By Roselyn B. Monroyo
Variety News Staff

THE sixth beach volleyball qualifying tournament for the 13th Pacific Games held last Sunday at the PIC sandcourt had a better turnout than the fifth trial with nine teams joining the qualifier.
In the fifth trial, only six teams participated.
Six squads joined the men’s qualifier with the tandem of Mark McDonald and Tyce Mister ruling the division. They were undefeated in three games en route to winning their second trial and strengthening their chances to compete in the quadrennial meet.
McDonald topped the first three qualifiers with former partner Chris Nelson.
With Nelson out due to an injury, McDonald started teaming up with Mister in the fourth trial, which they won. But they failed to post back-to-back wins, when they bowed to the Russian pair of
Sergey and Gregory Kunur in the fifth qualifier on Jan. 7.
In the sixth trial, McDonald and Mister drew a bye in the first round and faced Dan Westphal and Greg Elliot in the second round.
Westphal and Elliot advanced to the second round after whipping young guns Luther Taylor and Guy Mosley, 21-6.
McDonald and Mister moved into the finals after downing Westphal and Elliot, 21-11, and clinched the sixth qualifier with a 21-16 triumph over Derrick Tudela and Marino Pungilug.
Pungilug and Tudela gained the second finals berth after thwarting NMI coach Russ Quinn and Bruce Berline in the semis, 21-28, and Kaycee Rengular and Kelvin Fitial, 21-13, in their first match.
Quinn and Berline drew a bye in the first round.
In the women’s division, Heather Kennedy and Kelley Butcher downed the youthful tandem of Nina Mosley and Melissa Halaby in the finals, 21-19, to rule the sixth trial.
Only three teams joined the women’s qualifier. The third team to participate was the pair of Laurie Peterka and Gin Gridley.
Only two qualifying tournaments are left before the organizing Northern Mariana Islands Volleyball Association selects the two teams that will represent the NMI to the Pacific Games in Apia, Samoa this August.
The series of qualifying tournaments will account for 65 percent of the selection process. Players get points in each qualifier based on how they finished in each tournament.
The players’ attendance in a series of training sessions with Quinn will account for 20 percent, while the remaining 15 percent will come from Quinn’s evaluation on each player.
Two points will be awarded to every player for attending each session. Failure to attend 50 percent or more of the training sessions will result to disqualification.
The evaluation will be based on the players’ overall fitness/shape, attitude, cooperation, skill level and techniques.