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Theo Brunner

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Theo Brunner
Brunner at the 2015 Beach Volleyball World Championships
Personal information
Full nameTheodore Allan Brunner
NationalityAmerican
Born (1985-03-17) March 17, 1985 (age 39)
Palo Alto, California, U.S.
HometownRidgefield, Connecticut, U.S.
Height6 ft 7 in (201 cm)
Weight201 lb (91 kg)
College / UniversityUC Santa Barbara Gauchos
Beach volleyball information
Current teammate
Years Teammate
2018– John Hyden
Previous teammates
Years Teammate
2006–2007
2008
2009

2010
2013

2014–2016
2017		 B. Brockman
Andy McGuire, P. Silva
Aaron Mansfield, M. Heagy,
D. Olson
Jon Mesko, A. Mansfield
David McKienzie, Nick Lucena,
Todd Rogers, Casey Jennings
Todd Rogers, John Mayer
Casey Patterson
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Men's beach volleyball
World Tour
Gold medal – first place 2021 Rubavu Beach
Gold medal – first place 2023 Espinho Beach
Gold medal – first place 2024 Guadalajara Beach
Silver medal – second place 2019 Kuala Lumpur Beach
Silver medal – second place 2023 Haikou Beach
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Long Beach Beach
Bronze medal – third place 2015 St. Petersburg Beach
Men's volleyball
Pan-American Cup
Gold medal – first place 2010 San Juan

Theodore Allan Brunner (born March 17, 1985) is an American professional beach volleyball player who is a member of the United States men's national A2 beach volleyball team and has also featured for the United States men's national A2 volleyball team.

Playing career

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Youth and collegiate

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Brunner was born in Palo Alto, California, but raised in Ridgefield, Connecticut where he attended Ridgefield High School and played for the school team.[1] After graduation, he enrolled at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

In college, Brunner competed with the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's indoor volleyball team. Despite redshirting his freshman year in 2004, Brunner quickly became a key player for the Gauchos. In 2007, Brunner was named an AVCA First Team All American along with UCSB teammate Evan Patak.[2] He was named co-captain of the team in 2008.

Professional

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Rough start

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Brunner's first taste of professional beach volleyball was in the 2006 Manhattan Beach Open, which he participated in with UCSB teammate Ben Brockman. They lost by forfeit in their first qualifying match. The duo participated in the 2007 version, losing 2 sets to 1 in their first qualifying match. 2008 saw the first of Brunner's partner swaps, participating in May's Huntington Beach Open with another UCSB teammate, Andy McGuire. The Brunner/McGuire combination won their first qualifying match before falling in their second. July's Long Beach Open saw Brunner pair with Phil Silva.

Aaron Mansfield era

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He competed in seven events in 2009, nearly doubling the number of events he previously competed in. He began 2009 with yet another UCSB teammate, Aaron Mansfield, before competing with Matt Heagy and Derek Olson, then ultimately reverting to Mansfield to complete the season. Brunner advanced for the first time out of the qualifying rounds and into the Winners Bracket with Olsen in July's Coney Island Open, falling to John Mayer and Jeff Nygaard. It marked the first time in Brunner's career that he finished in the money — $240.

2010 saw Mansfield and Brunner partner for two of the three tournaments Brunner participated in. The lone exception was the first tournament that Brunner participated in in 2010, the Virginia Beach Open, which he paired up with Jon Mesko. Unfortunately, the Association of Volleyball Professionals cancelled the remainder of the season right before the 2010 Manhattan Beach Open due to financial difficulty.[3]

Return to indoor volleyball

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In the 2009 beach volleyball off season, Brunner returned indoor volleyball.[4] He (stylized in Greek as Θίοντορ Μπρούνερ) signed professional terms with P.A.O.K. Thessaloniki V.C. and was presented in September 2009,[5] after a delay with his visa.[6] He was named to the World All-Stars team, played on September 28, 2009, for the A1 Ethniki Volleyball league.[7]

Brunner left Greece to join Italian-side Marmi Lanza Verona of the Serie A1 in June 2010[8] and was presented as a player on September 10, 2010.[9] He spent the season with them before moving to CMC Ravenna in August 2011.[10][11]

He signed with German club Generali Haching in June 2012.[12] In September 2012 it was announced that after a medical checkup, it was discovered that Brunner had a heart problem and he left the team.[13][14][15] His former club, Marmi Lanza Verona, issued a statement saying that they found no issues when he was a player for their team.[16]

Back to the beach with Nick Lucena

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After leaving Generali Haching in late 2012, Brunner signed up with partner David McKienzie, a US National Team player, for National Volleyball League's Texas Championships in Dallas, Texas. The partnership lasted just for this tournament.

