July 4, 2009

Stavanger, Norway -- It seemed appropriate that on the 4th of July, two American women would win the 2009 Swatch FIVB World Beach Championship as former USC players April Ross and Jen Kessy earned a 30-28, 23-21 sweep Saturday over Brazilians Juliana Felisberta Silva and Larissa Franca. Ross-Kessy won the gold medal as the No. 1 seeded team in the tournament that began on June 25.

This was Ross and Kessy's fourth FIVB (and arguably biggest) tour win to date. The USC tandem earned wins in late 2008 at the Sanya Open and Phuket Thailand Open, but recently finished second at the Seoul Open and Brasilia Open.