week 3

The Rockaway Beach Volleyball League was greeted with the most perfect volleyball weather possible on Wednesday night – warm but not hot with a sinking sun line and virtually no wind at all. Hopefully, all players enjoyed the night because probability indicates next week could be a bear. Or the RBVL winning weather streak will continue on. No weekly party was scheduled this week and players spent time visiting their favorite neighborhood haunts as well as staying on the boardwalk at the Riis Park Bazaar. With ideal weather, staying at the beach seemed like a pretty good idea. In the Ocean Division old rivals Freedhand’s and Bungalow Bar and Restaurant sit tied for first with 12-3 records, which are the same records that Eh-Stay and JG Electric lead the Ocean Breeze. Three divisions have teams threatening to run away with the regular season title. The Wave has Pico at 15-0; the Sun has the Newtown Sharks at 14-1 while the Star has DysFUNctional at 14-1, too. Once again we ask, “Has DysFUNctional become functional?” Wow, again!

Rock Beach includes three members of the Band, "Wine with Sue" (hence the "Rock" part) and plays ball at the beach (hence the "Beach" part). Wednesday night they took all five games from the Beach House (whose original members were all firemen from a firehouse at the beach, hence the Beach House), behind the steady serving of Sean "Shevy" and Donny Sautner and steady sets from Elaine and Karen. Next up is the big 1-2 showdown with The Newtown Sharks, who look kind of young according to John Burke. John thinks the team may need a curfew next Tuesday night. The Stanii played It's 5 O’clock Somewhere in "The Battle of The Veterans." In a well played match by both teams, the Stanii may have won 4- 1, but each game was close with amazing long volleys and saves on both sides. Star players Erin and Patty gave support to their weaker links throughout the match and both were exhausted by game 5. Kudos to Susie, Debbie, Maggie and Donna for teaching their male teammates how to play the game.

Last Call won 4 this week against the Social Yachties, only losing the “Janice" game. Everything is coming up roses for super-setter Daisy despite Grandpa Brown’s weakened state due to his Ramadan diet. The Beer Dude is on his own “vodka" diet. The cooler was getting too heavy so now it’s airline bottles only. Did anyone notice he sure did leave in a hurry? I guess he has his orders. Augie has to fine tune his selective serves or else he will be subject to an EEO complaint. Ryan Air was cruising high above the net this week and Nicole has raised Last Call’s game by bringing her mad skills and making it look easy. Casino Auto Body took a 5-0 whooping despite forcing 4 games to overtime, including game 5 which ended up 28-26 in Pico’s favor. It was a great game but it was very dark at the end. Aviator will sponsor a volleyball tournament at Aviator on July 1^st and 2^nd. They are only accepting 20 teams each consisting of a minimum of six players and a maximum of 10 players with at least two females on the court at all times. The entry fee is $325 per team and every team is guaranteed at least four games over the two days. 1^st place walks away with $1,500 cash; 2^nd place receives $500 cash; 3^rd place receives 50% off of their Aviator fall volleyball league entry fee. For more information and to register call (718) 758-7569. Good luck to all entrants.

This season the RBVL has a lack of staff writers so you may not see anyone at the beach or bar typing up your silly team stories, which we all love. However, captains are reminded that they can have items entered in the weekly Wave article by e-mailing Joe at jmcgivney2@nyc.rr.com by 11 PM on Wednesday night. So far, hardly anyone has submitted items and your articles will get shorter and shorter each week. And that’s OK if that’s your choice. Otherwise, send a sentence or two to be printed. Maria Perez is a reporter/photographer from the Wave and she will be taking pictures at the beach each week. Make her feel welcome at our Wednesday night extravaganza. Thanks again to all of the RBVL sponsors. The league would not flourish without your financial support and is very grateful for your help. Players should consider using some of the many league sponsors for personal items. After all, these businesses supported you when you needed them; why not return the favor and support them if you need services they provide.

As a reminder, the RBVL has gone “green” and the Rules and 2017 Schedules are posted on the website. If you have any questions along the way please contact Steve Gifford via e-mail at irvman331@verizon.net.

See you on the beach!