Tamil Nadu won the gold medal in the women's volleyball tournament, defeating hosts Andhra Pradesh 25-19, 25-23, 25-17 at the KBR Indoor stadium in Hyderabad on Monday.

The winners took control of the game early and maintained the lead without losing their grip as a packed auditorium watched the home team go down in silence.

Mini Elizabeth impressed right from the start with her lethal punches and acrobatic saves as Tamil Nadu had no difficulty in taking the first set by a margin of six points.

Skipper Sridevi, Radhika and Jayashree tried to put Andhra back on the rails but Tamil Nadu's spikers proved equal to the task and clinched the closely-fought second set at 25-23.

The third set was a tame affair, with TN's M Sujatha, Shiji Kurien and skipper Gayatri calling the shots from start as the hosts were forced to settle for the silver.

 Earlier, Maharashtra beat West Bengal 25-16, 11-25, 25-10, 25-21 to win the bronze.