Much has changed since Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings‘ last Olympic gold medal in Beijing. Fortunately for the “Golden Girls,” their dominance in Olympic beach volleyball has not.

Earlier today, the U.S. team of May and Walsh defeated the Chinese team of Chen Xue and Xi Zhang in straight sets 22-20, 22-20. However, the match was anything but easy for May and Walsh who entered the Olympics seeded behind the Chinese. Though many still favored May and Walsh because of their strong play under pressure and notable Olympic experience, the beginning of the match did not seem promising for a third straight gold medal for the “Golden Girls.” Early in the first set, May and Walsh found themselves down 13-7. In a testament to their calm and experience, May and Walsh showed no panic, but instead did exactly what viewers expected them to do: came back fighting. Walsh demonstrated her skills with an ace and four blocks, one of which put the U.S. up 21-20 in the first set. Zhang then made a key mistake for China and hit the next ball into the net, giving the first set to May and Walsh. Although the Americans came up stronger in the second set and led at one point 12-8, they were unable to hold the lead and found themselves down 20-19 with the Chinese at set point. One point apiece by Walsh and then May gave the Americans match point and Walsh’s following emphatic block of Zhang ended the match. In celebration of advancing to finals, May raised her fists in the air in celebration.

In the other semifinal match, the question as to who May and Walsh would play for the gold was answered when Jen Kessy and April Ross stunned the Brazilians with a 15-21, 21-19, 15-12 three set victory over the top ranked Larissa França and Juliana Felisberta Da Silva of Brazil. The Americans were completely outmatched in the first set and were in danger of losing the second set and the match until they stormed back to take the lead 18-16 and held on to win 21-19. They then jumped out to a 9-6 lead in the third set and held on to defeat the Brazilians even as heavy rain began to fall. Although they won the first set of the day, França and Silva revealed their lack of team unity as the match went on, even shouting at each other during a timeout late in the match. Now that Ross and Kessy have defied the odds and pulled off an impressive win, they will face off against May and Walsh in the finals tomorrow, guaranteeing both gold and silver for the United States. #