BRONZE & A COWBELL

Came home with some hardware and more hardware than your average tournament… when our cowbells went through the security scanner, a couple of the workers looked at each other with some confusion and laughter as both Taryn and I could see largely on the screen - a giant picture of our bell. One of the workers asked Taryn, “Why do you have that?” to which Taryn proudly said “it’s a trophy”. They all looked at each other and laughed and proceeded to tell us to have a nice day.

To sum up what will be written below… Gstaad is absolutely gorgeous, the people are amazing and truly love the sport of beach volleyball, and Taryn and I came away with a bronze medal. If you want to read wayyy more info and details on the above please keep reading, we had some fun moments on this one. If you read this whole one I’ll be impressed!

Let’s start this one off like most of the others… pulling up the airport. It was July 4th weekend and everyone was talking about how crazy the airports would be so we did something that we never do, we actually arrived to the airport 3 hours before our scheduled departure. Glad we did… psych. After handing the American Airlines lady our passports she proceeded to tell us that our flight was already delayed. Stating the pilot on our plane coming here called in sick so they were trying to get a replacement pilot. Needless to say, we had a lot of time on our hands to sit in the NOLA lounge and get some things done. We also got the opportunity to meet an amazing 11yr old boy, Elliot Perry. You can watch this video to give you a better understanding of just how amazing he is, but we thoroughly enjoyed chatting with him and his father. Elliott, we hope to see you again, especially at the Paris 2024 Olympics.   

We finally got to boarding, and we also found out that we got upgraded to first class… perks of flying a lot. The plane was small so we had to gate check our carry on suitcases to collect them again when we arrived in Philly. Our flight was delayed 55 minutes, and there were many people on the plane with connecting international flights so let’s just say there were some stressed people. So while half the plane waited on the gate bridge for their luggage to come out, tension started rising by the minute. After about 15-20 minutes of waiting the bags finally started to come out and people started to grab them and run. We thankfully did not have too tight of a connection but we definitely had to walk with a purpose to our next gate which is somehow always the farthest away from where we currently are. We made it and began our preflight routine… breaking out all the pillows and inflatable stuff while everyone watches with confused yet jealous looks.

Our flight was in the evening and we were going to arrive in Switzerland around 8am so whatever sleep we got on the plane would be what would fuel us for the day. Sadly, we both got maybe just maybe 2 hours of sleep… not ideal. You may be wondering what do we do on these long flights? And this is pretty much what it looks like: get set up and do some reading before the 1 hour mark hits and food gets served, eat, try to get some z’s which I am typically able to do and Taryn is usually not able to do, so she will pull up a movie on the screen, typically a bad one, in hopes that it will put her to sleep,  but on this particular flight that did not work so we were both on the sleep struggle bus. I decided to put on a movie that I download from Netflix, Forever My Girl, and let’s just say I am a sucker for romance movies and they really get to me… I may have shed a couple tears mid flight even though it is such a cheesy and corny movie. After watching, I was finally able to get a little sleep before breakfast/snack got served (usually about 1 hour to 1.5 hours before landing). We eat again, brush our teeth afterwards, start packing up all our inflatables and pillows, and then play some sudoku or solitaire or read for the rest of the 30 minute descent.

We landed in Zurich around 8am but our transportation to Gstaad was not picking us up until 2pm so we figured we would explore Zurich. We stored our luggage at the airport and then spent about 30 minutes trying to figure out the train system. We walked to the wrong place only 3 times, but then found ourselves en route to Betty’s Coffee House for brunch (we jut went with the highest rated restaurant nearby on google maps). Our order: splitting shakshouka and avocado toast with their house made bread roll and a coffee for each of us - I thought it was just okay, but Taryn thought it was pretty good. So based on that order I want you to think in your head how much that would cost? Was your number close to $40,$50, or $60? Well, those are wrong… it cost us $80 USD for that meal which is when we decided we would not be eating out a ton on the trip (sadly food chronicles was gonna suffer).

