‘Overwhelming firepower’ U20 women’s volleyball cruises to 3-0 shutout win over New Zealand…advances to quarterfinals as group leader

The Korea U20 Women’s National Volleyball Team, led by head coach Jang Yoon-hee, is headed to the quarterfinals of the 2024 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Asian Women’s U20 Championship.

Korea defeated New Zealand in straight sets, 3-0 (25-19, 25-13, 25-7), in the second and final match of their Pool D preliminary round at the 2024 AVC Asian Women’s U20 Volleyball Championship in Jiangmen, China, at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday. It was the second straight win to open the tournament after a 3-0 victory over Chinese Taipei the day before.

The power differential between the two teams was evident in this match. South Korea harassed New Zealand with a variety of attacking options. As well as open attacks, they used frequent fast breaks to disrupt the opposition’s receiving line. They didn’t have many tries, but as they grew in confidence, they were willing to go for the back attack. With the game heavily tilted in favor of Korea, Jang Yoon-hee even had the luxury of bringing ace 안전한 파워볼사이트 Kim Se-bin (Korea Expressway Corporation) onto the court.

With the win, Korea booked an early spot in the quarterfinals of the tournament. In the final, Korea will play another round-robin (league) match, just as they did in the qualifiers. As the top seed in Group D, South Korea will be placed in Group F of the finals. Group F includes the 1-2 finishers from Pool B and the 1-2 finishers from Pool D. The top two finishers in the group will advance to the finals for places 1-4.

By finishing first in their group, South Korea will have an advantage in the finals. This is because they won’t face any opponents they already played in the preliminaries. Instead, they will be matched up against their opponents from the group stage. In other words, Korea will head into the final with one win.

On this day, Korea started with setters Kim Da-eun (Mokpo Women’s College) and Apojit Shin (Jeonggwanjang), outside hitters Lee Ju-ah (Mokpo Women’s College) and Jeon Da-bin (Jungang Women’s College), middle blockers Kim Se-bin and Lee Ji-yoon (Jungang Women’s College), and libero Park Chae-min (Gangneung Women’s College).

New Zealand took a 3-1 lead early in the first set with two consecutive service aces. But it didn’t last long. Korea fought back strongly. Kim Se-bin and Jeon Da-bin were particularly strong. They continued to rack up points from the center and wings. Lee Ji-yoon’s blocking at key moments, coupled with New Zealand’s frequent errors, made the score 13-9. Korea took the lead.

New Zealand scored three points in quick succession, and Korea faltered for a moment. It was 12-13. However, the tide turned when New Zealand dropped their serve. Korea capitalized on the opportunity. Starting with Shin Eun-ji’s back-row attack on the right side, they went on a scoring spree. The trio of Kim Se-bin-Da-bin-Shin Eun-ji continued to exert their power. At 16-13, Kim Se-bin served an ace. Setter Kim Da-eun then took over the toss from Kim Se-bin and served the first set herself.

In the second set, South Korea stepped up their game. There was a brief tug-of-war at the beginning of the set, but after 5-5, Korea took control. Lee made it 6-5 with a kill, followed by two straight service aces from Kim Da-eun. In response, Jilcera Lee Ji-yoon also put on a scoring show with two straight points.

The Korean onslaught was unstoppable. Shin Eun-ji scored a point with a center open attack that easily broke through the opponent’s one-man blocking. At 15-6, they were even able to afford to block their own attacks. With Shin Eun-ji in action, the opposite wing offense started to open up. Lee Joo-ah’s scoring arsenal came alive. It was 20-8, and the score was over double figures. Korea won the second set with ease.

New Zealand, who had lost their will, fell apart in the third set. After opening with a service ace, they didn’t score for a while. A reception error by Davin Jeon made it just 2-17. Korea, on the other hand, completely dominated the court, especially in the left front row. Kwak Sun-ok (Jung Kwan-jang), Jeon Da-bin, and Lee Joo-ah took turns making plays. The opponent’s blocking was on one side, and Lee Ji-yoon, who never missed a gap, constantly scored with fast breaks.

Towards the end of the game, New Zealand also showed their strength. After a block made it 3-18, they quickly reduced the gap. They got to 7-23. But that was it. The gap was already too big. South Korea took the win comfortably.