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Motherlode finals: Samuels returns to top, Sokolowski makes it four straight

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Austin Colbert
  

Jeff Samuels, front, loses his hat while defending against Ian Carlson, middle, and Lars Basey in the men's open division finals of the 51st Motherlode Volleyball Classic on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, at Koch Park in Aspen.
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times

Winning the Motherlode Volleyball Classic is starting to look pretty easy for both Jeff Samuels and Lena Sokolowski, despite assurances that it remains a challenging tournament to navigate.

“I don’t know if it’s ever easy to come here and win,” Samuels said following Monday’s open division doubles finals at Aspen’s Koch Park. “Once you get into the quarters, semis, and finals, you are playing good teams and mainly Colorado guys who are really comfortable with the altitude and the way the ball flies.”

Samuels played alongside Canadian Olympian Sam Schachter, beating the Colorado duo of Lars Basey and Ian Carlson in the final, 2-0. It was the third Motherlode championship for Samuels, all with different partners.

Sokolowski won her fourth straight Motherlode title on the women’s side, this time returning to play with Katie Pyles. They won, 2-0, over Lindsey Jin and Jordyn Moody.

“A perfect end to summer,” Sokolowski said. “This is definitely one of the best Colorado tournaments. Definitely the best teams usually show up here.”


Return to the mountaintop

Samuels and Schachter, who competed in both the 2016 and 2024 Summer Olympics for Canada in beach volleyball, took down Basey and Carlson by scores of 21-19 and 21-15 in the best-of-three final. Basey and Carlson paired to win the 2022 Motherlode title, beating Samuels and Mark Burik in the final that year.

Jeff Samuels points a finger after a key defensive stop in the men’s open division finals of the 51st Motherlode Volleyball Classic on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, at Koch Park in Aspen.
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times

Last year, in 2023, Basey’s brother, Gage Basey, won the 50th Motherlode alongside teammate Ty Coutts, beating Skylar Del Sol and Christian Hoover in the final.

“We came in on Monday, before the tournament … we found a connection,” Schachter said of learning to play alongside Samuels. “Just setting in general, our ball control was what I thought was the difference maker.”

Samuels, a pro player originally from Michigan, won the Motherlode for the first time in 2018 alongside teammate Casey Jennings, the husband of Olympic superstar Kerri Walsh Jennings. Samuels won again in 2021, this time with Eddie Moushikhian of Georgia.

“It was a little bit uncomfortable compared to the other matches we played,” Samuels said of this year’s final with Lars Basey and Carlson. “They really made us get after it and bring a better game than what we had to in the earlier matches. They were playing phenomenal.”

Katie Pyles plays in the women’s open division finals of the 51st Motherlode Volleyball Classic on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, at Koch Park in Aspen.
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times
Katie Pyles, back left, and Lena Sokolowski pose after winning the women’s open division final of the 51st Motherlode Volleyball Classic on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, at Koch Park in Aspen.
Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times

Four straight and counting

Pyles made the 2019 Motherlode finals alongside Cassie House, but ultimately lost to Utah’s Airial Sprague and Traci Walsh. In 2021, she first paired with Sokolowski, a native of Ukraine who like Pyles has found a home in the Denver area.

They’ve been a pretty unstoppable Motherlode force ever since.

It was the fourth straight women’s championship for Sokolowski — she’s now 4 for 4 — after taking down Jin and Moody in the final, 21-14 and 21-19. She won in both 2021 and 2022 alongside Pyles, before winning in 2023 alongside new teammate Jackie Wegner.

After a year hiatus, Sokolowski and Pyles picked up where they left off.

“I liked playing with Katie again. We took a break last year and she’s amazing at defense, everything,” said Sokolowski, who continues to be a big fan of Motherlode and has already verbally committed to returning next year. “Look at this? The balls, the umbrellas, the atmosphere, the music. It’s one of the best. You can’t miss it.”

This was the fourth tournament organized by Crested Butte’s Corey Bryndal, whose company, LetsGo Volleyball, bought the longstanding tournament in 2020.

acolbert@aspentimes.com

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