EL SEGUNDO, CALIF. - Lisa Arce and Holly McPeak began their march to the $300,000 World Championship of Beach Volleyball by winning the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour event in Pusan, Korea last weekend (August 14-17).

Step No. 2 for the Evian Women's Pro Beach Volleyball Tour's top- ranked team is at the end of the month in Colorado at the inaugural Aspen Classic August 30-31.

The third and final step for Arce and McPeak is September 10-13 at the UCLA Tennis Center in Los Angeles, Calif., when the 32 women's pro beach volleyball teams vie in the World Championships.

With the Korea win, Arce and McPeak have now won 14 pro beach volleyball titles together in 25 career starts. Seeded second in Korea, Arce and McPeak won two of three sets (12-4, 11-12 and 12-7) in defeating Monica Rodrigues and Adriana Samuel of Brazil, the silver medalists at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

The $50,000 Aspen Classic will feature a single-elimination format with each match featuring best of three competition as the top 16 Evian Tour teams battle for the $11,000 first-place prize at the Silver Circle Ice Arena.

The Aspen Classic will be held in conjunction with the 25th annual Motherlode Volleyball Classic, the United States' premiere pro-am event. The Motherlode Volleyball Classic will attract over 600 pro-am teams competing in eight men's and five women's divisions.

In addition to the inaugural Aspen Classic, the Women's Professional Volleyball Association will have players competing in the Women's Open event at the Motherlode August 30-September 1.

The Aspen Classic will feature eight matches from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. (MDT) August 30. Seven matches will be played August 31 starting at 9 a.m. with the finals set for 3 p.m. The Aspen Classic will be taped by Echo Entertainment of Encino, Calif., for national distribution September 2 on FOX Sports.

Arce and McPeak, who have won nine of the 16 events they have entered this season, have now teamed to win $93,000 on the international tour this season enroute to a 30-7 match record. Arce and McPeak have now posted a 136-22 (86.1 percent) career match mark together to share $343,550 in pro beach volleyball earnings.

The title was the 48th of McPeak's pro beach volleyball career, including nine FIVB crowns. Arce, who played with McPeak at both Mira Costa High School (Manhattan Beach) and Cal-Berkeley, captured here 14th pro title with three international championships.