After eating we just started walking around to try and get the legs moving since we had just gotten off a 7.5 hour fight. There was a cute little river/stream next to the restaurant so we walked around there before we decided to just start walking back towards the airport. We thought Zurich would have more things happening but Switzerland takes Sunday “Day of Rest” VERY seriously. Nothing was open and not many people were just out and about walking around… it was kind of weird. We got our luggage from the airport and went and found some chairs in arrivals where we were told to meet to be picked up. Our driver Bernie came and found us early and we began our 3 hour drive to Gstaad.

Bernie was great! We were chatting for an hour or so with him about all his travel adventures until we got on the topic of music. He wanted us to play our own music so I naturally put on my fav artist, Luke Combs. After a couple Luke songs Taryn mixed it up and then we just started to go back and forth playing some oldies but goodies. We did that for the next 30 minutes until we went back to just Luke and the tiredness hit us… we both passed out for a quick little 30 minute nap. We both woke up looking like we had just been traveling all night. For this trip we got an Airbnb for the first couple nights instead of staying in a hotel. 1) it was cheaper than the hotel and 2) we figured we would also save money and just buy groceries and make food at the Airbnb. In our plan, we did not factor that all grocery stores are pretty much closed on Sundays so our plan for making breakfast at home was not looking likely but Bernie came to the rescue. He knew a small grocery just outside of Gstaad would be open on our way so he made a pit stop for us. We stocked up on a couple things for breakfast and for dinner that night. All the groceries cost us $50 which ultimately got us about 3 meals… crazy the difference from our brunch.

We walked into our Airbnb after Bernie helped us speak with the lady to figure out how to get in. The Airbnb was the cutest little apartment. It may not have been the most spacious place ever but it 100% got the job done and the location was fantastic… we will most definitely stay there again. We unloaded our luggage and then I plopped down on the couch for 10 minute. The entire time I was trying to mentally form enough energy to go to the gym and get a lift in. Going to the gym after a long travel day is TOUGH, but add in the fact that I was alone made it 10x worse (Taryn tweaked her back so she was taking it easy the past week – bet you couldn’t tell that she really didn’t practice a ton leading up to this tourney). I made it through and then made the beautiful 10 minute walk back to the Airbnb. Walking past streams and hearing the running water and then looking up and seeing the ginormous mountains… I was not in Louisiana anymore.

We had planned on Monday being our exploration day. Last year we went to Montreux after we were eliminated from the tournament so this year we wanted to explore a new place before and that place was Interlaken. Sunday night we tried to plan the day… we had to figure out what time trains, boats, etc to take to make the most of the day. This process took us about 3 hours and let’s just say I’m happy Taryn and I are still friends. We weren’t necessarily getting angry at each other but when plan after plan kept failing because of times we would get angry and the only other person who was around would suffer and we were clearly around only each other. I finally showered around 9pm which I am surprised I even made it to that time and then quickly passed out by 9:30. Around 5:30 in the morning the sun came blasting through the sheets that functioned as curtains. I had to get up and grab my eye mask, but unfortunately we both still woke up around 6-6:30. The breakfast at home process started around 7 which consisted of us attempting to hard boil eggs. We went back and forth on if you boil the water first and then put the eggs in or just put the eggs in and then boil. We also had no idea how long to boil for… thank goodness for google. The first attempt was a little rough. We both had some runny eggs but it tasted good paired with our ham and sourdough bread. I also brought my cheesy bacon seasoning with me because I knew we would be making breakfast at the Airbnb…extra I know.

With breakfast complete it was time to get ready for exploration day. It’s rare that we decide to branch out into something other than athleisure ware but exploration day in Switzerland called for cute attire. The struggle was that it was a little chilly. All I had was jean shorts and tank which would be perfect for midday when the temp got hot so I had to improvise for our train ride…. I put leggings on over my jean shorts (yes, you read that correctly, OVER my jean shorts – it was not comfy), a bigger jacket I wore and then I tied the thinner, smaller jacket around my waist to cover the fact that I had jean shorts on. It got the job done and I am so glad I did it!

