Willoughby, US get a golden opportunity

BEIJING - Kim Willoughby's tears of joy were understandable.

She won a spot on the US women's volleyball team just four months ago, and now she's playing for an Olympic gold medal.

The United States defeated Cuba in three sets yesterday to advance to the final, guaranteeing the Americans their best Olympic finish since 1984.

The US will play Brazil, which beat China in the other semifinal, for the Olympic title in tomorrow's gold medal match.

Willoughby helped them get there, with spikes that capped each set for the Americans.

"I just kept thinking, 'You can't tip the ball, you've got to hit the ball,' " she said, adding with understatement: "It worked."

The US improved to 6-1 in Beijing with the 25-20, 25-16, 25-17 victory. The team's best finish in the Olympics was a silver medal at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

Coach Jenny Lang Ping, a sports icon in China, jumped from her chair with her arms raised in a rare show of emotion. Her team gathered in a huddle at midcourt, raising their clasped hands.

Shadowed by tragedy at these Olympics, the Americans have drawn considerable support from the Chinese because of Lang. She is a former star of the Chinese national team who led her country to the gold medal in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

The Americans, who lost to Cuba in three sets in the preliminary round, jumped ahead, 9-6, in the first set after Rosir Calderon's missed spike. The team led the rest of the way, winning on Willoughby's spike.

The US kept up the pressure in the second, going up, 8-4, on Danielle Scott-Arruda's ace. Errors cost Cuba as the US extended the lead to 15-8, with Willoughby again scoring set point with a spike.

The Americans rolled through the third set, going up, 16-12, on Yanelis Santos's serve into the net. Then it was Willoughby again for match point, with a spike Yumilka Ruiz couldn't stop.

Lang said the team has really tested Willoughby over the last four months since she joined the team.

"In the first two matches, she was very tight - this is her first Olympics and she was nervous," Lang said. "As the games went on, she learned a lot. She's a great substitution player for us."

The US team has played through sadness in Beijing, after the parents of former Olympian Elisabeth Bachman McCutcheon were attacked at a tourist site following the opening ceremony. Todd Bachman was fatally stabbed and his wife badly wounded at the 13th century Drum Tower. Bachman McCutcheon is the wife of US men's coach Hugh McCutcheon.