Korea out of volleyball medal race after 3-0 loss to China
![The South Korean women's volleyball team, front, reacts after losing a Pool E game at the Hangzhou Asian Games 3-0 to China at Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium in Hangzhou, China on Wednesday. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2023/10/04/d7c904a8-adf9-4d89-8fd9-4dff38b4ec2b.jpg)
The South Korean women's volleyball team, front, reacts after losing a Pool E game at the Hangzhou Asian Games 3-0 to China at Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium in Hangzhou, China on Wednesday. [NEWS1]
The South Korean women’s volleyball team is out of the medal race at the Hangzhou Asian Games after a 3-0 loss to host country China in Pool E on Wednesday.
South Korea faced the hosts at Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium in Hangzhou, China and failed to dominate in any set.
The level of difference in attack was clear, with China winning the first set 25-12. South Korea managed more points during the second set, but it still fell short and China won it 25-21.
South Korea could not seem to bounce back and lost the third set 25-16 for a final score of 3-0. None of the Korean players scored double-digit points in Wednesday’s game, with South Korea’s top scorer Kang So-hwi only managing nine in total.
China, on the other hand, had four players that scored over 10 points, including top scorer Yuan Xinyue, with 12.
With Wednesday’s loss, South Korea lost the chance to reach the semifinals. In the Asiad, game results in preliminary stages carry over to the following last eight stage and the combined results of the two stages determine semifinalists.
In Pool E, South Korea, North Korea, Vietnam and China compete.
Since South Korea and North Korea already had one loss, while China and Vietnam had two wins each in the preliminary stage, South Korea had to secure a win against China to stay alive in the knockout stage.
South Korea will now play North Korea in their next game in Pool E on Thursday, but regardless of that game’s result, both sides will not reach the semifinal.
North Korea also lost to Vietnam in Pool E earlier on Wednesday.
This year is the first time the South Korean women’s volleyball team has failed to medal in the Asian Games since the 2006 tournament.
BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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