We made it the train station and onto the right train, however when the guy came to check our tickets he quickly informed us that we were in first class and we had to move to the next cabin… oops. We settled into the correct seats, cheersed our coffees and then sat back and stared out the window for the next two hours immersed into the beauty that was Switzerland. We hopped off the train and made the 8 min walk to Harder Kulm, the #1 thing to go to in Interlaken according to our google searching. (The pictures do not do it justice people.) It was so freaking pretty it made me speechless – you can ask Taryn, I seriously did not say words for a solid 30-45 minutes and that is rare. I am always asking random questions but not during that time (I was also kind of hungry so I was lacking on the energy). While at the top we connected with a couple that was from New York to do some picture trading – we would take pics of them if they would do the same for us. It worked out perfectly.

Our next adventure stop was a picnic on Lake Thun, so we made the 15 minute walk to COOP, the grocery store, to get some salads and a sandwich to split. The rest of the walk to the lake spot would take about 45 minutes so we mixed our salads and ate them on the way. The walk was definitely a little further than we thought it would be. Blisters were starting to form but we were determined to get to the crystal blue water. We finally pulled up to Schülerbad and the long walk instantly became worth it. We laid out our sarongs, split the sandwich and enjoyed. We chilled there for about an hour and then with 20 minutes to spare before getting on the boat we ventured to a place on the other side of the trees right next to us. It was an open grassy area with a ton of sun. We had been sitting in the shade so it was getting a little chilly. We picked up our stuff, walked over, laid out our sarongs again, and laid down. After about 10 minutes a girl came walking up to us. She asked if we had tickets which I responded yes since I had literally just boat our boat tickets on my phone and the boat dock was a 3 minute walk away from where we were. However, she was talking about tickets for the area we were in and upon realizing that we expressed our apologies, packed up and headed to the boat pickup spot… yet another place that we did not belong… oops again.

Taking a little cruise on the boat was next on the to-do list. The boat is another form of transportation to people in Switzerland. The boat was going to take us from Neuhaus to Spiez. We boarded the boat and immediately went up the stairs because those seats looked the best and least busy. After getting up the stairs, a guy asked if we were first class to which we responded “no”. We again, went to the wrong section just this time on the boat instead of the train. While walking back down the stairs, I noticed the sign that said “Klasse 1”… oops again again.

The ride lasted about an hour and Taryn was in heaven… boat, water, and stunning-jaw dropping-extraordinary views. We arrived at Spiez and had to make our last walk of the day which may have been the hardest one. It was a 20 minute walk straight up hill to the train station and we were feeling the burn not only in our legs but those previously stated blisters were yelling at us… probably should have worn tennis shoes considering we walked about 4 miles. Our exploration day was a complete success but we were absolutely exhausted from the day and lack of sleep, so the 1.5 hour train ride back felt like it lasted forever. Just like in our car ride to Gstaad, we both took another power nap before rolling into Gstaad at 5:34pm. We took turns showering then ate our COOP dinner which again consisted of a salad and a sandwich, and then we both passed out before 8pm. The sun does not set until 9:30 so it was still very very bright at 8pm but thank goodness for eye masks and pure exhaustion. I woke up in the middle of the night (or so I thought) because I had to use the restroom and I was shocked when I clicked my phone to see that it only said 11:25… it was 11:25 and I had already slept for 3.5 hours - that’s wild. The next time I opened my eyes was because Taryn was saying my name… my alarm was going off. I slept for a solid 10 hours and 45 minutes. Taryn is always so jealous. She was not so lucky and woke up sporadically throughout the night. It seems like every trip we go on either the night we get there or the second night I’m due for a solid 10+ hour night of sleep which is crazy because when I am at home I can barely sleep for 8.5 hours regularly.

Thankfully we were able to have a chill morning on Tuesday. We got a second chance on our at home breakfast and we definitely both elevated our meals. The timing for the eggs was better and I also decided to toast the bread and ham on the stove which was a real game changer. Improvements still needed to be made but we were getting there. While enjoying breakfast and our coffees, I received a message from our driver Bernie stating he left some COOP restaurant lunch coupons on our door since he was going to be driving more people from the airport and would not be able to use them… how sweet! For the rest of the morning, I laid in bed making the Instagram reel of our Interlaken adventures before getting ready for our practice with Canadians Melissa & Brandie.

