FINALS
May and Walsh strike gold     ATHENS, Greece — There were hugs everywhere, tears aplenty, kisses and waves and standing-in-place leaps. It was an out-of-body experience, and they treasured every moment of it....  American women had never experienced anything like it in beach volleyball....  On the Olympic podium Tuesday were two American teams, gold medal winners Misty May and Kerri Walsh, and bronze winners Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs.
May, Walsh find gold at the beach     It was the night Kerri Walsh, probably the greatest woman beach volleyball player in the world, and the team of Walsh and Misty May, probably the greatest team in the history of the sport, put an exclamation point on their total domination.

Best on the U.S. tour. Best on the international tour. Best last year. Best this year.

"The best ever," said an admiring Karch Kiraly, the three-time volleyball gold medalist.
Digging the gold
Yin-yang partnership of Walsh-May scores beach volleyball title
Within a year of partnering, Walsh and May were the best team in the world, with an amazing chemistry. It's good cop, bad cop. May is the quiet, calm, fierce one. Walsh is the excitable one, the cheerleader. If you were designing the perfect yin-yang partnership, this would be your model.
May, Walsh have no peers    "They've formed the best team ever in beach volleyball," said Youngs, 34. "We're all trying our best, trying new things to beat them. You just have to hope you catch them on an off day."
U.S. Women Enjoy a Day at the Beach    So when the final ball fell Tuesday night at the Beach Volleyball Center, when Misty May and Kerri Walsh basically whiffed on their celebratory hug, falling instead to the sand, all the jokes about how there are more beers than cheers at the average beach volleyball match vanished for a moment. May and Walsh, two California girls who were high school rivals, did something that no other American women had done in the sport that grew up on the California beaches. They won an Olympic gold medal.
Beach ball nothing but fun, fun, fun     The Brazilians carried on like it was Carnival; the Americans as if it was the Fourth of July. Then there were the Greeks, who waved their flags in the air just because they were there.  With all due respect to ancient Olympia, the Beach Volleyball Centre that's a serve's arc from the Aegean Sea best exudes the Olympic ideal.
U.S. women take the gold at raucous seaside event    Much of the coverage has poked fun at the sport. Perhaps it's easy to do, yet it's clear the sport offers much that has been lost in others. No judging scandals here, no performance-enhancing drug rumors. The athletes exude a respect for the sport, respect for each other and even respect for their fans.
May and Walsh capture beach volleyball gold     Do you believe in angels?  ...Misty May surely does, now more than ever....  She believes with all her heart that her mother was looking over her at the Olympics, the spirit as real as the vial of ashes she sprinkled on the beach volleyball sand before the gold medal match she won Tuesday night with partner Kerri Walsh against Brazil.
U.S. women throw beach volleyball party     “It kind of hit me when I went and saw my family and they had tears in their eyes,” Walsh said. “They flew a million miles to see it and they hate flying. It’s really special.”
Beach volleyball: Rich day at the beach for U.S. stars - Americans get gold and bronze     Although the sport was born on the beaches of Southern California, Olympic beach volleyball titles eluded the Americans in the two previous Games.  But Tuesday night, in an atmosphere resembling an outdoor disco, beach volleyball came back home, propelled by the efforts of two U.S. duos who won the women's gold and bronze medals.
May-Walsh cap splendid American night on the beach
(08-24) 15:19 PDT ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- They raced to the stands and grabbed American flags as "Born in the USA" blared over the speakers at the Olympics' rowdiest venue....  Kerri Walsh and Misty May ended a splendid night on the beach with a gold medal, a fitting finale for the most dominant run in the history of beach volleyball.
A Good Day at the Beach     Yes, it’s a circus, and yes, it’s like no other competition at the Olympics, where lifetime dreams and years of training often seem to burden more than uplift the athletes, but that’s the point. Beach volleyball was born on the sun-drenched shores of California, in communities where the beach is not just a place but an attitude and a way of life. So you won’t find any of the top players complaining about all the hoopla.
Misty, play for me ... and Kerri, too     Misty May and Kerri Walsh have brought their sport to critical mass. Women's beach volleyball matters now. On its merits it is fast, dynamic, and entertaining, combining some of the best elements of tennis and hoops. The calculus of action is as compelling as the near-nakedness of the women....  I will be watching from now on, not only as the dog that I am, but also as a sports purist appreciating a truly excellent game. I want to see, and learn, more.  (Article includes the picture.)
What Others Wrote about Beach Volleyball     Brian Mahoney, Associated Press Writer on www.yahoo.com:  "The festive atmosphere at the venue, which includes blaring music, dancing and an attractive beach crowd, is one of the reasons that beach volleyball will go down as one of the stars of the Athens Games."
Kerri named as the Olympic Beach Volleyball Women's Most Valuable Player.  Misty comes in second in the voting.
Gold medal is a family affair for U.S. beach volleyball teammate     ATHENS - As high as Kerri Walsh jumped at the net Tuesday night - blocking shots, stretching for a gold medal - she jumped even higher when she finally reached the stands....  She leapt up and Tim Walsh leaned down. Father and daughter slapped their hands together in the highest high five of the millions given in Walsh family history.
Gold strikes: Beach star dazzles Duke City     Misty May, for at least a while, has star power. The Olympic women's beach volleyball gold medal winner, along with teammate Kerri Walsh, has gigs scheduled on the "Tonight Show" with Jay Leno and the MTV Video Music Awards....  But the first glitzy place May visited after the winning the gold was . . . Albuquerque?
These nuns love beach volleyball!     When Kerri Walsh and Misty May won the first Olympic gold medal for the United States in beach volleyball Tuesday in Athens there was cheering, clapping, shouting and toasting. And that was just at Mount Carmel at the motherhouse of the Sisters of Charity BVM.... Sister Aimee O'Neill, 87, is Walsh's great-grandaunt. Every moment the blonde, long-legged athlete was on television since the competition began last week, O'Neill's room has been full of fellow BVM sisters cheering her on.
BERARDINO: US women have bash on beach     So with his fiancee, Misty May, closing in on an Olympic gold medal in women's beach volleyball Tuesday night, it was only fitting that Matt Treanor get to share the moment....  As he had throughout these Games, Treanor had been trying to follow May's match along with her partner, Kerri Walsh, via the Internet.

