Nine pairs post 2-0 pool play marks in women’s Fort Lauderdale Major

Fort Lauderdale, USA, February 9, 2017 - Nine women’s international beach volleyball pairs from six countries posted 2-0 match marks after two rounds of pool play here Thursday with six of the teams in sole possession of their group leadership at the $600,000 Fort Lauderdale Major.

The first of four Swatch Major Series events on the 2017 FIVB World Tour schedule, the men’s competition in the Fort Lauderdale Major concluded pool play Thursday morning with the first round of elimination in the 24-team bracket being played Thursday afternoon and early evening.

Two rounds of men’s elimination bracket play will be played Friday to set the lineup for Saturday’s semifinal and medal matches. The women’s quarterfinals will be Saturday followed by the final four matches Sunday on the Fort Lauderdale Beach Park center court. The winning pairs will split the $50,000 first-place prizes.

Women’s pairs in sole leadership of their groups are 31st-seeded Jolien Sinnema/Joy Stubbe of the Netherlands (Pool B), third-seeded Chantal Laboureur/Julia Sude of Germany (Pool D), 13th-seeded Summer Ross/Brooke Sweat of the United States (Pool D), fifth-seeded Agatha Bednarczuk/Eduarda “Duda” Lisboa of Brazil (Pool E), 11th-seeded Heather Bansley/Brandie Wilkerson of Canada (Pool F) and ninth-seeded Barbora Hermannova/Marketa Slukova of the Czech Republic (Pool H).

Pool A features a two-team tie as top-seeded April Ross and Kerri Walsh Jennings of the United States will play 16th-seeded Fernanda Alves and Barbara Seixas of Brazil to the group title and a first-round bye in the elimination round.

The tightest group is Pool G where pairs from Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Russia are  tied at the top with 1-1 records heading into Thursday’s afternoon and early evening schedule. The top three tandems from each group advance to Friday’s two rounds of elimination bracket play at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park.