Dingleberries take PIC title

After finishing the season in second place, Taula Peter’s Dingleberries defeated the pride of the Yellow Division in back-to-back games to take the 8th Annual Miller Lite Coed Four-Person Volleyball League championship at the Pacific Islands Club.

In a battle between a pair of divisional runner-ops, the Dingleberries beat captain Michael Ray’s Pulullun Part II in straight sets, 11-9 and 11-6, and walked away with a number of PIC Waterpark passes in addition to the $200 cash prize.

Peter and left-handed power hitter Jess Palacios provided the thunder for the Dingleberries, while Linda Anastacio, Greg Elliot, and Evan “Attila The” Hunsberger sent strong serves to the competition and set up their teammates with precision passes.

After falling behind 8-7 in the opening set, Peter’s squad rallied to take the lead before drawing first blood in the finals, 11-9. Linda Anastacio’s underrated underhanded serve put the Dingleberries ahead early into the second set as well and they never lost the advantage despite a number of close calls throughout the night.

On the other side of the court, Apple Sampson and Ken Tanzawa combined for a number of points with their work at the net, while Ray, Kimiko Hasegawa, and Su Jung Lee came up big at key times of the game.

While the teams put on a display of quality play for all who traveled to San Antonio for the match-up, their upset wins in the semifinals over the top-ranked teams from the regular season were just as exciting.

The Blue Division runner-ups first dispatched the Yellow Division champs We’re All Going Streaking by taking two of three sets from Dale “Dread Pirate” Roberts and company.

Peter’s ballers took the opener, 11-8, but the Streakers turned the table in the second set as Chad Capps and Bill Owens hammered everything that Hank Magofña set for them, while Amanda Puleo continued to impress spectators with her unflappable play on the line.

The rubber match went down to the wire and the experience of Peter’s team carried the Dingleberries through in the clutch with an 11-9 win. Pulullun Part II didn’t have the same sort of struggle in the first match of the night as they capitalized on Kraken’s lack of players to reach the finals.

Without the talents of Chris Nelson and Randy Steele, Kraken was forced to play with three players and a PIC hotel guest as captain Scott Eck, Laurie Peterka, and Beverly Cabanatan did their best with random tourists on their side.

After opening with an 11-4 win, Pulullun Part II kept up the momentum in the second to clinch the game with a lopsided 11-1 victory to punch its ticket to the finals.

Kraken lost out in the battle for third place as well thanks to a complete We’re All Going Streaking squad that was ready for revenge after losing in the semifinals. Robert’s crew knocked out 11-4 and 11-2 wins to hand Kraken a disappointing exit from the postseason tournament.