On our way to practice we hit the drinkable water stream to fill up our water bottles… legit is just a stream of water coming out of a piece of wood and its so good! There’s about 4 of them around the little village… that’s Gstaad for ya. Practice with Mel & Brandie went well even though neither one of us had a coach with us. We just kind of improvised to make it work. It was actually one of T and I’s better pre tourney practices which if you have read these you know are few and far between. I was slightly concerned that it was too good.

Right behind the practice courts and court 2 is a stream of ice ice cold water that most players use as a cold tub and that’s exactly what we did. We only went knee deep for about 2 minutes but it was so cold yet refreshing. After, we headed to the COOP restaurant to get us a free meal thanks to Bernie. We didn’t even know COOP had a restaurant. We had just been buying stuff from the grocery part for dinner but the restaurant was very good. I was able to get chicken cordon bleu and Taryn got the grilled chicken both with veggies and some pasta. Thanks again Bernie!

We are fortunate that USA volleyball sends providers for us each trip and this time we had Scott and David so later in the afternoon on Tuesday we went to their hotel for some solid flushes. Taking care of the body is so critical and we have definitely done a better job of utilizing them as resources for us compared to last year when we didn’t want to burden them. Thanks David and Scott!

Since Tuesday was July 4th, Brian, the USA video analyst, set up a team USA dinner at Rialto, a pizza place in the village. A big group dinner like this is something that I have not known to ever happen. Everyone just goes about their own business when it comes to eating on the road so when Brian told us everyone was in for dinner at 7:30 we said we were down. Taryn and I’s concern was being able to stay awake and waiting to eat till 7:30. It was tough but we hungrily made it to the 7:30 dinner. After food was in we definitely became more chatty and it was kind of nice to share travel stories and chat about different credit cards. We also of course reflected on the one night in New Orleans… IYKYK… if you don’t know, it’s the night that will live in infamy. We got back to the Airbnb around 9:30, brushed our teeth and then knocked out by 10:30.

Wednesday – move out/move in day. The same morning as Tuesday happened except at home breakfast was officially nailed. We were a pro at it, too bad it was the last one. Check out from the Airbnb was at 10am so we had to figure out how to get all our stuff back in the suitcases they came in and then we had to lug them across the village to the player’s hotel. It was during these moments that we both thought to ourselves “was it worth it?” Was it a pain? Yes, however, we did save a decent amount of money so that’s always a good thing.

When we strolled into the lobby to check in we were walking in with the assumption that we would not be able to get into the room until 4pm; however, when we handed over our passports the lady said, “you guys are in luck. The room is available.” to which Taryn and I both looked at each with exuberant smiles. The front desk woman walked in the back to scan everything and then came back and said, “I have said news - they told me they are actually still preparing the player rooms so your room will not be ready until at least noon.” Our smiles faded quickly. She got our hopes up but hey I guess 12 is better than 4. Around 11:50 we checked to see if it was ready and when we got a no we headed back to our spot… COOP to get some lunch. On our return we could tell the room was ready just by the expression on the front desk woman’s face. We quickly brought everything up, did some organizing and then headed to practice with the Swiss Vergé-Dépré/Mäder for one last tune up. Just like Tuesday’s practice, we were playing well. It was even better than Tuesday’s practice. For instance, we played a game where the Swiss started up 16-14 and we ended up winning the game 21-17 which as you know is a significant flip of scores in beach. I again was a little skeptical in thinking this meant good things for the tournament. I thought maybe we were playing too well now that once it came time for actual competition we would have used up all our good. Another thing with practice Wednesday… while we were practicing we could see the brutal qualifier going on and it really makes you want to perform well to stay out of those things. It was not too long ago that we were battling through them and let me just tell you its so much more fun to just sit back and watch and not be in it. Watch is what we did for the rest of the evening until it came time for dinner at our hotel. We arrived sharply at the 6:30 opening. Last year in Gstaad we ate bolognese just about every night for dinner and I can’t say I was upset about it, so when we walked around to see the selections and I came face to face with that memorable bolognese you could say I was excited. More excitement also came about when Taryn and I took our first bite into the delicious bread that they offered us. Guys, I cannot describe to you how good this bread was. I may be dreaming about it for a couple nights. I told Taryn I wanted to run away with the pan of it.

