Maria Menounos will be spending the weekend brushing off sand instead of playing on the pro beach volleyball tour.
Maria and partner Jesse Cooper missed out on their chance to qualify for the AVP’s Huntington Beach Open when they were swept in straight sets by Bianca Peigler and Shannon Smeed 21-7, 21-10 on Thursday.
“It went amazing,” Maria said. “Unfortunately, not that amazing because I didn’t make the team, but I learned a lot from my partner, Jessie, and I had a blast.”
Fifty-four teams played in the open women’s qualifier, attempting to earn one of four spots in the 24-team main draw. It was Maria’s first attempt to play on the pro circuit.
“She fell in the sand, she got down and dirty with it,” said Cooper, who has been on the tour for four years. “A few aces thrown in there and a lot of fun and good cheer!”
Maria, a Medford, Mass., native and former Miss Massachusetts Teen USA, plays volleyball with friends but has no collegiate or professional volleyball experience.
“We’re here on the beach, it’s a gorgeous day and there are a lot of beautiful people here,” she said. “I think I want to give everything up and become a beach bum at this point.”
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