2013 also marked the rebirth of the Association of Volleyball Professionals tour, which Brunner partnered with Nick Lucena to compete in. The duo proved fruitful as they achieved top-five finishes in all but one of the seven tournaments they entered. The Brunner/Lucena duo also produced Brunner's first professional tournament win in the 2013 AVP Championships at Huntington Beach on October 20, 2013.[17] He was named the AVP Men’s Best Blocker at the conclusion of the 2013 season.[18]

In addition to the NVL and AVP tour dates, Brunner participated in three NORCECA Beach Volleyball Circuit with Lucena, winning once[19] as well as two 2013 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour dates with Todd Rogers and Casey Jennings.

Todd Rogers era

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In 2014, Brunner and fellow UC Santa Barbara alum Todd Rogers paired up on a more permanent basis after having played together in 2013. Brunner played all but one tournament with him (playing with John Mayer in the 2014 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour São Paulo Grand Slam). He finished all but five matches with Rogers in fifth place or better.

Chaim Schalk and Trevor Crabb

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In 2023, Brunner, who was named AVP's Blocker of the Year,[20] teamed up with Trevor Crabb after ending his partnership with Chaim Schalk, who paired up with Tri Bourne, who was Trevor Crabb's former partner. [21]

In 2024, Brunner-Crabb team won the AVP Manhattan Beach Open, defeating 2024 Olympians Andrew Benesh and Miles Partain. This was Brunner's first Manhattan Beach Open victory.[20]

International

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Brunner, despite focusing the majority of his post-collegiate career on beach volleyball, played with the United States men's national A2 volleyball team for the 2010 Men's Pan-American Volleyball Cup and won a gold medal.[22]

References

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  1. ^ Murphy, Tim (August 29, 2014). "Fresh off win in Cuba, Brunner heads to Atlantic City for beach tourney". The Ridgefield Press. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  2. ^ "2007 DI-II All America Team". American Volleyball Coaches Association. May 2, 2007. Archived from the original on September 29, 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  3. ^ Myers, Laura (July 24, 2010). "AVP alerts players about beach volleyball tour's financial troubles". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  4. ^ Murphy, Tim (January 7, 2014). "Brunner has clear goal: Make U.S. Olympic beach volleyball team". Ridgefield Press. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  5. ^ "Παρουσίασε τα νέα του αποκτήματα o ΠΑΟΚ". Sport24.gr (in Greek). September 29, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  6. ^ ΔΟΕ: Επτά αθλήματα ζητούν θέση στους Ολυμπιακούς. Eleftherotypia (in Greek). August 12, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  7. ^ "Οι "εκλεκτοί" για το All Star Game". Sport24.gr (in Greek). September 18, 2009. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  8. ^ Καρακούσης, Φώτης (June 14, 2010). Πάει και ο Μπρούνερ. gazzetta.gr (in Greek). Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  9. ^ "VENERDI' LA PRESENTAZIONE DI THEODORE BRUNNER" (in Greek). Archived from the original on October 1, 2010. Retrieved September 26, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. ^ "Pallavolo, presentati i nuovi volti della Cmc Ravenna". ravenna24ore.it (in Italian). August 4, 2011. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  11. ^ "Gasparini arriva in Italia Nuovo opposto di Verona". Corriere dello Sport – Stadio (in Italian). May 27, 2011. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  12. ^ "Haching holt US-Boy" (in German). Abendzeitung. June 13, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  13. ^ Dimitrov, Yavor (July 30, 2014). "Beach volleyball back to its origins". VolleyCountry.com. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  14. ^ Wessels, Jochen (September 7, 2012). "Plötzlicher Abschied von Generali Haching: "Theo darf nie mehr Leistungssport machen!"" (in German). Generali Haching. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  15. ^ "GER M: Brunner must stop because of heart problems". World of Volley. September 8, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  16. ^ "Chiarimenti sull'ex tesserato Theodore Brunner" (in Italian). Marmi Lanza Verona. September 11, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
  17. ^ Pucin, Diane (October 20, 2013). "Theodore Brunner, Nick Lucena win AVP men's volleyball championship". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 5, 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  18. ^ "Best USA Volleyball Players of 2013". volleywood.net. January 18, 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  19. ^ "Theo Brunner and Nick Lucena fought off a challenge from compatriots". NORCECA. October 6, 2013. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  20. ^ a b Royer, Benjamin. Trevor Crabb and Theo Brunner reign supreme with Manhattan Beach Open crown. Los Angeles Times. Aug. 18, 2024. https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2024-08-18/manhattan-beach-open-finals-trevor-crabb-wins
  21. ^ Schuermann, Kim. A Few Switcheroos on the AVP. AVP. January 09, 2023. https://avp.com/news/avp-partner-changes-2023/
  22. ^ Hoeptner Evans, B.J. (May 29, 2010). "U.S. Men's A2 Team Wins Pan American Cup Gold". USA Volleyball. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
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