'Defending champion' HanaCard, '5 consecutive seasons' PS qualification... Kim Ga-young's power with '12 wins 3 losses → 5th MVP' [PBA Team League]

*This content was translated by AI.

'Defending champion' HanaCard HanaPay defeated Harim Oddgrace to lift the PBA Team League Round 3 championship trophy.

On the 18th, HanaCard defeated Harim with a set score of 4-2 (11-9, 9-0, 13-15, 8-9, 11-1, 9-3) in the final day of the 'Welcome Savings Bank PBA Team League Pohang City Tour 2026-2027' held at the indoor gymnasium of Pohang Sports Complex in Pohang, Gyeongsangbuk-do.

Both HanaCard and Harim finished with 7 wins and 2 losses, but HanaCard, which recorded 22 points, took the championship trophy ahead of Harim (18 points).

With this Round 3 victory, HanaCard achieved the first-ever five consecutive postseason qualifications in team league history. Following Woori Financial Capital (Round 1 champion) and Hyosung (Round 2 champion), they became the third team to secure a postseason ticket. At the same time, they won the championship prize of 10 million won awarded to the round-winning team starting this season.

Harim, which had lost the championship trophy in the final match of Round 1 to Woori Financial Capital, suffered another bitter defeat just short of the championship trophy this time. Harim failed to earn points and finished third overall in Round 3 behind Crown Haetae (6 wins 3 losses, 18 points).

Before the final match, HanaCard was in a favorable position for the championship. Leading Harim by two points, HanaCard needed to win just three sets in the final match to secure one point and claim the title. Conversely, Harim was in a situation where they absolutely had to earn three points.

The early part of the match was dominated by HanaCard. In the first set, HanaCard's Murat Naji Choklu (Turkey) and Nguyen Quoc Nguyen (Vietnam) defeated Phuong Nguyen and Tran Duc Minh (both Vietnam) 11-9 (8 innings). Then in the second set, Kim Ga-young and Kim Jin-ah quickly turned the tables against Park Jung-hyun and Kim Sang-a with a 9-0 score in just two innings, taking an immediate 2-0 lead in sets.

With Harim falling behind, leader Kim Jun-tae stepped up as a relief pitcher. Leading by 12 points from a high run in the third inning, Kim Jun-tae took a 12-1 lead. Choklu was no pushover either. Choklu scored 12 points in the fourth inning to briefly take a 13-12 lead, but Kim Jun-tae filled the remaining three points during his second turn at bat to win 15-13. Harim kept their momentum going; in the fourth set, Kim Jun-tae and Park Jung-hyun withstood Shin Jeong-joo and Han Seul-gi's fierce chase to win 9-8 (8 innings), resetting the match.

However, HanaCard did not allow any further comeback attempts. In the fifth set, during the third inning when Q. Nguyen was narrowly leading P. Nguyen 3-1, they unleashed eight points including one bank shot to win 11-1, securing one point and clinching the championship. In the sixth set, Kim Ga-young defeated Kim Sang-a 9-3 (3 innings) to close out the finale.

The Round Most Valuable Player (MVP), with a prize of 10 thousand won, was taken by Kim Ga-young. In Round 3, Kim Ga-young recorded 12 wins and 3 losses (5 wins 1 loss in singles, 7 wins 2 losses in doubles) with an average of 1.087. Kim Ga-young received her fifth career team league round MVP award.

Kim Ga-young said, "You can't win the MVP by doing well alone. My heart's MVP is Nguyen Quoc Nguyen (Vietnam)." She added, "Nguyen won the first and fifth sets today, which allowed me to play comfortably in the following sets and secure victories. I was lucky, and all my teammates are MVPs," praising her teammates.

HanaCard's leader Kim Byung-ho said, "We have won every round championship each season, but this round was particularly difficult, so the sense of accomplishment must have been greater." He added, "I came to Pohang four days before the tournament started and prepared even harder, so I'm happy that it paid off."

Kim Jin-ah, who led with 19 wins and 8 losses to secure the championship, also said, "It's because of Kim Ga-young. This season, the second set changed from K-double to Scotch double format at K-Double, and there were games where I won without scoring a single point in Round 2. She is such an excellent player and guides us well during matches. She provides tremendous help even psychologically."

From the perspective of foreign player Choklu, HanaCard was truly one team. "From my viewpoint, HanaCard feels like one unified team. They are truly the best team. Practicing together, supporting each other, teaching and learning from one another is far superior compared to other teams," he said. He added, "We also have experience as champions lifting trophies, which brings us together as one in critical moments. These elements make HanaCard the best team," expressing his satisfaction.

With the PBA Team League Round 3 concluding with HanaCard's victory, Round 4 will resume on the 31st of next month. Prior to the team league Round 4, PBA will hold the 'Crown Haetae PBA-LPBA Championship' as part of the 2026-2027 season's fourth tour at Goyang KINTEX PBA Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, starting from the 4th of next month.

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*This content was translated by AI.