Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Will Cement Legacy with Third Gold Medal

The definition of beach volleyball begins and ends with the duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings. Already the most successful combination in the brief history of the Olympic sport (gold in Athens and Beijing), May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings can go down as two of the greatest Olympians if they can add a third gold medal to their resumes. May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings face fellow Americans Jennifer Kessy and April Ross tonight in the women’s beach volleyball final.

Prior to these Games, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings have stated that this will be their final Olympics competing as partners. They advanced to the gold medal match following a 22-20, 22-20 triumph over China on Tuesday.

"We want to seal the deal that we're the best team that's ever happened," Walsh Jennings said after Tuesday’s win in an Associated Press report. "Misty has changed my life. I just love her. I want to win tomorrow for us."

Although the pair has yet to drop a match in Olympic play, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings showed their first sign of vulnerability at these Games. They lost their first set together in the preliminary round against Austria 21-17. However, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings responded with a vengeance, disposing of the Austrians 21-8, 15-10 in the remaining two games.

Kessy and Ross are now served with the task of playing spoilers to May-Treanor and Walsh Jennnigs’ storybook careers. After all, Kessy and Ross fly under the radar as their American predecessors have all the expectations internally and externally of winning gold.

For Kessy and Ross to have a chance at upsetting the favorites, Kathryn Walsh, reporting for Yahoo.com, points out three areas where the underdogs must improve.

Eliminating service errors, which Kessy and Ross have had to overcome a total of 21 in their last three matches combined. Meanwhile, May-Treanor and Walsh-Jennings have committed a total of just seven over the same span.    

The Kessy-Ross pair must tighten up their overall play. This is another portion that the pair has struggled with in their previous matches. They have twice as many playing errors than their opponents, while May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings have half.

Lastly, Kessy and Ross have to build an early lead. Once May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings seize momentum, the crowd will get behind them and the match is all but over. If Kessy and Ross get a jump on their opponents, not only will they start to believe they can win, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings might start to believe that they can lose.

Either Kessy and Ross pull off a stunner or May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings go down as the greatest beach volleyball players of all time. This is what the Olympics are all about.