PARIS – Italian Monica De Gennaro has already taken part in the Olympic Games three times and has gone home empty-handed each time.

Finally, at the age of 37, she goes home with gold.

Italy defeated defending champions the United States on Sunday to win gold in women’s volleyball at the Olympic Games in Paris.

“It’s a special feeling,” she said. “It’s every player’s dream to play in the final of the Olympic Games and to win it. This is something unique. We have worked so hard for so many years to reach this final.”

When Italy converted the match point and decided the game, many players on the court collapsed and began to hug each other in a huge scrum. Together they threw De Gennaro into the air.

The victory came in two sets: 25:18, 25:20 and 25:17. The Italians ended a dominant tournament with only one set lost.

For Italy, who are the leaders, it is their first medal in the sport and the Americans are disappointed after winning their first Olympic title in Tokyo. For the Italians, whose best Olympic result was fifth place, it is a big win.

“It means everything,” said Alessia Orro. “It was a lot of hard work, a lot of sweat, a lot of sacrifices and a lot of disappointments that got us this far. They made us take this path, they made us win gold.”

The victory was celebrated before a boisterous crowd at the South Paris Arena, where many fans waved Italian and American flags. People danced and cheered as the Italians stormed to victory.

The USA led 6-5 in the third set before Italy scored the next seven points to take a 12-6 lead. The Americans fought back, scoring three of the next four points.

The USA closed to 19-16 before Italy tied the score with a 6-1 run, capped by a match point from Paola Egonu, who put in a dominant performance, scoring 22 points.

“It’s great,” said Italian Caterina Bosetti. “This is the game I’ve been waiting for my whole life.”

Myriam Sylla beamed as she wore her gold medal and spoke to reporters after her victory. The 29-year-old, who was competing in her first Olympics, was asked how the medal felt around her neck.

“It’s hard, like … the journey we’ve taken to get there,” she said.

The silver medal for the Americans is their seventh Olympic medal and makes them the most victorious volleyball country.

“I will be very proud that we were able to play on the last day of competition,” said American Jordyn Poulter. “And I think it’s even more beautiful for us because we’ve been through so much as a team.”

Italy defeated Turkey in straight sets to reach the final, while the USA beat Brazil in a five-set thriller to secure their place in the match.

U.S. coach Karch Kiraly made lineup changes after a five-set loss to China on July 29 at the start of the group stage, benching veterans Jordan Larson and Kelsey Robinson Cook in favor of Avery Skinner and Kathryn Plummer.

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The move worked and the team beat Serbia the next time around to get back on track, but on Sunday it was not enough to beat the mighty Italian team and defend the title.

Kiraly was impressed by how his team fought through all adversities and reached the final.

“It was absolutely amazing to see how capable this group was, how determined they were, how much grit they had when we pushed ourselves to the limit,” he said. “It was probably the best experience we’ve had at these Olympics.”

By KRISTIE RIEKEN, AP Sports Writer