Pink Spiders face Hi-Pass as V League championship starts Wednesday

Volleyball

Published: 28 Mar. 2023, 15:30

Pink Spiders face Hi-Pass as V League championship starts Wednesday

The Incheon Heungkuk Life Pink Spiders celebrate after winning a set during a V League game against the Hwaseong IBK Altos at Hwaseong Gymnasium in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi on March 15. [NEWS1]

The 2022-23 V League championship series between the Incheon Heungkuk Life Pink Spiders and Gimcheon Korea Expressway Hi-Pass kicks off Wednesday.

The Pink Spiders booked a direct ticket to the five-game championship after winning the league, while Hi-Pass, who finished in third place, advanced to the series after beating the Suwon Hyundai Engineering & Construction Hillstate twice in the three-game playoffs.

The Incheon side are looking to repeat the success in 2019, when they won both the league and the championship. The opponent they faced in the 2019 championship was also Hi-Pass.

The Pink Spiders beat Hi-Pass three times and lost once in the five-game series that year.

They have also been formidable against Hi-Pass this season, as they beat them five times out of six clashes in the league. The most recent game between the two on March 7, however, ended with a 3-1 victory for Hi-Pass.

The Pink Spiders saw a huge success this season thanks to players such as Kim Yeon-koung and and Jelena Mladjenovic, who displayed remarkable performances throughout the season.

Star player Kim, who rejoined the Incheon side ahead of this season, recorded the highest attack success rate at 45.76 percent, while her teammate Mladjenovic was the league’s third-highest scorer with 821 points.

Their success came despite dropping head coach Kwon Soon-chan in the middle of the season. The Pink Spiders played well even under then interim head coach Kim Dae-kyung for over a month until they appointed Marcello Abbondanza, who ultimately led his side to the league title two weeks ago.

Hi-Pass, who are playing in the championship for the first time since 2019, have been resilient this season, picking up multiple wins and losses, but they rode a four game winning-streak in the last stage of the league, which allowed them to book a spot in the postseason.

Gimcheon Korea Expressway Hi-Pass players celebrate during a V League game against Suwon Hyundai Engineering & Construction Hillstate at Gimcheon Gymnasium in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang. [YONHAP]

The Gimcheon side’s defense was prominent with the veteran players displaying outstanding performances.

Jung Dae-young, 41, was the third-highest player on average number of blocks this season, with 0.75 blocks each set. Yim Myung-ok, 37, on the other hand, held her side’s defense firm by recording 5.31 digs each set, which was the fourth highest in the league.

The championship will test if Hi-Pass’s defense can stay firm against the league champions.

The first leg of the championship takes place at Incheon Samsan World Gymnasium in Incheon on Wednesday.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]