Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers came into the weekend ranked number one and looking to extend their three tournament winning streak on the AVP tour. They also entered the tournament as the top ranked team on the tour, replacing Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger, who had held the top spot since the beginning of the season.

As the new top seed on tour, the chips were stacked against Dalhausser and Rogers. Historically, number one seeds have had a very tough time on the AVP tour. Coming into the weekend, only one top seeded team has won in the past 33 open tournaments. Despite the odds, Dalhausser and Rogers were determined to prove that they deserved to be called the number one seed.

After being sent to the contender's bracket on a loss to Hans Stolfus and Aaron Wachtfogel on Saturday (which is just their second loss in the last 25 matches), Dalhausser and Rogers had the daunting task of facing the fifth, fourth, third and second seeded teams all in the same day. By the end of the weekend they would beat them all and claim their fourth straight tournament title, removing any doubt that they belong at the top.

Dalhausser and Rogers began their march to the finals on Sunday morning with victories over fourth ranked John Hyden and Jeff Nygaard and third ranked Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal. They advanced to the semi finals against fifth ranked Matt Fuerbringer and Casey Jennings. After winning an epic game one that went 36-34, Dalhausser and Rogers carried the momentum into game two and won 21-16.

Holly Stein

Todd and Phil Win

"I've been in some long ones, but I think that might take the cake," Rogers said of the first game against Fuerbringer and Jennings.

Dalhausser and Rogers went on to face the former number one seeded team of Lambert and Metzger in the finals. It was Lambert and Metzger's second trip to the finals this season and they are the only team to reach the final four in all five AVP events. Lambert and Metzger won the first game 21-19 behind strong blocking from Lambert.

The second game was clearly dominated by Dalhausser and Rogers who went on a 12-2 run early in the game to make the score 15-6 at the break. They showed no signs of slowing down after their tough round of morning matches.

"I felt better as the day went on today. Every game we played I felt better and better. I felt fantastic in the final," said Rogers.

Dalhausser and Rogers appeared to have the match in the bag after jumping out to a 10-4 lead in the third game, but Metzger and Lambert rallied and eventually tied the score at 13. On the next play Lambert set up match point after a big block on Dalhausser, but Dalhausser and Rogers survived the comeback and went on to win 17-15.

The win matches a mark last set in 1997 -- four consecutive open victories by Adam Johnson and Karch Kiraly. With their winning streak and number one ranking on tour, Dalhausser and Rogers, who are playing together for the first time this year, have become the team to beat.

"The number one seed always has a bull's eye on their back," said Rogers.

Peanut Butter Jelly Time

The loss to Stolfus and Wachtfogel proved Rogers' point. The game unfolded on Saturday afternoon on a packed stadium court, where Stolfus and Wachtfogel were clearly the fan favorites. They had their own personal cheering section, which sported t-shirts that read "It's Peanut Butter and Jelly Time!" The PB & J crowd followed Stolfus and Wachtfogel all weekend with a portable stereo system which blasted their theme song -- "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" by Chip-Man and the Buckwheat Boyz.

Holly Stein

Aaron Wachtfogul Celebrates with his fans

Stolfus and Wachtfogel clearly fed off the support of their fans and were fired up the whole game. After dropping the first game to Dalhausser and Rogers 17-21, Stolfus and Wachtfogel rallied in game two, clearly fueled by a little peanut butter and jelly. They came back after nine match points to finally take game two 30-28.

Game three was just as close and both teams battled to a 15-15 tie to send it into overtime. Chants of "Peanut Butter Jelly" from the crowd were replaced with "we're not done yet" as Stolfus and Wachtfogel survived three more game points before taking the game and the match 19-17. Afterwards they jumped into the middle of the crowd and joined in on the dancing with their fans. There were 132 total points scored in the match, making it the second highest scoring match of the season.

Stolfus and Wachtfogel ended the tournament in fifth place after coming in seeded eighth. Their final loss came to a qualifying team whose performance in the tournament was the only thing that could eclipse Stolfus and Wachtfogel's upset of Dalhausser and Rogers.

Qualifying Waves

Brad Keenan and John Mayer both had successful careers at Pepperdine, where Keenan was a four time All-American and lead the nation in blocks his senior year in 2003, the same year Mayer made his beach debut. Keenan is a newcomer to the beach in 2006 and is partnered with Mayer for the first time. Coming into the weekend, the duo had recorded a highest finish of 17th, but by the time the Hermosa Open was over, they would have a breakthrough tournament under their belts.

Keenan and Mayer began their tournament on Friday and played three matches in the qualifying rounds to make it into the main draw. They went on to play four more matches on Saturday, winning three. Their loss to Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal in the third round sent them into the contender's bracket, but they stayed alive to make it to their first Sunday after a win over Paul Baxter and Aaron Boss towards the end of the day Saturday.

Sunday morning Keenan and Mayer, the ultimate underdogs, faced off against the fan's pick for the weekend, Stolfus and Wachtfogel. The match went three games and featured plenty of music and cheering from the Hans and Aaron fan club, but Keenan and Mayer won 16-21, 21-15, 15-12 and advanced to the semi finals. Their appearance in the final four made them just the second qualifying team to ever make it that far.

While Dalhausser and Rogers battled it out against Fuerbringer and Jennings, Keenan and Mayer had the tough task of playing against Lambert and Metzger. Their Cinderella run ended in that match after losing 21-12, 21-15, but with a third place finish, Keenan and Mayer couldn't have asked for a better initiation into the main draw.