00 p.m. PT. See Where to Watch on the AVP’s website for full details.

Those who are heading down to watch the play in person should note that Beach Nation Volleyball, Wilson, and the AVP have teamed up to collect non-perishable food and donations for the Westside Food Bank and the Maui Food Bank.