JOLIET, Ill. -- Qualifying for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoff opener at Chicagoland Speedway was canceled because of rain Friday for the third consecutive year.The lineup for Sundays 400-mile race will be based on the playoff seeding, putting Kyle Busch on the pole with Brad Keselowski joining him on the front row.Denny Hamlin will start third, followed by Kevin Harvick,?Carl Edwards?and Martin Truex Jr. The 16 drivers who qualified for the 10-race playoff will all start at the front of the field.Busch is seeking his second straight Sprint Cup title. Hell need to advance past two elimination rounds to get into the group of four drivers eligible going into the last race Nov. 20 at Homestead.We kind of look at this round as dont make any mistakes, Busch said. Just kind of keep preparing yourself, keep getting ready for how the pressure will continue to rise.Rain started falling at midday and wiped out the only Sprint Cup practice scheduled at the 1.5-mile asphalt oval before the evening qualifying. The weather later cleared, and an hourlong Sprint Cup practice was added around dusk.Jimmie Johnson, who will start eighth Sunday, was the fastest in that session, followed by Edwards and Hamlin.Johnson has never won at Chicagoland and hasnt made it out of the second round in the two years of the elimination format.Theres a lot of optimism and a lot of great things happening, Johnson said. We just need to deliver consistently and execute at the track.Alex Bowman, filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr.?as he recovers from a concussion, spun out in the closing seconds of practice trying to get onto pit road. He didnt appear to damage his car.Regan Smith, who will start 33rd based on the standings, left the track to return home after his wife went into labor. Ty Dillon filled in during the practice session, but its possible Smith will return for Sundays race.Big thanks to everybody who helped me back and those who offered, Smith tweeted after landing in North Carolina.With only 40 cars entered, none were eliminated without a qualifying session. The teams are scheduled for a final practice Saturday before the 267-lap race.Pittsburgh Pirates Pro Shop .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Stitched Pirates Jerseys . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. https://www.cheappiratesjerseys.us/ . Malkin got tangled up with Detroits Luke Glendening early in the third period and his left skate took the brunt of collision with the boards behind Pittsburghs net. Custom Pittsburgh Pirates Jerseys .Y. -- Injured Buffalo Sabres forward Marcus Foligno did not practice with the team Monday and head coach Ron Rolston said its unlikely hell play in Wednesdays season opener in Detroit. Cheap Pirates Jerseys . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost.THE 2 EVENTS1 mens tournament1 womens tournamentTHE FORMAT24 teams of 2 players, split into 6 groups. The top 2 in each group advance to the second round, along with 4 of the 6 third-placed teams. A knock-out phase then leads from the round of 16 to the final.MILESTONES1895Volleyball is invented by the American William G. Morgan.1920sBeach volleyball starts to gain popularity on the beaches of California and later spreads to Europe, becoming the main sport of Frances nudist colonies.1950sBeach volleyball is taken a stage further as the first competition circuit is born, involving hundreds of enthusiasts and five Californian beaches.1960sIntroduction of sponsors and cash prizes. Celebrities including John F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and the Beatles help to promote the sport.1983Founding of the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP).1987The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) establishes the mens world championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - an important step in the struggle for prominence between the FIVB and the AVP.1989Creation of the World Tour, which atttracts huge crowds.dddddddddddd1996Beach volleyball makes its Olympic debut at the Atlanta Games.2003Merging of the FIVB and AVP circuits begins.STARSKarch Kiraly (United States)The all-rounder. Winner of two volleyball gold medals in 1984 and 1988, he added a third Olympic title by winning the first beach volleyball gold in 1996. World champion in 1986 and European Cup winner in 1992.Sandra Pires (Brazil)The pioneer. With her compatriot Jacqueline Silva, the Brazilian won the first womens Olympic beach volleyball gold in 1996. Added the the world title in 1997 before winning Olympic bronze in 2000 with Adriana Samuel.Kerri Walsh Jennings & Misty May-Treanor (United States)Considered the greatest beach volleyball team of all time, Kerri Walsh Jennings and Misty May-Treanor have won gold at three consecutive Olympics (2004, 2008, 2012) without losing any of their 21 matches. The American duo are also triple world champions (2003, 2005, 2007). ' ' '