Sioux Falls native Taryn Kloth, USA Olympics beach volleyball team advances to Round of 16

The U.S. Olympic beach volleyball duo of Sioux Falls native Taryn Kloth and her teammate Kristen Nuss defeated China's Xue Chen and Xia Xinyi, 2-1, to win Pool B on Thursday.

Kloth and Nuss will now advance to the Round of 16.

The U.S. pair fell behind early and lost their first set in Olympic play in the opening frame, 15-21. Kloth and Nuss rallied back to win set two, 21-16, and were leading 3-2 in set three when lightning forced the match to be delayed and the crowd in attendance to be cleared.

Both teams returned to the court after about an hour and the U.S. picked up where they left off, winning the third set, 15-12.

The team of Kloth and Nuss took advantage of their opponents' errors and were efficient in their attacks. China had five more errors and four more faults and the U.S. were successful in 56% of their attacks. Kloth finished with 21 kills in 37 swings, hitting .514 while also adding a pair of blocks. Nuss had 14 kills and 11 digs on .440 hitting.

Kloth and Nuss will now advance to the Round of 16, but brackets and match times will be determined after pool play concludes Friday.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Sioux Falls native Taryn Kloth, USA Olympics beach volleyball team advances to Round of 16