“Rebounding Mood” Cha Sang-hyun escapes 4-game losing streak, GS Caltex’s ‘Spring Volleyball’ reversal card: ‘Comeback Ahn Hye-jin, new family member Darin’
GS Caltex women’s volleyball head coach Cha Sang-hyun was pleased with the team’s performance in the first match of the sixth round of the season, saying it created an atmosphere of rebound.
GS Caltex won 3-0 (25-23 25-19 25-22) in three sets against IBK IBK Business Bank in the 2023-2024 V-League Women’s Division at Jangchung Gymnasium on March 25. It was a valuable victory that ended their recent four-game losing streak. GS Caltex (48 points, 17 points, 14 games) kept the ‘spring volleyball’ flame alive as the fourth-ranked GS Caltex (48 points, 17 points, 14 games) kept the third-ranked 토토사이트 순위 Jungkwanjang (53 points, 17 points, 14 games) in sight.
Behind the overwhelming firepower of Giselle Silva (28 points), homegrown outside hitter Kang So-hwi (12 points) picked up the slack. With five matches left in the season, the team is still mathematically capable of reclaiming third place. Even in fourth place, they have a chance to qualify for the semifinals if they close the gap to within three points of third place. With one last spurt needed before ‘spring volleyball,’ Cha said, “Today, the team played well. It was the first time in a long time that I felt comfortable leading from the bench,” said Cha, who was pleased with the team’s overall cohesion. The return of starting setter Ahn Hye-jin from a shoulder injury and Darin Pansuwan, who recently joined the team as an alternate Asian quota player, provided the missing pieces to the puzzle.
Ahn orchestrated the match as the starting setter. Kim Ji-won, who stepped in when Ahn was injured, was the backup. “It’s really good to have (Kim) Ji-won behind her when (Ahn) Hye-jin falters,” Cha said. “It was a tough situation for everyone because (Lee) Yoon-shin, who is like a high school student, was playing this role. Now that Hye-jin is back, she’s playing better and better.”
Ahn Hye-jin, whose team managed to pick up one win after three straight losses, also smiled with relief. “Overall, our performance wasn’t bad, but we couldn’t break the losing streak. We’ve got an important game and we’ll be able to raise our spirits for the rest of the season,” she said.
This was Ahn’s first rehabilitation in her career, and she returned early for the team’s “spring volleyball”. “A lot of people helped me to come back quickly,” Ahn said. I first told the coach that I wanted to come back, and he was against it at first, but after receiving a clean bill of health, he said, ‘Train from tomorrow,'” she said, explaining, “My shoulder is not in bad shape, and my performance is better than I thought it would be (during the break).”
Darin finished with nine points, including three blocked shots, in his second start in the V-League. Although his offensive success rate dropped to 21.74%, he showed the expected defensive performance. “Darin is a player whose strength is defense,” Cha said.
“It’s an honor to play in Korea,” said Darin, who politely bows his head and says “hello” to everyone he sees. It’s a time of personal development. The supporters are great,” he said. He said he had heard a lot about Korea from Hyundai E&C’s Thai player Wipawee Sittong, who was making his V-League debut, and made a shivering gesture, saying, “Wipawee told me it was very cold in Korea, but it’s really very cold.” When asked about his organ, he replied, “Blocking, if you just look at today’s game,” and said, “I’ll do better next time.”
