The final beach volleyball tournament of the summer wrapped up on the sands of Rehoboth Beach this past weekend.

The tradition of the tournament is to bring friends and family together for a weekend of exercise, fun and camaraderie – the kind of shared experience that keeps people coming back year after year. More than 430 players competed over two days, with Saturday featuring women’s, men’s and juniors divisions and Sunday featuring coed teams.

The team of Meghan Shoop and Katie Thompson took home the gold in the women’s top Open division, with Kate Ferster and Laura Shumway taking silver. The two pairs split their meeting in pool play, but in the finals, Shoop and Thompson took control, closing out the championship with a 25-13 victory.

The winners noted that the wind can work in their favor, and across both days, it proved to be a real factor, shaping serves, shots and game momentum.

Nikki Wilson and Cathryn Kayla Wilson took third in Women’s Open. Nikki Wilson is on a quest to play a sand tournament in all 50 states before she turns 40. At 34, she has already checked off 26 states, putting her on pace to reach her lofty goal.

In Men’s Open, the top-seeded team of James Moyer and Jacob Sledz went undefeated through pool play. Challenging Moyer and Sledz in the finals was the impressive young father-son team of Jeremy and Paxton Ayers.

Moyer and Sledz controlled the opening set, winning by a wide margin, but the second set was close at 21-19. After sealing the win in the finals, Moyer explained that his approach centers on patience and “reading” the defense – taking a moment to recognize where his opponents are positioned and then delivering the ball to the open spaces.

Saturday’s busiest women’s bracket was the doubles BB division, which drew 11 teams. The pairing of Sarah Behm and Trinity Gruber rose above the field to capture the title.

On the men’s side, the doubles BB division dominated the beach, drawing 21 teams. The team of Dennis Cohee and Matthew Servinsky outlasted top teams through three rounds of playoffs to win the stacked division.

Saturday competition also included juniors divisions, including girls triples for ages 12 and under, 14 and under and 16 and under. The team of Elisabeth DiSabatino, Julianne Holveck and Clara Kurz went undefeated in pool play and won the playoffs to finish atop the 16U triples division.

In Girls 14U, Claire Gipko, Zoe Kemmerlin and Katie Nauman prevailed in the finals to take the crown in a division of eight teams.

Sunday served up another warm and windy day. One noticeable trend was the wide age range on the sand, where one coed triples squad had players as young as 12 while other nets featured veterans in their 70s.

The “Diggin’ It” coed triples B squad was a young group that included players representing the Dewey-based Sandsharks developmental program. Despite their relative inexperience, they fought to earn a spot in the playoffs, a meaningful benchmark for any team.

Watching Sunday’s elite coed Open division made plain that Valerie Sokolow and Cameron Rodrigues were a level above the rest, finishing the day undefeated. The two standout athletes first met at a volleyball tournament and are now engaged, adding a personal storyline to their impressive performance.

In Coed Doubles A, the husband-and-wife team of Kylie and Isaac Kole outlasted the father-daughter team of Jim and Zumi Riekse to win the division.

Also on Sunday were lively contests in coed triples and sixes. The largest coed triples division was B-level, where 12 teams were registered, including the “Busty Brodericks,” “Itsy Bitsy Spikers” and “Bump, Set, Naps.” The Screwballs prevailed in the finals over No Ken No to take the trophy.

Some of the teams that played over the weekend have been together since Mid-Atlantic Volleyball first began hosting tournaments in the mid-1980s. The “Friends” team has competed in MAV’s Rehoboth tournaments for more than 30 years.

Three longtime core players – now between the ages of 68 and 72 – have enjoyed considerable success at the B and BB triples levels. As the players have gotten older, one player’s daughter and her friend have joined the roster, helping to strengthen the team and keep it competitive.

This multigenerational mix of players has become a hallmark of the event, a tradition that continues to give the tournament its distinctive local flavor.

MAV’s next Rehoboth sand tournament will be held before Memorial Day 2027.