IBK’s Hwang Min-kyung won’t play Kobo Cup semifinals…”It’s embarrassing as a player to lose without someone”

IBK’s veteran outside hitter Hwang Min-kyung will not be able to play in the semifinals of the tournament due to illness.

Before the women’s semifinal match of the 2023 Gumi Dodram Cup professional volleyball tournament against KGC Ginseng Corporation at Park Jung-hee Gymnasium in Gumi on Thursday, IBK head coach Kim Ho-cheol said, “Hwang Min-kyung is not playing today, but she can’t play. She overexerted herself in the first game and her knee is not feeling good. She’s not even waiting in the warm-up zone.”

Hwang Min-kyung became a free agent after the end of last season, joining IBK from Hyundai E&C for a two-year, 900 million won deal. IBK made a bold bet on Hwang, hoping that her wealth of experience would help guide the younger players on and off the court.

As IBK’s most experienced player, Hwang Min-kyung prepared for the season with great enthusiasm. She showed off her good form in the first group stage game of the Cup against Heungkuk Life on March 31, exploding for a team-high 17 points. 꽁머니지급

However, his knee gave him trouble after the game. Head coach Kim Ho-cheol rested Hwang Min-kyung for the rest of the group stage, but his condition didn’t improve.

“I have to play (the semifinals) with other players,” said Kim Ho-cheol. First of all, KGC Ginseng has height, so the most important thing is to receive. After that, we will leave it to setter Kim Ha-kyung to run the game,” he said.

He also said, “We need to play an unusual game against KGC. “Hwang Min-kyung is good at this, but I don’t know if it will work well because our players are young,” he explained.

Kim emphasized that he didn’t want to see his players back off the court easily. He made this clear in a pregame meeting with the entire squad.

“They should be happy to be where they are right now,” he said, “and they should have the courage to win. He said that losing without someone is embarrassing as a volleyball player. I asked them to do their best as players,” she added.

Meanwhile, IBK will be looking to reach the final and win the Cup for the first time in seven years since 2016. IBK previously lifted the Cup trophy in 2013, 2015 and 2016.

IBK was placed in Group B of the women’s competition alongside GS Caltex, Heungkuk Life, and Thai invitational team Supreme at this year’s Gumi Cup. Despite losing to Supreme the previous day, IBK defeated GS Caltex and Heungkuk Life to reach the semifinals.