Lambert in his element on the sand

HUNTINGTON BEACH — Mike Lambert doesn’t stir up quite enough drama or controversy to be labeled as the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals’ version of Terrell Owens, but his antics and personality tend to stand out from other players on the tour.

Most matches at the Cuervo Gold Crown Huntington Beach Open have remained fairly quiet while the ball is in play, with fans clapping and cheering when a team scores a point, then quieting down again.

But when Lambert, who lives in Costa Mesa, and his partner Stein Metzger play, it’s easy to find them, usually because there’s laughter coming from the crowd surrounding their court.

Lambert and Metzger yell at themselves, at each other, at officials. Their personalities, Lambert’s in particular, overtake the black lines surrounding the court and pour into the crowd, and their fans lap it up.

“Are you SERIOUS,” Lambert shouted, albeit good-naturedly, when a referee ruled Saturday that his serve was outside the black line.

The crowd surrounding court two tittered with laughter.

A group of Lambert-Metzger fans stood behind their umbrella and talked to the pair during a timeout.

“Can we go on tour with you,” one asked.

“If we keep winning,” Metzger replied

“Seriously, we will get you though,” the fan continued. “We will talk junk to everyone else!”

Minutes later, Lambert rallied and scored on his former partner Karch Kiraly and pointed at his fans, similar to the way presidential candidates point.

Friday afternoon, Lambert and Metzger were gesticulating wildly, then conferencing with the referees on two different calls they said were in because the black line moved when the ball hit it.

They didn’t get the calls, but won anyway, and today will play Nick Lucena and Will Strickland in the semifinals.

Lambert dismissed the histrionics as “just the nature of beach volleyball,” but said part of it comes from being so comfortable with his partner.

“Stein and I go a long ways back, and we still can’t believe that this is our real job, playing a sport that we used to play for milkshakes back in Hawaii,” Lambert said. “You just gotta be able to take a step back and realize what a blessing it is to be doing something you love, and that’s when the personality comes out. It’s like, ‘hey, gosh! I’m having a good time. Playing beach volleyball, that’s my job. This is fun.’”

It was Lambert who wrote and performed the tour’s official anthem in 2004 and 2005: “We are the AVP” and “I Love the AVP.”

Newport Harbor alumnus Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh advanced to the women’s semifinals, defeating Dianne DeNecochea and Barbra Fontana 21-13, 21-19. April Ross, another Newport Harbor graduate, and her partner Jennifer Boss, lost to Tyra Turner and Rachel Wacholder 15-21, 21-16, 15-13. They moved to the losers’ bracket and will play DeNecochea and Fontana in the quarterfinals.

Costa Mesa resident Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal lost Saturday to John Hyden and Brad Keenan, and moved to the losers’ bracket. They will play Anthony Medel and Fred Souza.

SORAYA NADIA McDONALD may be reached at (714) 966-4613 or [email protected].