VOLLEYBALL / MANHATTAN BEACH OPEN : Serving Consistency Carries Steffes-Kiraly

Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes, the third-seeded team, easily defeated Scott Ayakatubby and Steve Timmons, 15-5, Sunday in the final of the Off Shore Manhattan Beach Open.

Kiraly has won four Manhattan Beach Opens, including last year’s with Brent Frohoff. The winners’ share was $15,750.

Kiraly, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, praised his partner’s consistent play. Thirteen of the team’s points were scored on Steffes’ jump serve. At 4-3, Steffes, 23, served seven consecutive points for an 11-3 lead.

“Kent played superbly. He’s amazing,” Kiraly said. “What people were saying about him was true. He’s playing with a lot more confidence and he’s a lot more aggressive than last year.”

Kiraly recently got back from Italy, where he competes in a pro indoor league. He and Steffes placed fifth in their first tournament (Cape Cod) and they won last week’s at Belmar Beach, N.J.

“He’s a tough competitor,” said Timmons, Kiraly’s teammate on the U.S. national team and in Italy. “I love playing against him. I play against him in practice. Hopefully, I learned something today.”

Ayakatubby and Timmons, seeded eighth, earned a spot in the championship final by defeating top-seeded Sinjin Smith and Randy Stoklos, 15-10, in the finals of the losers’ bracket.

Ayakatubby-Timmons dropped into the losers’ bracket after a 15-5 loss to Kiraly-Steffes in the semifinals of the winners’ bracket. They will split $9,750 and third-place Smith-Stoklos will divide $7,500. Second-seeded Tim Hovland and Frohoff placed seventh after a 15-13 loss to 11th-seeded Rudy Dvorak and Craig Moothard in the losers’ bracket.

Smith and Stoklos have won 12 tournaments on this year’s tour, but they haven’t reached the finals in two weeks. Stoklos delivered a long speech to reporters after being eliminated by Ayakatubby-Timmons.

“Honestly, I think this is the rudest crowd I’ve played in front of. Their tactics are just not healthy for the game. For such a grand tournament . . . it’s like I don’t even want to come back and play here anymore and that’s sad because I won my first tournament here.”

Kiraly says he strongly disagrees with Stoklos.

“Everything bothers them, everything,” Kiraly said. “Timmons lives in Hermosa Beach and Ayakatubby is the god of Hermosa, so you have to expect the crowd to do that.

“We’re professionals. I’m used to getting heckled by 30,000 fans in Italy, so this is nothing.”