'Topes can't match May's winning ways ALBUQUERQUE -- Athens gold medalist Misty May stood near the home dugout at Isotopes Park on Friday night, trying to let the weight of her newfound celebrity sink in....  Only three dizzying days removed from winning the Olympic gold medal in women's beach volleyball at the 2004 summer games, May -- who was in Albuquerque to catch up with her fiancé, Isotopes catcher Matt Treanor -- was the center of attention as she waited to throw out the game's ceremonial first pitch.
'Tope more than misty over love's win     In ballplayer-speak, Misty May won the World Series....  So Albuquerque Isotopes catcher Matt Treanor acted as though he too had won baseball's top honor, crying hysterically from his Colorado Springs hotel room Tuesday as his fiancée took the Olympic gold medal in women's beach volleyball with partner Kerri Walsh.
The AVP Website put together a very collection of articles from all over the country.  In some cases, they've actually included pictures of the actual pages from newspapers extolling Misty and Kerri's gold medal triumph.
The Beach Volleyball Database has lots more stories.  As in all other respects, it is a rich treasure trove for all things beach volleyball.
Semifinals
May-Walsh beat McPeak-Youngs in Olympic semis     May and Walsh, the world's top-ranked team, made McPeak and Youngs scramble for every point Monday and pulled away in the second set for a 21-18, 21-15 Olympic semifinals victory.....  "That was the most stressful match I've ever had to play in my life," Walsh said. "The tension of the Olympic Games, the excitement — it was all bubbling over."   
Walsh and May Will Play for Gold     In a match that lasted 41 minutes, May and Kerri Walsh defeated Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs, 21-18, 21-15. May and Walsh, seeded No. 1, will play for gold today against Brazil's Adriana Behar and Shelda Bede, silver medalists at the Sydney 2000 Games. 
Quarterfinals
Americans duel for gold-medal berth     American beach volleyball stars Misty May and Kerri Walsh consider Holly McPeak a mentor and Elaine Youngs a friend.....  On Monday, the two pairs will face off in the biggest match of their lives.....  Both teams won Olympic quarterfinals in straight sets Sunday, setting up a showdown all four players have been anticipating for months.
May & Walsh Create All-American Olympic Semi-final     Athens, Greece, August 22, 2004 – After waiting eight years, the United States has finally netted a women’s Olympic Beach Volleyball medal as both American teams in the Athens 2004 Athens Games won here Sunday to advance to the semi-finals....  With Misty May and Kerri Walsh posting a 21-19 and 21-14 win in 38 minutes over Guylaine Dumont and Annie Martin of Canada, the United States is guaranteed at least a silver medal after failing to reach the podium in both the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games.
Round of 16
U.S. Women Getting Close to a Beach Bash     ATHENS -- The two U.S. women's beach volleyball teams cruised Saturday in what amounted to Olympic scrimmages. One more win apiece, and Kerri Walsh and Misty May will play Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs.
Round Three
U.S. women continue to stroll on the beach      ATHENS — Injuries, personality conflicts and maybe even a case of Olympics jitters prevented U.S. women's beach volleyball teams from living up to their billing in Atlanta and Sydney....  In Athens, so far, it's different.
USA’s May & Walsh Post 3-0 Olympic Beach Volleyball Pool Mark     Athens, Greece, August 19, 2004 – Like their American rivals Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs, Misty May and Kerri Walsh have advanced from the Athens 2004 Olympic Games Beach Volleyball pool play with a 3-0 after downing a team from the Czech Republic here Thursday....  With the 21-17 and 21-17 win in 40 minutes over Eva Celbova and Sona Novakova, May and Walsh secured their top-seed in the 16-team women’s elimination bracket that starts Friday with the first of two days of opening round play.
Round Two
Women dealing with inactivity     After a 21-11, 21-13 victory against Netherlands' 13th-seeded Rebekka Kadijk and Marrit Leenstra on Tuesday night, Walsh was asked how she copes with the inactivity....  "I was telling Misty this morning I think this is going to be a test more of emotional and mental strength," said Walsh, 26, of Saratoga, Calif.
May-Walsh dominate again     American beach volleyball pair Misty May and Kerri Walsh say the Olympics is more of a mental test than a physical one....  So far, they've passed it with ease.
Round One
FIVB:  "Top-seeded Americans & Brazilians Notch Olympic Beach Volleyball Wins Sunday"
Beach Volleyball Database:  "May’s Return Helps Walsh Celebrate 26th Birthday with USA Beach Volleyball Win"