Competing in the shadows of the world champions Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser, the American beach volleyball men have seldom won medals on the Federation Internationale de Volleyball podium this season.
However, with the Beijing 2008 Olympics gold medalists opting to compete in an exhibition event in Milwaukee, WI this weekend, the podium doors were swung open for two U.S. teams at this final men's FIVB tournament.
Casey Jennings and Kevin Wong, who have previously earned medals with other partners in the past, won the gold by edging the Brazilians Benjamin Insfran and Bruno Oscar Schmidt, 21-18, 18-21 and 17-15 in The Hague, Netherlands on Sunday.
This feat is truly amazing for two reasons. First, Jennings and Wong formed their partnership just a few weeks ago, after splitting from their teammates, Brad Keenan and Casey Patterson, respectively.
Second, they barely qualified for this main tournament. Forced to play in the preliminary competition, they lost in its final round. However, due to a FIVB "lucky loser" clause, this top-seeded qualifier pair gained a spot in the main rounds due to another team's withdrawal.
With this ticket to ride, they travelled through the ranks undefeated. Along the way, this 21st seed nipped Benjamin and Bruno in a three-set match, and then defeated fellow countrymen Matt Fuerbringer and Nick Lucena in the semifinals, 21-16, 24-22.
Fuerbringer and Lucena, who accepted a silver medal after bowing to Rogers and Dalhuasser in a FIVB contest last month, grabbed a bronze over the 10th-seeded Dutch team Emiel Boersma and Daan Spijkers, 21-19, 15-21 and 15-8.
Among the American women, Tyra Turner and Angie Akers also won a bronze by defeating another Holland couple, Sanne Keizer and Marleen Van Iersel, 21-17, 23-21 and 15-12. This event marked the fourth time the U.S. duo has won a podium.
Among the other four women's teams, the seventh-ranked Misty May-Treanor and Nicole Branagh peformed the best, albeit a disappointing 13th place.
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