“Out of Newport Harbor High School and the University of Southern California, a two-time National Champion, three-time All-American, with seven open wins, the 2006 Rookie of the Year and Most Improved Player of 2007… April Rosssss!

“Also out of USC, the reigning Goddess of the Beach, with eight open wins… Jen Kessyyyyy!” announced AVP emcee, Chris “Geeter” McGee.

“Ladies and gentlemen, these women are also the reigning World Champions after bringing home the title in Norway this past 4th of July!”

Team Kessy/Ross is still getting used to its new title. They’ll have the next two years to do so as the SWATCH FIVB World Championship competition is held biennially.

Kessy and Ross’ win came at the perfect time because, with Misty May-Treanor recuperating from her Achilles injury and Kerri Walsh taking time off to start a family, the beach volleyball community needed star power to remain in the U.S. Kessy and Ross have come through and earned the crown, establishing themselves as a powerhouse in the sport.

“Last year, after barely missing out on making it to the 2008 Olympics, April and I set a goal,” explained Kessy. As a sort of vindication, the duo wanted to claim the SWATCH FIVB World title. “Everything we did from then on was geared towards that goal.”  

Even after taking home FIVB gold, Kessy and Ross were in a state of disbelief that they attained their goal. “It was really exciting because no one can expect to win that,” said Ross.

Being announced as world champions isn’t the only thing new for the team. Anyone who saw the duo last year and then saw them again this season can tell that the two women are in the best shape of their lives.

What changed? “After not making it to the Olympics, April and I thought, ‘what can we do to shave points off our game?’” Kessy shared. “We both decided that carrying a few less pounds around could only improve our game. The mind is a powerful thing and we just decided to focus [on getting into better shape].”

Their workouts remain intense. Ross revealed that a day’s workout included two hours of volleyball practice, followed by either running hills or sand dunes or a long swim in the ocean. Weight training waits until after lunch.

The real key to their fitness success was to pay attention to their eating habits. “I’ve stopped snacking after dinner and April and I keep each other accountable on making healthy eating decisions,” said Kessy.

“As a team we struggle to eat better but we’re working really hard and we’ve gotten better at keeping each other accountable,” added Ross.

All the hard work has paid off: Not only have they been in the finals in all but one event they’ve entered this year, but 2009 is the first season the pair has won an AVP title (Houston and Ocean City) since they began playing together in 2007.

Now that Kessy and Ross have achieved their world champion goal, they have a new goal in mind: to keep playing well and make it to the ultimate stage—the 2012 Olympics. “I want to win a gold medal at the Olympics,” Ross smiled.