A 175cm small OH turned the final match around and became MVP! Chungang Girls' High School's Park Kang-bin: "If I can't attack, I'll show them through receiving" [Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

Park Kang-bin (17) of Chungang Girls' High School overcame the disadvantage of being only 175cm tall for an outside hitter and rose as the MVP of the national tournament final. Behind her stood the time spent worrying about how to survive on the court and training relentlessly.

In a recent interview with StarNews at Seoul Chungang Girls' High School, Park Kang-bin said, "An outside hitter isn't just about attacking; they must also receive a lot. It's a position where you can show all-around skills. On days when my attack isn't working, I'm glad I can contribute to the team through receiving."

It was an unexpected answer. Usually, promising outside hitters feel burdened by the need to handle both offense and defense. Especially among current high school freshmen to seniors, many began their playing careers during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving them with severely insufficient training time. As a result, they often struggle in defense, which requires extensive repetitive practice.

But Park Kang-bin was different. She said, "Of course, being an outside hitter involves a lot of responsibilities and can be tough. It's always fun when things go well, but I don't want to play when they don't. However, it's a charming position because you can show everything—receiving, hitting, and more." She smiled brightly.

The match that proved her words was the 2026 IBK Industrial Bank of Korea National Middle and High School Volleyball Tournament held earlier this month. On the 6th, Chungang Girls' High School defeated Seonmyeong Girls' High School in the under-18 women's final at the Jecheon Indoor Gymnasium in Chungcheongbuk-do with a set score of 3-1 to claim the championship.

Chungang Girls' High School had lost to Seonmyeong Girls' High School in both the March spring league finals and the May national category championships. Afterward, they skipped the June second league Jeonju Jewelry Cup and the July Presidential Cup to focus on strengthening their fundamentals. Then, in the third final showdown, they achieved proper revenge.

The start was not good. Chungang Girls' High School lost the first set as both their serve and receive were shaken simultaneously. The player who turned the tide was Park Kang-bin, who was actively deployed from the second set onward.

Park Kang-bin stabilized the backcourt by actively participating in receiving and also unsettled the opponent's defense with fast and accurate serves. In attack, she showed no intimidation despite her small stature. She succeeded in both blocking and open attacks, shifting momentum to Chungang Girls' High School. As a game-changer who fulfilled her role properly, Park Kang-bin eventually secured the final MVP award.

Reflecting on that moment, Park Kang-bin said, "When I come off the bench as a substitute, it's often because my seniors aren't performing well. So I really feel like 'I have to do this.'" She added with a smile, "As soon as I entered, senior Kim Mi-ju set me the first ball, and we scored immediately. At that moment, I thought, 'Something good is going to happen today.'"

Encouragement from teammates also gave her strength. Park Kang-bin recalled, "Even when I wasn't playing well, my seniors kept saying next to me, 'It's okay,' 'You did great.' So my confidence didn't drop, and I think I just played with enjoyment."

The role that Jang Yun-hee (56), head coach of Chungang Girls' High School, expects from Park Kang-bin is far from being a flashy ace. She wants a "housekeeper-type outside hitter." Coach Jang emphasized, "What I want from (Park) Kang-bin is defense and receiving. She must not only receive balls coming to her but also those intended for teammates on the side, and handle bad balls better than other players."

She continued, "Kang-bin isn't particularly tall, nor is she a powerful player like (Oh) Se-in or (Park) Seo-yoon. So it's important to identify what her strengths are." She explained, "She needs to showcase her advantages in defense and receiving, handle difficult balls well, and earn the evaluation that 'that player knows how to play volleyball.'"

Although the standard is strict, the player herself had already been searching for the same answer since middle school. Park Kang-bin said, "In middle school, our coach always told us, 'You survive by receiving.' So I kept practicing receiving and tried to receive as many balls as possible."

She also adjusted her attacking style to suit herself. Instead of trying to break through blockers with powerful force, she frequently attempts attacks that use the blocker's hands. In blocking, rather than engaging in a direct height battle, she focuses on creating a bounce so the ball doesn't pass straight through, allowing the back-row defense to receive it.

Park Kang-bin explained, "My block points aren't particularly high, so I try to support as much as possible from below. I aim to create even a slight bounce so the ball doesn't go straight through."

Her mentor also values Park Kang-bin's utilization highly. They pay special attention not to players who start from the beginning of matches but to those who are deployed when the flow stalls and bring about change.

Coach Jang evaluated, "(Park) Kang-bin is a player who knows how to play volleyball in a delicate rather than flashy manner. She's the type who performs better when she waits on the bench and enters when things aren't going well for the team. The team needs a player who can help when things go wrong. Kang-bin fulfilled that role well in both the semifinals and finals."

The journey to this point was not smooth. Park Kang-bin, who attended Gyeonghae Girls' Middle School in Jinju, Gyeongsangnam-do, had to compete with outside hitters who were taller than her at the time. To survive, she considered other paths and personally knocked on the doors of Seoul Chungang Girls' High School.

Park Kang-bin said, "Originally, there were many left-side hitters in my team who were taller than me. Since I had to survive, I decided I needed to choose another path." She added, "I contacted Chungang Girls' High School and attended a training session. They thought it was good, so I came here."

According to Coach Jang, Park Kang-bin struggled to play actual matches for nearly a year after enrolling due to ankle surgery and administrative issues. Although it took time to regain her game sense, she gained more confidence after experiencing the national under-18 (U-18) representative team this year.

Park Kang-bin's role model is GS Caltex's Yoo Seo-yeon (27). She is an outside hitter who isn't particularly tall but excels in both attacking and receiving. Park Kang-bin said, "(Yoo) Seo-yeon isn't a player with an incredibly tall stature, yet she attacks diversely and receives well, which makes her look cool."

She also has a clear vision of the kind of player she wants to become. Instead of powerful attacks, she has focused on receiving one more ball than others and saving one more difficult ball to carve out her own position. And in the most important final match, when the team was wavering, she entered the court and eventually secured the MVP award.

Park Kang-bin vowed, "Rather than standing out immediately, I want to be a player who supports from behind, receives small balls, and helps the team. By growing hard like this, I hope to be selected within the second round of next year's V-League rookie draft."

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*This content was translated by AI.