Experience Will Lead Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh to 3rd Olympic Gold

There is no doubt that the American beach volleyball team of Jen Kessy and April Ross has shown great skill and toughness throughout the women's tournament in London, but the big-match experience of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings will ultimately lead them to their third consecutive Olympic gold-medal win.

May and Walsh already make up the most accomplished team in women's beach volleyball history, but if they can win an unprecedented third gold in London, then their legacy as the best pairing ever will be firmly cemented and incredibly difficult for anyone to surpass.

Kessy and Ross are hoping to play spoiler and break through with their first Olympic gold in their first Olympics overall after missing out in Beijing, so they will obviously be a dangerous duo. Kessy and Ross are probably more explosive as a collective unit than May and Walsh, but the two-time defending Olympic champions will make up for that with savvy and familiarity.

May and Walsh have been playing together since 2000, so they have 12 years of experience as a unit. In beach volleyball, perhaps more than any other sport, it is absolutely integral that the two players sharing a side of the court have synergy and chemistry because they need to be able to communicate and know where each other are at any given time.

That isn't to say that Kessy and Ross aren't solid in that regard, but they've only been together since 2007, and this is their first time on the big stage. Kessy and Ross have had success as a unit on the professional ATP Tour and won at the World Championships in 2009, but the Olympics are a completely different animal with a greater sense of pressure.

May and Walsh have already been there and done that. The pairing faced very little adversity in its first two Olympic experiences as it didn't lose a single set and dispatched of Brazil and China in each gold-medal match respectively. That could be perceived as a negative since things have come easily, but with dominance comes confidence, and the team of May and Walsh will have plenty of that on Wednesday.

Kessy and Ross have shown a great deal of confidence throughout this tournament as well, but they have also shown some weaknesses that May and Treanor haven't. Kessy and Ross have had to scratch and claw quite a bit with three of their victories coming in three sets, while the team of May and Treanor has gone to a decisive third set on just one occasion.

Coming through in those types of tough situations shows that Kessy and Ross won't go quietly, but it also shows that an experienced team like May and Walsh can get an early advantage. Perhaps some of the other teams that got a set off of Kessy and Ross couldn't finish the job, but when May and Walsh see blood in the water, they pounce on their opponents.

The team of Kessy and Ross will likely be the biggest test yet for May and Walsh when it comes to winning yet another gold, but with this likely being the final match for the iconic pair, they will be able to draw on past successes on the Olympic stage and that will be enough to triumph one last time.

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