IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, Newcomer SOOP Swept 3-0 in a Complete Victory... Japan's Manabe Coach Secures First Win [Yeosu On-Site Review]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Women’s professional volleyball team IBK Industrial Bank of Korea crushed newcomer SOOP to record their first victory in the Cup tournament.

IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, led by head coach Masayoshi Manabe (Japan), thoroughly defeated SOOP 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-19) in the opening match of Group A in the group stage of the 2026 Yeosu·NH Nonghyup Cup Professional Volleyball Tournament held at Yeosu Jinnam Gymnasium on the 11th.

IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, which had claimed the top spot at the tournament held at the same venue last year, took its first step toward a second consecutive title and its fifth overall Cup championship.

Head coach Manabe, who led the Japanese Yeo Ja-bae-gu (CEO) team to a bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics, experienced the thrill of victory in his debut match on Korean soil as the helmsman of IBK Industrial Bank of Korea.

SOOP, which was newly launched after acquiring Pepper Savings Bank, which had been on the brink of disbandment last May, postponed its first official victory to the next match. The first win for SOOP’s new head coach Kim Se-jin was also delayed.

IBK Industrial Bank of Korea seized the initiative from the very first set. Having taken the lead early in the set, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea repeatedly quelled their opponents’ pursuit. In the middle of the set, they widened the gap by leveraging Park Eun-seo’s sharp serves.

However, SOOP did not crumble easily. Although foreign player Odriana was pulled from the game due to an injury just before the match for protective reasons, they quickly launched a comeback whenever the gap widened, closing in to 21-23 late in the set.

Yet, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea pulled ahead in the decisive moments. Utilizing attacks featuring their top scorer Victoria, they took the first set 25-21.

The momentum-carrying IBK Industrial Bank of Korea quickly seized control of the second set. They pressed SOOP with an attack success rate close to 70% until the middle of the set. They rapidly widened the gap with scores such as 6-1, 11-2, and 15-3.

On the other hand, SOOP failed to create any significant counterattack opportunities. Even as the gap widened, both their team attack success rate and reception efficiency remained in single digits.

They did launch a belated pursuit after the middle of the set, but it was not enough to overturn the significantly widened gap. IBK Industrial Bank of Korea comfortably secured the second set as well.

SOOP launched a counterattack early in the third set. In a 2-2 tie, they added Jeon Saeyeon’s service ace and Go Ui-jung’s block, among others, to pull ahead 6-2.

However, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, with just one set remaining for victory, displayed formidable concentration. From a 7-9 deficit, they added consecutive points from Choi Jung-min and Victoria to successfully take the lead.

Cornered, SOOP also launched a counterattack, tying the score at 16-16 in the middle of the third set. However, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea held the upper hand in final concentration. They concluded the match by adding Choi Jung-min’s three points, among others, to their opponents’ errors.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original