Thursday – Gameday

Adam’s debut… Adam, our manager, had been planning on coming to Gstaad again this year because he, like us, could not resist the beauty of Switzerland. Since he was already coming, we asked if he could be our “coach” and warm us up. On Wednesday night we texted him a time that we would need him and just some things that we were going to do for warmups. He was very punctual but when his first attempt at warming us up was an underhand serve that did not make it to the net followed by an underhand toss that nearly touched the top of the Alps Taryn and I started cracking up and no words needed to be said between us… were both thinking it… “oh boy, this is going to be interesting.” Some of the other teams warming up also got to share in our humor.  (**sorry Adam haha**) The tosses got better and we were warmish…

Italian’s Gottardi/Menegatti were match #1. They came out of the qualifier so we knew they were going to come out fiery. Sometimes playing in the qualifier could be a slight advantage since you know how the sand will play or how the altitude will affect the ball. The start was back and forth just like we figured it would be. Our goal was to take the blocker out of the play offensively and not allow her to earn points with her block. That was game plan number 1. Defensively we decided it was best to serve the defender but throw in random balls to the blocker. However, once we got in game we definitely gave more balls to the blocker than what we had talked about. That just shows that you can game plan all you want but you have to make adjustments in game. We were able to pull out the game in straight sets… 1-0 in pool. During the match we had a tremendous amount of support from fans that we had met before at AVPs, other FIVB events or SOB Volleyball Vacations, so after the game we got to thank them and catch up. One in particular (shoutout ***) we met last year in Paris. He asked if I remembered him to which I said yes, and then he said great and very swiftly ripped of his shirt to unveil that he was wearing the jersey top that I gave him in Paris! It was so great and we seriously greatly appreciated all the support. After conversations wrapped up, we headed to the stream again for another knee high quick dip before heading to rinse off and eat lunch.

Our next match was against the home team of Brunner/Hüberli in prime time. To kill time before our 6 o’clock start time, we watched film, watched Andy and Miles beat Mol & Sørum in pool play (the first time in 6 years that a USA mens team has beaten them), and played 3 games of King’s Corner (I won all 3 😁). Since 6 o’clock is a weird game time for eating purposes we did what we usually do… made pb2 + protein mix spread on a piece of bread and topped with jelly and a banana.

Adam’s second warmup definitely showed some slight improvement. He may have even practiced in between games. Did you Adam?? The way Gstaad is set up is unlike most venues. Center court is about a 5-8 minute drive from the warm up courts and court 2 so the lovely volunteers drive you over to center court. The two amazing women who were on the warmup courts for the entire tournament constantly updating all the teams with the scores and making sure the teams got to center court are some of the unsung heroes that make our tournaments runs so smoothly. They do not get recognized a ton but we would just like to say, THANK YOU! WE GREATLY APPRECIATE YOU! When they told us it was time to go, we hopped in the car and made our way to center court.I was thinking it but Taryn said it aloud, “I feel like I’m on Break Point or something.” The car ride really does make you feel like you are high profile and the fact that they drive us around to the back adds to that feeling.

📸: Beach Volleyball World

Game time – we knew the crowd was going to be rowdy and heavily favoring the home team. I told Taryn before we went out “we just need to withstand the first 2 side switches.” I figured they were going to come out amped up in front of their crowd so we just needed to brace that initial impact so when we were walking to other side of the net up 8-6 on the second side switch I knew we were in good shape. First set we were just clicking. It was one of those sets where I felt so dialed in and in my head knew they could not get the ball to the sand on our side of the net. You may ask, “Kristen why can’t you do that every time?” And thats a great question and one that I am still trying to figure out. Think that shows just how new we are to this. We are still figuring out how to mentally get in the same zone for every match and for every point at this level. It’s a work in progress. Second set we made more errors and I was not transition attacking as good as I did in the first set. We had opportunities despite that fact but we were unable to pull it out. 3rd set… up 8-10. Just had a long rally that we lost. I was a little winded and knew in my head the ball was going to be coming to me in serve receive since I had just made an error. In my head I was like a timeout right now would probs be good. Take away their momentum after winning the long rally and also give me and Taryn some time to breathe; however, I really thought we had already used our timeout in the 3rd. We switched sides at 10-10. And then the score was 11-10 Swiss. I looked at the ref asking if we had a timeout and when he said yes, I quickly regretted not asking when we were up 8-10 on the good side. You live and you learn. (I did call one in the bronze medal match after a long rally – we came out and won the point and took the momentum back) Luckily down the stretch we made some plays and pulled it out 18-16. I hit the last high line in transition and saw Brunner not running after it and just took a big breath. Phew we did it. 2-0 to start the day. We’ve never done that in an elite 16. 

