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April, Kerri fall in Gstaad

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April Ross said she felt disappointed after her run with Kerri Walsh Jennings ended in the Federation Internationale de Volleyball Gstaad Grand Slam Friday.

Ross, the Costa Mesa resident and former Newport Harbor High standout, and the three-time Olympic gold medalist Walsh Jennings lost in straight sets to Brazilians Maria Antonelli and Agatha Bednarczuk, 21-17, 22-20.

It was Walsh Jennings’ first tournament on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour since the 2012 Stare Jablonki Grand Slam, which came a week after she had won her third Olympic gold at London 2012.

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Since then Walsh gave birth to her third child in April and is teaming up with Ross with the intention of the pair going through to the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games together.

Ross will return to her long-term partner Jennifer Kessy for the Long Beach Grand Slam July 22-27, while Walsh is due to play alongside Whitney Pavlik, a former UC Irvine standout. Then toward the end of 2013 Ross and Walsh will go full time, though the pair are remaining tight-lipped on the subject and offered only a coy, “by the end of the year,” when pressed on the subject.

In Gstaad they won all three pool matches to go straight into the second elimination round, but Maria Antonelli and Agatha proved to be too sharp for them.

“I’m disappointed in how we did,” Ross told fivb.org “I thought we played better each match in pool play and then I feel we went back a step in this match. Kerri hurt her abs a little bit and I didn’t contribute at all; I wasn’t digging balls and couldn’t get my serve in the court.

“I just don’t feel like we definitely didn’t play as well as we could have and I definitely didn’t keep up my end. I’m just glad that Kerri came back and agreed to play with me in this event.”

— From staff reports

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