The U.S. team will face the reigning world champions Agatha Bednarczuk and Barbara Seixas of Brazil.
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Kerri Walsh Jennings’ dream run at the Olympics came to an end when the U.S. lost to hosts Brazil in the women’s beach volleyball Semi-finals at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
In the second set, Ross and Walsh Jennings led only once and tied the Brazilians three times at 8s, 9s and 11s before Agatha came up with big plays to dishearten the Americans.
Kerri Walsh Jennings lost her first ever Olympic match on Tuesday. “What matters today is that we stayed together, between us and the crowd with us, cheering at every point and still cheering now”.
The Americans lost a contentious first set, 22-20, and battled in the second but ultimately fell 21-18.
Agatha and Barbara, meanwhile, will meet the German pair of Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst for the gold medal.
“This is a awful feeling”, she said afterward, unhappy with the way she played. Aside from being one of the most freakishly athletic sequences of these Olympics, the rally captured the overall flavor of this match. “I love my life and the fact that I can live in that space a lot”. “Volleyball will kind of be the foundation of it, but we want to talk about character and team-building and what it takes to be great in life”.
These were the first Olympic Games that Walsh Jennings teamed up with Ross.
“It’s just a little bump in the road, something that obviously I wish I didn’t have to deal with”.
April is a victor in her own right as she previously took home silver in the 2012 London Olympics before syncing up with Kerri.
Brazilian men’s team Alison and Bruno also advanced to the gold medal game by beating the Netherlands earlier in the day. Italy defeated Russian Federation in the other men’s semifinal to clinch its first Olympic beach volleyball medal. The other women’s semifinal match will feature Germany and the top-seeded Brazilian team of Larissa and Talita.
“Since the start of these Games we’ve been able to grow in each match, improving our concentration, our accuracy, and I think that made the difference”. “Together, we’re really tough to beat”.
“You’ve got to pass the ball to win matches”, she said, noting that the Brazilians scored aces on her.
Despite losing to Brazil, Jennings may get one more medal in this Olympics. Despite failing to make the final, Talita said she would never forget playing in front of the hometown crowd on the iconic beach.
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“I have a lovely family”, she said last week.