We did treatment right after the match so we did not have time to shower before getting dinner from the hotel. When I sat down at the table I told Taryn I hope nobody sits next to me because I smell so bad. Of course, Zoe Vergé-Dépré walked in and we started talking so she asked if she could sit next to me. When she went to get food I told Taryn, “she may get up and move once she actually smells me.” When she came with her plate of food and sat down she proceeded to ask us in like a whisper, “have you guys showered yet?” To which we both said “no”. She sighed with relief stating that she had not either and she smelt bad. I was like phew we are all good! While chatting with her she was talking about how stressful and exhausting the tournament had been for her and she wasn’t even talking about the volleyball. She was talking about all the sponsor engagements and having to talk with so many family members and friends and just how overall a tournament at home is tough. We could relate on a smaller scale… NOLA AVP is no Elite 16 but we know the exhausted feeling of wanting to perform for the people who support you and having to do so many media things. It really is exhausting and I think that shows when 0 of the 3 Swiss teams in the main draw broke pool. Crazy.

We had one of the better schedules as far as times. Our last game in pool on Friday was at noon compared to some of the other pools who had to play at 6 or 7. We instead were able to pull out our battle with Brazilians Carol/Barbara and have the rest of the day to relax and chill knowing we booked a ticket into the quarterfinals… the first time we had ever won our pool!

Since we had the rest of the day to chill it was very hard to stay up and not take a nap. Naps are not fully our friend because for both of us we sleep better at night when we don’t take one. Drew had told us awhile back about the show Night Agent so when I opened Netflix and saw it I figured I would give it a shot. 1) The show is fantastic and I just want to keep watching and more importantly 2) the show was so suspenseful that it got our heart rates up which eliminated the tiredness feeling.

After dinner we took a little stroll around the village before going back to the room to get ready for bed. We both feel like walking after eating is a game changer… highly recommend. When 8pm came around the tiredness started to hit me… probably because I got served just about 99.5% of the balls against Brazil and they pulled on me every time. So when Taryn got a second wind around 8pm and was sending me/showing me funny videos off Instagram I didn’t even have the energy to physically laugh even though in my head I was like that was pretty funny. Needless to say, I passed out that night.

A Saturday morning where we don’t have to play a rd of 12 match… wild. Our quarterfinal game wasn’t scheduled till 4pm so we headed to the warmup courts around 10:30 for some movement and touches on the ball. It was again nice to be at the warmup courts watching teams battle through the rd of 12 and not have to be one of those teams. We went back to the room to do more chilling, Night Agent watching, and volleyball watching. I had the entire day to get ready for the match but of course I waited a little too long to get ready so Taryn had to wait a couple minutes for me to get fully ready before heading back to the warmup courts. About 10 steps outside of the hotel Taryn looked at me, “Do you have your wristband and earrings?” I quickly turned around and sprinted back to our room. I forgot my “TRUST” wristband and butterfly earrings on the bathroom counter. I haven’t played a match this year without those earrings in my ears.

During warmups for this match I went to dig a ball and felt my right quad kind of tighten up slightly. I immediately went and took some Advil and in my head I knew once I got into the game it would be fine because adrenaline was going to take over, but my concern was for the next day. How would it feel when I woke up? Probably not good, yes, I was already putting us into the semis. Even though we had previously battled with Australia’s Clancy/Mariafe I had a feeling this one was ours so my concern was my right quad but had to get that out of my head for now.

