Last summer when U.S. men's volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon asked him to come back to the American men's volleyball team, Lloy Ball didn't make the decision. His wife Sarah did, telling him it was a chance for their 7-year-old son Dyer to see his father play in the Olympics.

After beating Russia 25-21, 25-21, 25-27, 22-25, 15-13 today, Ball and his U.S. team will play for the gold medal of the Beijing Olympics on Sunday morning. As soon as match point hit the floor at 2:45 a.m. Fort Wayne time, the Woodburn native and former IPFW all-American ran to the stands to embrace and cry with his wife and son.

“I was emotional and they were emotional,” Ball said by phone. “It's been a long journey. From starting with the team in 1994, playing in three Olympics that didn't go our way, questioning whether to come back or not because of the commitment I'd have to make and the sacrifices they'd have to make ... Today made it all worth it. To have Sarah and Dyer and Mom and Dad there to share it with me, it's the most elated I've ever been after a win.”

Ball, 36, will join swimmers Matt Vogel and Sharon Wichman-Jones as the only Fort Wayne athletes to earn Olympic medals. Wichman-Jones won the gold medal in the 200-meter breast stroke and the bronze in the 100 breast stroke at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, and Vogel won gold in the 100 butterfly and 400 medley relay in the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

“I think it's very meaningful for Lloy,” McCutcheon said in the post-match news conference. “It was a risk initially, for him and for us, to return, but along with the risk there was a lot of good discussion and trust. The trust has paid significant dividends for us.”

The Americans, 7-0 so far in the Olympics, will face either Brazil or Italy in the gold medal match at approximately 12 a.m. Sunday, Fort Wayne time, following the bronze medal match.

The Brazilians, the world's No. 1-ranked team and defending Olympic champion, will be favored at 10 a.m. today against the 2004 silver medalist Italians. The U.S. is currently the hottest team in the world, having beaten Brazil 3-0 in Rio de Janeiro last month during the World League finals and Italy 3-1 during Olympic pool play last week.

After beating Serbia 3-2 in the quarterfinals, the U.S. jumped out 2-0 on the Russians but couldn't hold the momentum because its passing broke down. The taller Russians pounded the U.S. side with missile-like jump serves, forcing Ball to run down his teammates' passes, and then smothered the Americans' hitting attempts at the net.

“Even though some people will probably say we should have won in three or four sets, we knew it would be a long match,” Ball said. “That young opposite ate us alive, but luckily we were able to control the rest of their guys. We were in every set and had a chance to win, and we knew we'd have a few more chances in the fifth game.”

David Lee scored four of the Americans' last five points with two kills and a block. The U.S. is now 4-0 in fifth games over the last two tournaments against the world's best teams.

The win also ended a nine-match losing streak to the Russians, including the 2004 bronze medal match. It's the first time since 1988 that the American men will play for the gold medal.

Maxim Mikhaylov belted 28 kills to lead the Russians. Ball set an extremely balanced U.S. attack as Reid Priddy hit 17 kills, Riley Salmon 13, Ryan Millar 12, Clay Stanley 11 and David Lee 9. Ball finished with 79 assists as the U.S. hit 47 percent as a team.

“These last two matches are two of the most memorable matches in Olympic history,” Ball said. “They were just dogfights, both of them. I'm sure the Russia match was a difficult match for fans and family to watch and it was difficult to play.”

And then he jumped into a cab to take his family to dinner.

“I'm actually kind of calm right now,” Ball said. “I have pretty much neglected my family this entire tournament so I'm going to sit down with them and try to wrap my head around what has happened.

“I still can't believe I get a chance to play for the gold medal in two days.”