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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Thursday, February 14, 2008 Just bury Pit Crew under 200 tons of sand I don't know about you, but I've had just about enough of this winter like I've had enough of lower back pain. Can we please dispense of the gray, the 143 straight days of not breaking 40 degrees, the gusting wind, the pelting rain and maybe get in a little beach time? Well, no. But tonight's AVP Hot Winter Nights Tour at Comcast Arena at Everett Events Center will have to serve as a temporary substitute. Hey, it's not Waikiki, but it isn't bad. Tonight, patrons will be treated to eight of the greatest beach volleyball players in the world. A spin-off from the highly successful Crocs Tour, Hot Winter Nights is in its initial season, touring cities and towns that have as much to do with the beach as the Roger Clemens' Congressional hearings have to do with truth, justice and the American way. The 19-city tour started Jan. 10 in Oklahoma City and will end Feb. 23 in Las Vegas. In between the tour has made stops in such beach resort Meccas as Minneapolis, Minn.; Columbus, Ohio; and Omaha, Neb. From Everett, the athletes appear in Portland, Ore., and Las Vegas to end the season. For the first time, observers will see the results of 200 tons of sand dumped on the arena's surface, enough to meet the AVP requirement of 12-inch deep surface of sand. From there, four men and four women will start competition in same-gender pairs in a round-robin pool to determine a men's and women's champion. Players rotate every match. Each pool has three matches, allowing every player to team up once together. Pool-play matches are one game each. The top two players with the best record move to the final and will select a partner from the remaining two players to compete for the night's title. First prize is $4,250. Beats shivering at Mukilteo State Park. n n n Ryan Appleby says he knows the nature of the reception he'll get from the Oregon Ducks student section tonight when the Huskies make their annual trek to Mac Court. A story in The Oregonian quoted one Daniel Cogan, president of the Pit Crew (is that an elected, paid position?), that Appleby, a Stanwood native, will likely be a target for the incident that originated nearly two years ago at the 2006 Pac-10 Tournament in Eugene. Remember? Ducks guard Aaron Brooks threw a forearm shiver into Appleby's face, a cheap shot that required six stitches -- in Appleby's face, not Brooks' elbow. They met on the same court in a regular-season game a year later, the first time since the incident. Brooks stuck out his hand in apparent apology. Appleby refused it. He could have accepted Brooks' hand. He didn't. It's his prerogative. Big deal. The Pit Crew, which has a long memory, apparently isn't inclined to let the issue die an overdue death and plans some witty salutation for Appleby tonight. This is the same fine group of students of higher education who heckled UCLA's Kevin Love, an Oregon native, to the point where many thought they crossed the line of decency some weeks ago. Oregon coach Ernie Kent said he has talked with members of the Pit Crew and cautioned them against taking personal shots at players. He also said the league has heckling issues everywhere. They pay for their tickets. They can yell anything they want. But this continuing trend to eviscerate opposing players for real or imagine slights, especially in this instance, toward victims of on-court assaults two years ago, is really ruining the fun of sports at all levels. Yucko. Columnist John Sleeper: sleeper@heraldnet.com. To reach Sleeper's blog, "Dangling Participles," click on www.heraldnet.com/danglingparticiples.

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