London 2012 Beach Volleyball: Which USA Squad Will Win Women's Final Clash?

Predicting Olympic matchups has always been easy for me. Just go with the USA. Otherwise, I'm not truly American.

With the women's beach volleyball final, it won't be quite that simple. 

That's because after Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh wiped out the Chinese team in straight sets, countrywomen Jen Kessy and April Ross had to go and beat the No. 1-ranked Brazilian duo, setting up an all-USA women's final. 

I guess I can cope, but the hard part remains: picking a winner.

The short answer to that predicament is simple. Never, ever, ever pick against May-Treanor and Walsh in a beach volleyball game.

Not against a younger, taller, higher-ranked Chinese team. Not if they are 99-year-old grandmas participating in a celebrity game. Not if they are taking on fellow Americans. 

You just don't do it. 

Dating back to the 2004 Olympics, the dynamic duo has been 20-for-20 in Olympic matches. They have won more gold medals (two) than they have lost sets (one). 

They are successful outside of the Olympics, too, as evidenced by their 112-match winning streak that dated from 2007 to 2008 and their three World Championship gold medals. No matter what beach, losing just isn't usually an option for these two. 

Of course, that's not always the case.

At the 2011 World Championships in Rome, May-Treanor and Walsh slipped up against the Brazlians, settling for silver. Luckily enough, Kessy and Ross went and took out that duo for them in London. 

In 2009, when May-Treanor and Walsh were on a hiatus, Kessy and Ross took advantage, grabbing gold at the World Championships in Stavenger.

Nonetheless, it's always been May-Treanor and Walsh as the No. 1 Americans and then everyone else. The combination of May-Treanor's spiking and digging ability and Walsh's ability to rack up blocks at the net is clearly second to none, and that will continue even against fellow USA countrywomen.

In the hours leading up to Wednesday's final, you'll inevitably hear about May-Treanor and Walsh possibly "passing the torch" to Kessy and Ross, but that won't really be accurate.

The defending Olympic champs have a combined age of 68, but the former teammates are also up there at 65. This could very well be the last Olympics for both teams. So don't assume it's the up-and-coming youngsters against the wily veterans, because it's not. 

Instead, it's the talented veterans with one gold medal under their belts against the even-better Americans with five gold medals under their belts. 

It will be a hard-fought battle between two deserving teams, but history speaks for itself. I know who I'm predicting for gold:

Team USA. 

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