In the first three set gold medal beach volleyball at the Olympics it was clear why the number one seeded Brazil would be up to the task to snap a podium drought for beach volleyball for the first time since the 1996 Olympic games. In a match that lived up to the promise, Canada’s Brandie Wilkerson and Melissa Humana-Paredes made an incredible second set comeback after a grueling first set setting the stage for a deciding third.

The road to the semifinals for Brandie and Melissa has been one filled with emotional swings as they had to battle their way through loss in the qualifying stage finding themselves on the brink of elimination in the lucky loser bracket. Few some them as favorites at that point in the tournament, and against all odds they have shown their resilience and poise defeating Kristin Nuss and Taryn Kloth in the round of 16, and now a favored Spanish side that stood in their way to a potential podium spot.

In a match that can only be summarized as a game of margins it was all team Switzerland as after an incredible first set turnaround they pushed back a team USA run at the 15 point mark making their own push to win the set.