'Kang So-hwi's 28-point explosion' women's volleyball, hard-fought 3-2 victory over Taiwan... advances to AVC Cup semifinals with five straight wins

*This content was translated by AI.

The Republic of Korea Yeo Ja-bae-gu (CEO) team has advanced to the 2026 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Cup semifinals (semi-finals).

Led by head coach Cha Sang-hyun, South Korea secured a comeback victory over Taiwan 3-2 (25-19, 19-25, 25-27, 25-21, 15-12) in the fifth match of Group A of the group stage held on the 12th (Korean time) in Candon City, Philippines.

After winning the first set, South Korea found itself in a difficult position after losing the second and third sets consecutively, but they managed to win the fourth and fifth sets, concluding a 2-hour and 11-minute intense battle.

Kang So-hwi of Korea Expressway Corporation led the charge with 28 points, including seven blocks, while Lee Ye-rim of Hyundai E&C contributed 13 points and Na Hyun-soo of Hyundai E&C added 12 points.

Having defeated Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, the Philippines, and Australia, South Korea also beat Taiwan, finishing the group stage with five straight wins and topping Group A.

This tournament features 12 teams divided into two groups for the group stage, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the semifinals to determine the champion.

As the top team in Group A, South Korea will face Vietnam, the second-place team in Group B (4 wins, 1 loss), on the 13th at 8 p.m. to secure a spot in the final. If South Korea wins this match, they will meet the winner of the match between Kazakhstan (Group B, 1st place, 5 wins) and Taiwan (Group A, 2nd place, 4 wins, 1 loss) in the final.

Japan, China, and Thailand, which are participating in the FIVB Volleyball Nations League (VNL), are not taking part in this tournament. South Korea qualified for this event after failing to retain their spot in the VNL.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.