Ross gets first win of season

STAVANGER, Norway — Newport Harbor High product April Ross and teammate Jennifer Boss struck tournament gold together for the first time this season, all the way across the Atlantic.

Saturday, the No. 29-seeded pair became the lowest-seeded team to win a women’s World Tour Gold Medal in the history of the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball tour when they beat China’s Tian Jia and Wang Jie, 21-14, 21-12, to capture the Conoco/Phillips Grand Slam title.

Tian and Wang were thought to be a lock for the gold medal after they defeated top-seeded Misty May-Treanor, another former Sailor, and Kerri Walsh in the semifinals.

Ross was named the Swatch Most Outstanding Player for the event, her fourth FIVB event.

Boss and Ross hung on for 44 minutes before a crowd of 5,000 on the center court at Vaagen Harbor to split the $43,500 first prize.

“Unbelievable, but not unexpected,” Boss said in an FIVB release. “April’s service game put us in the position to make the Chinese work extra hard to return her serve. That’s our game and we are sticking with it.”

In the bronze-medal match, May-Treanor and Walsh scored a 21-15, 21-13 win in 36 minutes over Sara Goller and Laura Ludwig of Germany.

Costa Mesa resident Jake Gibb and Sean Rosenthal, the No. 2 seed, were eliminated by No. 20-seeded Clemens Doppler and Peter Gartmayer of Austria, 21-19, 21-23, 16-18.

Sixth-seeded Mike Lambert and Stein Metzger were eliminated by Andrew Schacht and Josh Slack of Austria, 21-17, 23-25, 13-15.

— Soraya Nadia McDonald