Aug. 17, 2004

The U.S. beach volleyball team of Dax Holdren and Stein Metzger (UCLA '96) dropped a three-game decision to Norway's Iver Horrem and Bjorn Maaseide (UCLA '90) Tuesday evening at the Olympic Beach Volleyball Centre. The Norwegians won 14-21, 21-15, 16-14 in 61 minutes. "We blew it," said Metzger after the match. "We had a lot of opportunities. We just couldn't finish the second and third sets. To win at this level, you must be able to close out a match." Metzger and Holdren will meet the top-seeded Brazilian pair of Emanuel Rego and Ricardo Santos in their third pool play match on Thursday. A victory would ensure their participation in the 16-team medal play elimination round. The two teams will be meeting for the fourth-time as the Brazilians lead the series 2-1, including a win last October in the gold medal match at the 2003 FIVB World Championships in Rio de Janeiro. The Norwegians (2-0), meanwhile, will meet Andrew Schacht and Joshua Slack of Australia, who occupy the bottom of Pool A.