Dent’s father, Phil, was a top-10 ranked tennis player, an Australian Open finalist in 1974 and a member of the winning 1976 Australian Davis Cup team. He won the U.S. Open mixed doubles with American legend Billie Jean King in 1976, as well. Dent’s mother, Betty Ann Stuart, was a top-20 American player who made it to the U.S. Open doubles final in 1977. Both of May’s parents are accomplished volleyball players and coaches. Her father, Butch, was a member of the 1968 U.S. Olympic indoor volleyball team.

But Dent and May aren’t exactly resting on their family’s laurels.

Dent is currently ranked No. 32 in the world by the Association of Tennis Professionals. He closed out his 2003 season by earning back-to-back singles titles, defeating No.3-ranked Juan Carlos Ferrero to win the Thailand Open and nabbing the Kremlin Cup in Moscow less than two weeks later. In February, he downed world No. 1 Andy Roddick in the final of the Kroger St. Jude in Memphis, Tenn. He has reached the 4th round of two Grand Slam Tournaments, the Australian Open in 2002 and the U.S. Open this year. As one of the most promising young American players, Dent got a taste of competing for his country in 2003 – he made his Davis Cup debut in the USA’s first round loss to Croatia.

May and her partner Kerri Walsh finished the 2003 season as the No. 2-ranked beach volleyball team in the world. In October, they became the first U.S. team to claim a title at the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships, defeating two-time world champion and world No.1 Brazilians Adriana Behar and Shelda Bede in the finals in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Combined with their domestic play on the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) tour—where they became the first team to have an undefeated (39-0) season—May and Walsh won 13 titles at 16 events with a 90-4 match mark. The pair won their last 52 matches this season, including 28-straight internationally. May and Walsh were named the 2003 AVP Team of the Year for their phenomenal performance.

Though Dent and May grew up together in California, their blossoming careers make family reunions difficult.

“We see each other a fair bit, maybe five or six times a year,” says Dent. “We go to lunch and all that sort of stuff. But we don’t see each other as much as we’d like because we’re always out on the road. I follow her as much as I can and she’s doing unbelievable right now, so I’m happy for her. And she drops me an email whenever I do something good, so its fun.”

We caught up with the capable cousins to talk about their childhoods, the upcoming Olympics and Taylor’s beach volleyball career . . .

Q1: You two grew up in a very athletic extended family! Did either of you feel destined to be a great athlete?

TAYLOR DENT: For me personally, I didn’t really. My dad told me from an early age not to put that much pressure on myself. So I kind of thought it was destiny for me to be a tennis player because all of my family were tennis players, but as far as a good one or a great one, I tried not to worry about that too much.

MISTY MAY: I danced for twelve years, so at that time I did a lot of things and I didn’t really know what I was going to participate in or what I’d be good at. My parents didn’t really steer me towards volleyball. But I knew at that early age playing and being surrounded by [sports], that I would probably end up doing something athletic. I might not have gotten something the first minute, but the second minute I just knew what I was doing. Sports in general just came easily to me.

Q2: How did you get started in your respective sports?

TAYLOR DENT: I was always around it: my dad played, my mom played, my older brother played. We had a court in our back yard. It was around the time that Dad was coaching Michael Chang, so he would come over in the afternoons to hit some with Dad, and I just said, “Wow, I wish I could do that.” So I started playing when I was like ten or eleven.

MISTY MAY: Both of my parents played and I lived in Santa Monica. My parents owned a pizza stand so I grew up at Santa Monica pier and State Beach up north. I entered my first beach volleyball tournament with my dad when I was about eight. I always played indoor and I was still playing other sports, but throughout high school, on school vacations, any time off from college – I played indoor volleyball at Long Beach State -- I’d go out to the beach and play.

Q3: Taylor, you got kind of a late start in tennis! A lot of kids start playing as soon as they can hold a racquet. Were you playing other sports as a kid?

TAYLOR DENT: Um, no, I was just kind of messing around, hanging out with friends and playing Nintendo and all that sort of stuff. But yeah, my dad didn’t really want to push me into it, he wanted me to get into it on my own so I’d enjoy it longer.

