Federico Staksrud/Christian Alshon claimed the second spot in the men’s doubles gold medal match with an 11-6, 12-10 victory over No. 4 seeds Dekel Bar/Tyson McGuffin.

The No. 2 seeds came out on fire and raced out to an 8-0 lead in the opening game, thanks to a combination of their own well-struck drives and some uncharacteristic errors from their opponents to start off the match.

That lead helped Staksrud/Alshon take the opening game, but it was Bar/McGuffin who struck first in Game 2. They gained a 7-3 lead in the second and even had game point at 10-8, but Staksrud/Alshon fought through the scoreboard pressure and eventually triumphed to advance to the final in their first tournament together.

Alshon—who will also go for men’s singles gold on Sunday—spoke about the importance of communication in a new partnership.

“I think we were able to build chemistry throughout our matches as the day went on,” he said. “We just tried very hard to communicate well. It’s huge to communicate with your partner, and I think we do a really good job of that.”

That communication will need to remain sharp when they face top seeds Ben Johns/Andrei Daescu in the final.