PARIS – Just eight days before Saturday’s sitting volleyball gold medal match, China defeated the USA in four sets in pool play. Now, that feels like an eternity ago.

The U.S., behind a slew of standout performances, took gold in four sets (25-21, 23-25, 25-20, 25-22), and slayed its pool play demons.

“We make it here because we dig and we fight and we scrap, and that’s how we came out on top,” said middle blocker Lora Webster.

For the United States, the first set featured exceptional play around the net. Team USA out-blocked the Chinese by three and had some extremely hard spikes. Heather Erickson continued her dominance on the attack with seven points on attacks and blocks.

“My swinging felt really good, which made me more confident to swing at the ball as hard as I can,” remarked the outside hitter. “I did a good job seeing what was open and hitting those. I just tried to play loose and see what the game gave me and go with it.”

Erickson’s dominance helped the U.S. jump out to a comfortable lead; through 24 points, the U.S. held a 14-10 lead. When the Chinese looked close to taking charge, the U.S. always had an answer.

China would shorten the gap to one multiple times during the set, but the U.S. always had an answer. Usually, it involved setter Kaleo Kanahele feeding an outside hitter for a strong attack. To help add some distance late in the set, the U.S. showed off its highlight play ability.

Up 23-21, A blistering spike by China was kept alive by Kanahele, who leaned backward for an excellent dig; she then received an opportunity off a set, lightly tapping the ball over the net and finding a soft spot on the Chinese side of the court for a three-point lead. The U.S. would win the set on the next point, 25-21.

Kanahele, who had multiple impressive digs on the night, was able to do so thanks to not only physical but mental prowess.

“I use breathwork and grounding into the court. I grab the ground and am ready to move,” remarked the setter. “My goal was really to watch the hitters and think what was going to happen next.”

In the second set, the Chinese looked to have befuddled their opponent. Off the opening serve, China jumped out to a 5-0 lead, and the U.S. seemed unable to string anything together. Showing its resilience, Team USA rallied back hard and even took the lead.

Down 15-14, Katie Bridge had an authoritative block followed by a strong spike to give the U.S. a one-point lead. Ultimately, it wouldn’t be enough, with China taking the last two points to tie the set count at 1-1.

“Volleyball is a lot about momentum. Even if you don’t win the set, if you gain the momentum, you’ve really won the beginning of the next set,” said Kanahele. “It proved to us that we can continue to fight and dig in.”

As the third set started, Erickson, who had 15 points between the first and second sets, remained scolding. Fueled by a couple of ferocious spikes and a stout block, the outside hitter scored five of the USA’s first six points, helping the U.S. grab an early three-point advantage.

This set was the most stress-free of the day; the United States maintained control and had multiple seven-point leads. China would cut the deficit to as little as two late, but the U.S. held strong, in no small part due to Bridge and Erickson combining for 11 points in the set.

Kanahele was similarly a big part in the third set dominance. The setter constantly found both hitters for great opportunities, even incorporating some incredibly accurate backward sets.

“I trust all my hitters, but when one or two are hot, it’s just the icing on the cake,” said the fourth-time Paralympian. “I think no matter where we were going to go tonight, it was going to be awesome. Heather really showed out, that was crazy; so did Katie, and the middles even came in; it was impressive.”

Heading into the fourth set, the United States had China on its heels, up 2-1, and early on looked like it might use its momentum to cruise to an easy victory.

The U.S. could feel it was on the doorstep of history; a Monique Matthews block point to give the U.S. a 7-4 lead was met with one of the loudest collective cheers of the night.

China responded in a big way, scoring nine of the next twelve points to get back in front by three. Slowly but surely, the pendulum would swing back in the United States’ favor. After a 17-17 tie, the USA secured four points in a row, the last two by Matthews, who played her best in the final set.

China couldn’t make up the lost ground, and a hard spike from Katie Bridge ended things at 25-22, crowning the U.S. as gold medalists and securing a three-peat.

“It’s like euphoria; you don’t know what’s going on,” said Erickson, now a three-time gold medalist. “It was an overall feeling of joy and happiness of knowing that we did it and nothing stood in our way.”