On February 2nd under driving rain and under 1,300 square feet of tents the Kauai Bikini Tournament brought serious competitors to Santa Monica California from states and provinces from coast to coast. First, an important thank you to the dad/coach who helped protect our tents from being flooded out. Not everyone helps out especially when no one is there to see it or say thank you. Then you let us know what was happening and never even took credit for how much work you did. We were able to have a great and uninterrupted event for the players to shine through the rain because of your help. Next, another important thank you to Steven Ascher from King & Queen of the beach® for bringing a huge supply of tents to help players, parents, and coaches on a rainy weekend. Thank you both from BVNE™.
The day actually started with the college coaches clinic with players checking in at 6:45 am in the rain. This was an epic rain and didn’t slow down the toughest upcoming players in beach volleyball. The BVNE College Coaches Clinic brought together Anna Collier Head Coach from USC, Jenny Johnson Jordan from UCLA, John Daze from Pepperdine, Mike Campbell from Long Beach State, Zane McFarlane from LMU with small groups of players on each of their courts.
At 9:30, balls were in the air at the Kauai Bikini Tournament! This wasn’t just rain. Did you hear about what was happening in nearby Malibu? Check it out below. Bad weather for sure! These players showed how well organized they are and the quality family support these players came to the event with. You can’t make it through a rainy day alone, and these players seemed to be very prepared for an event in uncontrollable weather, just like gulf shores a few years ago. We hope you all take those skills with you through college!
At the end of the day the sun came out for a while and the sunset college coaches clinic with USC’s Gustavo Rocha went until about 5:20 pm. Most, maybe all of these players had just spent the day at the Kauai Bikini Tournament in the pounding rain. Even so they still had a great experience with a coach who has been to the championships with USC legend Anna Collier.
The next morning under more rain the BVNE™ College Recruiting Showcase hosted players from 15 states and provinces and collegiate coaches from:
- UCLA
- USC
- Pepperdine
- Cal Berkeley
- Stanford
- UC Davis
- LMU
- Long Beach State
- TCU
- South Carolina
- ASU
- Stephen F Austin University
- Vanguard University
- WestCliff University
- University St Katherines
- California Marymount
- Cal State University Bakersfield
This was a day with calm skies and periods of pounding and loud rain. Players put on their best game with seventeen coaches watching throughout the day. These players earned their wins by staying organized and by planning ahead to stay warm when not playing and taking advantage of the conditions whenever possible. Congratulations to all the winners!
To all the players, parents, and coaches, a big thank you from BVNE. You were traveling from some places where the day before it was thirty degrees below zero. Rain was forecast for the event weekend and you put your trust in BVNE to bring you a great event after your hard work getting to Santa Monica. Everyone weathered the storm and showed college coaches who where in attendance both days that BVNE players come prepared and ready for collegiate level athletics.
We hope to see you all again June 15-16th, July 30-31st, and Oct 26-27th on our remaining national showcase weekends. BVNE will NOT cancel an event due to wind or rain. The show must always go on.