MISTY MAY: He was really into his video games! He was also really into this one [Jean-Claude] Van Damme movie. We had to watch that video all the time! (laughs) He had every gadget, he had remote control planes, everything. Honestly, Taylor really didn’t start getting serious until around high school. I think maybe if he would have started out playing earlier, you know, so many athletes kind of burn out. So it’s paying off now.

Q4: Your parents were all involved in the same sports you are. What roles do your parents play in your careers these days?

TAYLOR DENT: Well, my dad travels with me now, so he’s there for my support while I’m on the road. And my mom, she just gives me support. We don’t really talk too much about tennis. I like to have a break from it mentally from time to time, so we talk about other stuff.

MISTY MAY: That’s where I started learning from, was both my parents. Both of them coached, I grew up with them coaching junior college. Even now, much like Taylor, because both of our parents know the game so well, even when you don’t want to hear about it, you’re hearing about it -- like what you’re doing wrong. [Kerri Walsh and I] have a coach, I listen to him and he’s at almost all of my U.S. events, but on the weekends I’ll go and work with my dad, so you know, he’s always coaching!

Q5: When you two were hanging out growing up, did you do athletic or competitive things together?

TAYLOR DENT: I remember hanging out over at her house all the time. I think we did other things. Actually, well, a couple of times we’d go spend the weekend at our grandma’s house, which is in Leisure World in southern California, and we’d just play doubles tennis with all of our grandmother’s friends. So that was probably the only sports activity that we did together.

MISTY MAY: We played tennis every now and then, and of course video games! We’d just run around and do what kids normally do.

Q6: The two of you did a T.V. special together in Fort Lauderdale, Fl. What was that like?

TAYLOR DENT: She had a tournament in Fort Lauderdale and I was doing something else in Miami, and it just worked out that I could fly down and see her, say hi, and she was teaching me how to play volleyball.

MISTY MAY: It was fun for me to get Taylor out there and meet the people he’s involved with, like I met Tim Curry from the U.S. Tennis Association. Our schedules conflict so much – I try to catch him on T.V., but I’m in Europe when he’s playing. It’s hard, we don’t see too much of each other these days just because our schedules are so hectic. So it was great seeing him out there and doing something with him.

Q7: How did the beach volleyball go, Taylor? Are you ready for your cross-over career?

TAYLOR DENT: No, I’m horrible! I’m so bad. But I’ve been practicing, actually. It kind of gave me the bug so I’ve been doing a lot of volleyball now for cross training. You’re working in the sand if you play on the beach, so it’s great for your explosion. And you’re basically sprinting the whole time, so it’s great for your tennis.

MISTY MAY: He wasn’t bad, I’ve seen worse! Tennis players are the ones that catch on to beach volleyball the fastest because of the hand-eye coordination. Even baseball players, I’ve brought baseball players out to the sand and they may not know what they’re doing but they catch on quick! Running on the sand would be great for Taylor, plus it’s easier on his knees and he has a lot of knee problems. But I think his vertical he needs to improve a little! (laughs)

Q8: Misty, do you still play tennis?

MISTY MAY: Not really. If I do, I go and mess around with friends. I don’t have much time for it -- maybe after the Olympics.

Q9: Taylor, if somebody had told you when you turned pro in 1998 that you’d be a top contender for an Olympic spot in 2004, what would your reaction have been?

TAYLOR DENT: I would have said, “Okay, well good, that’s what I’m working for.” (laughs) “I’d hope the work is paying off, so that’s good.”

Q10: What would it be like for your family to have two athletes competing in the same Olympics?

TAYLOR DENT: It would be fun. I’m sure we’d get together after the Olympics are over and talk about it and just share experiences. So it would be fun, my mom would love it.

MISTY MAY: I think it’ll be exciting, but it’ll be hard because what if we play at the same time? No, just kidding! Actually, you know what? It’ll be more expensive for the family, because they’ll have to buy two event tickets! It’ll be fun, and hopefully a story comes out of it or something. But I’m definitely excited, I think it’s going to be awesome!