COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – John Hyden and Tri Bourne were the top American finishers as three teams hit the sand for the FIVB Antalya Open.
In Turkey, one American men’s and one women’s team vying for a chance as one of the two Olympic spots played, while the other Olympic hopefuls sat the tournament out. Three tournaments remain on the FIVB World Tour before the next chance for countries to qualify for the 2016 Olympics.
Hyden and Bourne tied for ninth after being eliminated in the second round by Germany’s Markus Bockermann/Lars Fluggen in three sets. After a 2-1 start in pool play, including a loss to Americans Jeremy Casebeer/Derek Olson, 21-19, 21-17, the two won their pool to advance to single elimination with a bye. The second round loss, 21-19, 15-21, 15-11, gave them their 12th Top 10 finish in Olympic qualification.
Casebeer and Olson were eliminated by Norway in the first round, 21-17, 21-18, tying them for 17th. Their finish is the duos best on the FIVB Tour since September of 2015.
For Jennifer Kessy and Emily Day, the pair tied for 17th. Despite opening 2-1 in pool play, the pair fell to Brazil in the first round, 19-21, 21-15, 15-12. The finish does not improve their provisional Olympic ranking standings as the tournament, their 20th of the qualifying season, was outside of their top 12 finishes used for points.
Next week is the highly anticipated Cincinnati Open, the first of two FIVB World Tour events scheduled in the United States and the only one prior to the Olympics. The top three American teams in both genders will play, including a large American contingent that will try to advance through the country quota to qualification then the main draw. The finals for the Cincinnati Open will be played on Saturday, May 21 and air on NBC Sports Network.
WEEK IN REVIEW
FIVB Antalya Open
– John Hyden/Tri Bourne tied for ninth, their 12th Top 10 finish in Olympic qualification
– Jeremy Casebeer/Derek Olson tied for 17th, their best FIVB finish since 2015’s Xiamen Open in September
– Jennifer Kessy/Emily Day tied for 17th after being eliminated in the first round by Brazil
UPCOMING EVENTS
May 17-22 Cincinnati Open
May 20-22 NVL Port St. Lucie
May 24-29 Moscow Grand Slam
June 2-5 AVP Seattle
June 7-12 Hamburg Grand Slam
June 14-19 Olsztyn Grand Slam
June 16-19 AVP New York City
June 23-25 NVL San Antonio
June 28-July 3 Porec Major
July 1-3 NORCECA North Bay