Beijing : The United States booked their berth in the Olympic men's volleyball final on Friday with a nail-biting five-set semi-final win over Russia.
In a match that evolved into a battle between Russians Alexander Korasev and Maxim Mikhaylov and Americans William Priddy and Clayton Stanley, the United States emerged with a 25-22, 25-21, 25-27, 22-25, 15-13 triumph.
Stanley blasted serves of up to 118km/h, while Russia struggled to set up their quick offense in the opening set, and Priddy's left side spikes got the Americans off to a good start.
Leading the American offense, Priddy and Stanley controlled the flow of the game.
Russia adjusted their blocking to good effect in the third set, when Sergey Tetyukhim's quick middle attack sparked a Russian rally and Mikhaylov attacked from all corners.
In the fourth set Russia took advantage of four service errors by the Americans to force the fifth set.
The last set yielded an exchange of strong spikes from each side before David Lee gave America a set point. A double-block from Lee and Riley Salmon secured the match after two hours and 17 minutes.
In Sunday's final, the United States will face either Italy or Brazil, who met in the second semi later Friday.
The United States booked their first final since the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and their run to the gold medal match comes after the team was rocked early in the Games by the stabbing death of the father-in-law of coach Hugh McCutcheon.
Todd Bachman was stabbed by a Chinese assailant while visiting a cultural site in Beijing. His wife, Barbara was seriously injured in the attack by a lone assailant, which appeared to have no connection to the Olympics.
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