Casey Patterson furnished the amusement at Stadium Court. He did an arm wave. He postured. He yelled. And when he secured the healthy on an ace, Patterson took a mini bow and gestured to new accomplice Chase Budinger.
The duo’s chemistry became interesting and worth applauding Saturday after they scored a 21-18, 21-17 win against Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena to advance to the semifinals of the Huntington Beach Open. This is the first event collectively for Budinger and Patterson, and it became no small feat to defeat the 2016 Olympians and previous Open champions.
“It’s massive for this crew to make a push,” Patterson said. Patterson, an Olympian with former accomplice Jake Gibb, picked Budinger, a 6-foot-7 former NBA participant, due to Budinger’s budding ability, which showed with Budinger’s eight blocks.
“Chase has the potential to grasp and disrupt men’s offense,” Patterson stated. “I attempted to take the history that Jake and I had towards Nick and a few such things as that and put into effect it with giving Chase a few understanding of what works, and he also takes it to every other stage with the amount of cling time he has and his vision and staying power.
“That’s the key. Having a match like that in opposition to that team is what I saw six months ago when he changed into playing with [Sean Rosenthal]. That suggests how much of a veteran he is already. I knew that turned into a possibility.”
Budinger seeks his first win at the AVP Tour. He switched to seashore volleyball three years ago and has come to a protracted manner from that raw transition. “I was a horrendous blocker a year in the past,” Budinger said. “I’ve been running without a doubt hard on it. I’m simply glad it’s beginning to reveal.”
A Huntington Beach fixture, Patterson, 39, with four kids, stands in comparison to newbie Budinger, 30, and it shows with the ankle brace that Patterson wears from years of wear and tear. But Budinger feeds off Patterson’s enthusiasm in an interesting dynamic.
“His energy is so contagious,” Budinger stated. “I’m one of those guys that could get frustrated with my play and get simply internal. But having him just constantly screaming and being energized, I forget approximately that element, and [his] power feeds on to me.”
Patterson and Budinger will play seventh-seeded Tim Bomgren and Troy Field. Top-seeded Gibb and Taylor Crabb eked out a 21-13, 15-21, 17-15 removal suit in opposition to Dalhausser and Lucena to advance to the alternative guys’ semifinal, a rematch in opposition to Tri Bourne and Trevor Crabb.
On the girls’ side, top-seeded April Ross and Alix Klineman advanced with a 21-17, 21-15 win against fourth-seeded Emily Day and Betsi Flint. Ross and Klineman ended 2018 with three straight wins; however, Ross said they feel like a one-of-a-kind group after a rigorous offseason program, especially a brand new block protection.
“I sense as we’ve sincerely narrowed in on what our running system is, and we will now experience that in the courtroom,” stated the two-time Olympic medalist Ross, who will pass for her fourth Open win Sunday.
Ross and Klineman will play No. 2 seed Sara Hughes and Summer Ross (no relation), opposite Day and Flint in opposition to Sarah Pavan and Melissa Humana-Paredes in the other women’s semifinal. Pavan and Humana-Paredes swept Hughes and Ross 21-18, 21-10 within the quarterfinals, although it wasn’t disenchanted given that Canadians Pavan and Humana-Paredes are ranked third globally. They are seeded 14th because they haven’t accumulated enough AVP points, and they flexed their muscle behind Humana-Paredes, who had 18 kills and 12 digs.
“Melissa played relatively nicely,” Pavan said. “I’m not sure why they stayed on her so long because her side out turned into, in reality, fantastic. She became very automated … they have been getting quite frustrated because she became touching the entirety.”
