Sand Castle: Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh Retain Beach Crown

Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh Win Beach Volleyball Gold

Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh won their third consecutive Olympic gold medal Wednesday, earning them the distinction of being the darlings, if not rock stars of these summer games.

Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh Win Third Straight Beach Volleyball Gold

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings are essentially a dynasty in women's beach volleyball, having won gold medals in 2004 and 2008 while representing Team USA. The teammates proved that the third time was a charm, too, as they were able to take home their third consecutive gold medal following their victory in the all-USA finals at the 2012 London Olympics.

May-Treanor and Walsh once again stuck close through the early points in the second set of the gold medal match, but the veterans eventually did just enough to defeat their American teammates in Jennifer Kessy and April Ross while clinching their third straight Olympic victory.

Kessy and Ross were able to stick with May-Treanor and Walsh early, but the reigning champions went on a four-point run to force Kessy and Ross to call a timeout at 18-14 as they tried to shift the momentum. It didn't work, though, and May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings earned their third consecutive gold medal with a 21-16 victory in the final set of the Olympics.

It was an incredibly impressive run for May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings considering they lost just one set throughout their quest to the gold medal -- especially considering they actually retired for a bit in between the Beijing and London Olympics.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic beach volleyball, follow the 2012 Olympic beach volleyball section.

Women's Beach Volleyball Final: May-Treanor/Walsh Take First Set

The 2012 London Olympics have had their share of exciting events, but Wednesday afternoon's gold medal match between two American teams has to be one of the events fans looked forward to the most this summer. The first set stood up to expectations too, as the defending champion team of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings took a closely contested victory in the first set of the three-set match.

Neither team was able to pull away from each other early as Jennifer Kessy and April Ross stuck with the 2008 gold medalists to set up a 13-13 tie, but May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings were eventually able to pull away for a 21-16 victory in the opening set.

May-Treanor did the honors by spiking back a serve on the second match point to give the veteran USA team the victory, bringing them one set away from another gold medal.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic beach volleyball, follow the 2012 Olympic beach volleyball section.

Women's Beach Volleyball Online Streaming: How To Watch Gold Medal Final

Beach volleyball has been a fixture of the NBC primetime television coverage of the 2012 Olympics, but the all-American final match between the team of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings and the pairing of April Ross and Jennifer Kessy on Wednesday afternoon is the sort of event the Internet will probably spoil for those who have to wait to watch at night.

Fortunately, as with every 2012 Olympics event, there's a live online stream for fans stuck at work or away from a computer. That stream is available through NBC Live Extra, and will go live at 3:55 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday, five minutes before the match begins at 4 p.m. Eastern.

Veterans May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings are looking for their third straight Olympic gold medal in the event, in what will likely be their last trip to the Games. But Ross and Kessy have been around for a while themselves, and will be looking for a breakthrough win against the lions of the sport.

The bronze medal match between Brazil and China is live now on NBC Live Extra.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic beach volleyball, follow the 2012 Olympic beach volleyball section.

April Ross, Jennifer Kessy Set Up All-Team USA Women's Beach Volleyball Final

After Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings moved on to their third consecutive gold medal final in women's beach volleyball early Tuesday evening, April Ross and Jennifer Kessy followed suit later in the night, setting up an all-American clash for the top spot in the sport.

Ross and Kessy defeated the top-ranked Brazilian team of Larissa Franca and Juliana Silva in three sets, 15-21, 21-19, 15-12. Ross and Kessy trailed at 12-8 in the second set before turning the tide, and never trailed in the third set.

The all-U.S. final will be the first women's beach volleyball final matching two teams from the same country since 1996, when Brazil's Sandra Pires and Jackie Silva took gold while fellow Brazilians Monica Rodrigues and Adriana Samuel won silver in the inaugural women's beach volleyball tournament at the Summer Olympics. The gold medal match will take place Wednesday at 9 p.m. in London, or 4 p.m. ET. The May/Walsh pairing has won gold in each of the last two Olympics, and has never been beaten in Olympic play.

Brazil's top-ranked team will meet the Chinese team of Chen Xue and Xi Zhang, defeated in the other semifinal, for bronze. That match will be contested at 2 p.m. Eastern.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic beach volleyball, follow the 2012 Olympic beach volleyball section.

Misty May-Treanor And Kerri Walsh Advance To Third Straight Beach Volleyball Final

In what has become the most repeated phrase of the last three Olympics, Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh Jennings won their beach volleyball match in straight sets. The iconic American team beat the second-ranked team in the world, the Chinese pairing of Xue Chen and Zhang Xi, winning both sets 22-20.

Since the start of elimination play, the pairing has not lost a set. And in their three Olympic appearances they have only ever lost one set, earlier this year in group play against the Austrian Schwaiger sisters after having already locked down first place in Group C.

May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings advanced to the gold medal match where they will take on either the world top-ranked team from Brazil of Larissa Franca and Juliana Felisberta Silva, or fellow Americans April Ross and Jen Kessy, the fourth-ranked pairing in the world.

They may not be the top team in the world anymore, but until May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings are beaten they are always the favorites on the Olympic sand.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub