Walsh maintains supremacy on the net with a new partner – Volleyball News

American superstar beach volleyball player Kerri Walsh, who recently secured third consecutive Olympic gold medal alongside her teammate Misty May-Treanor, is now in action at the Mazury Orlen Grand Slam in Stare Jablonki, Poland.
Her former teammate May-Treanor opted for retirement after the 2012 London Olympic Games, while Walsh teamed-up with Nicole Branagh. Walsh already had the experience of playing alongside Branagh only a couple of years ago. They competed as a team at the 2008 Dubai Open women’s beach volleyball tournament and also participated in the 2010 Phuket Open, which took place in Thailand.
The duo opened the ongoing Mazury Orlen Grand Slam in the Main Draw and played two matches on Wednesday, August 15. Nothing less was expected from Walsh/Branagh as they enjoyed a great rhythm and tone.

12^th-seeded Branagh-Walsh came into contest with compatriot pairing of Lauren Fendrick-Brooke Hanson in the opening match. The affair lasted for 35 minutes and ended with following result: 2-0 (21-14, 21-19).

Walsh and Branagh proved to be better in every aspect of the game and launched power on the rival side. They captured the first frame of the match with fair margin of seven points and went on front (1-0). Fendrick/ Hanson tried to cover the deficit in the second set, but faced utmost resistance from the opposite side. Walsh and Branagh showed remarkable consistency and claimed second set with two points, which gave them winning status in the match.

Winning duo of Walsh and Branagh returned to action in the second match against Austria's Barbara Hansel and Magdalena Jirak. The Austrian pair caught a good start in the match and staged a neck-to-neck fight with competitors. They secured opening frame at 21-19, but could not carry the same momentum in the following sets. Walsh-Branagh dominated the second set and successfully created the tie of game score by sending 21-12 on board. Third set also came successful for USA at 15-8 and the team settled for 2-1 victory.

“I love my job and I love winning. Even at the Olympics I was already thinking about coming here. It is my job and I want to win, I’m here to win,” said Walsh after the match.
In the meanwhile, Branagh stated: “It is always an honour to play with Kerri. I think when we play together we play well and we have had some success. It is fun to play with her, I’m happy to be part of the team and I’m looking forward to a great tournament.”