Fort Lauderdale, USA, February 26, 2018 - Country quota matches for Brazil and the United States were played here Monday on the side courts at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park to set the field for Tuesday’s qualification tournament for the $600,000 Fort Lauderdale Major.
Trevor Crabb/Skylar DelSol won the American men’s country quota rounds on Monday by defeating Miles Evans/Billy Kolinske 2-0 (21-19, 21-18) in 41 minutes. Earlier in the afternoon, Crabb and DelSol posted a 2-0 (21-16, 21-18) win in 35 minutes over compatriots Avery Drost/Adam Roberts.
Crabb and DelSol will be seeking to advance out of their first FIVB World Tour qualifier together as the pair was eliminated in last week’s preliminary rounds in Iran on Kish Island in their partnership’s first-ever international appearance.
Skylar Del Sol (left) and Trevor Crabb of the United States posted two country quota wins Monday at the Fort Lauderdale Major
In the Brazilian women’s country quota playoff, Carolina Horta and Taiana Lima advanced to Tuesday’s qualifier with a 2-0 (21-18, 21-15) win in 36 minutes over Josemari Alves/Liliane Maestrini. Josemari and Liliane were playing their second match on Monday after eliminating Rebecca Cavalcanti/Ana Patricia Silva of Brazil 2-1 (14-21, 21-18, 15-11) in 50 minutes.
Eight teams will advance from both the men’s and women’s qualifier to the 32-team Main Draws where modified pool play begins on Wednesday. Play continues through the weekend with the women’s final on Saturday and the men’s medal matches on Sunday on the Fort Lauderdale Beach Park centre court. The winning teams will split the $40,000 first-place prizes.
The FIVB World Tour returns to Fort Lauderdale Beach Park for the second straight February and the third time in the last four seasons as the Fort Lauderdale Major is the first Beach Major Series event on the 2018 international calendar. Switzerland (Gstaad, July 5-10) and Austria (Vienna, July 31-August 5) will be the site of other Major events with Germany (August 14-19) hosting the Beach Volleyball FIVB World Tour Finals in Hamburg.