When the match before us ended I walked to our bench to put my bag down (if you did not watch, the canopy things over the bench were very low and that’s coming from me) and when I put it down and got up I banged my head into the corner of the two steel poles. It did not feel good. So not only did I slightly strain my quad, I may have just concussed myself… what a start to a game. Luckily, neither of those problems played an issue. Everything was going our way in this match except for the announcer confusing Taryn and I. Every time I did something he would say Taryn and vice versa. It was pretty funny and Taryn and I just kept rolling with it because Taryn would get a great block and I would say “hey, great block Kristen!”. Like I said, things were going our way, but we were never satisfied. At every timeout or side switch Taryn would say, “its’s 0-0.” We never felt like we had a good enough lead. When you play them you know at any point they can run off a string of points either with their serve or tough defense so even in the second set up 18-11, we did not feel like the end was near. We attacked every point as if it was 18-18. We will probably never have a match against them that will look like that. Taryn’s serve was wild but they were making so many unforced errors and just scramble plays not going their way that they usually make look like routine plays. It was our day.

Post match a lady with a giant headset came up to us and said, “not to rush you guys but I kind of have to rush you guys… there are people on parachutes about to land on the court so we need to clear this area.” We walked off to the side of the court, pulled out our phones and recorded the parachutes who came flying down bringing down the game balls. Like what?? Nowhere else would they do that. After they landed, I looked at David and told him about my quad. Funny enough, the last time David was at the same event as us I broke my finger in Paris. Luckily the quad wasn’t anything crazy and he was able to treat it later that evening and it felt fine come Sunday morning!

Championship Sunday – Winning quarters not only means you get to play in the semis and medal round matchs’, it also means you get another night at the hotel and more meals which is equally as important. When we went to sleep Saturday and then woke up Sunday we both reminded each other of that fact. We also reminded each other that it was game day and it was time to go battle against the Brazilians Duda/AP, who we manage to play every single tournament. The first set was back and forth. We would win two points in a row and then they would win two points in a row mainly off of my mistakes. I hit a lot of balls out of the court and you just can’t do that against anyone but especially them. The mistakes were no different down the stretch of set 1. They ran of a string of points in crunch time to take the first set ___. Set two was again the same… trading points back and forth all the way into extra time and unfortunately just could not make the key plays when it mattered and they did. Bronze medal match it is.

I think if someone came and saw ours and Germanys warmup for the bronze medal match they would have guessed that was two teams that had just lost and were going to play for bronze instead of gold. No one was doing a ton of moving or jumping. Everyone was saving up the last amount of energy for the real deal. No one wants to make it to Sunday and walk away with nothing especially when you are in Gstaad and cowbells are on the line. We knew like all our other games it was going to be back and forth. We knew their defender was going to make some crazy plays and we had to be okay with that. At the beginning of the second set Taryn went back to serve so I was just standing in my typical spot. Something caught my eye and I looked to my right and saw a blue butterfly just flying in a circle no more than 6 inches away from me. Immediately brought a smile to my face. Taryn served and the play happened… we got the point. Taryn went back to serve again and I assumed the same position and again the same butterfly came back but this time flew around me and then back to the circle making spot. These are the things that just sometimes blow my mind. That just can’t be a coincidence. We went on to win heavily due to Taryn making key serves and blocks. The German blocker and left side player just really struggled to hit around Taryn. When my short cut shot rolled over the net and hit the sand and I looked at Taryn and saw complete elation and then we immediately hugged each other…. Those are moments that I will never forget. Every single post win embrace with my best friend is something that I will never forget and luckily we have great photographers who always manage to capture those moments because as much as you all can read these and see our posts and follow us you cannot actually see how much goes into making those moments happen. There is only 1 other person who knows how much work goes into getting that bronze and it’s the person who I hug after every single game… Taryn Kloth. And there’s only 1 other person that I would want to do all the work with… Taryn Kloth. Hmm that’s the same person! Cheers to many more hugs, medals, podiums, and cowbells T!

Lastly, walking through the village with our cowbell and medal proudly around our necks will also be a fond memory. All the people at the restaurants would just start cheering and applauding us. It brought tears to Taryn’s eyes and chills to my body. There’s nothing quite like Gstaad.

Vlog will be coming soon!

By: Kristen Nuss