OK Financial Group aims to continue its "Ansan Spring Volleyball Sunshine" in eight years to the end of the championship game. OK Financial Group, which won the semi-playoff after a full-set battle with the difficult opponent Hyundai Capital, will now face Woori Card, which is waiting for the playoff. Manager Ogiino and the team vowed to play volleyball only with OK.
OK Financial Group won a set score of 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 15-13) at Ansan Sangnoksu Indoor Stadium on March 21 in a home game against Hyundai Capital in the 2023-24 season.
OK Financial Group was on the verge of making the playoffs by winning the second and third sets after losing the first set. However, OK Financial Group allowed pursuit of Hyundai Capital with Leo showing a tired trend in the fourth set.
As if it were a close game in the full set, it was also a close game from the beginning of the fifth set. OK Financial Group, which was pushed back early in the fifth set, made an 8-7 court change with Leo's score. After a close game, OK Financial Group took a 13-12 lead due to Leo's serve ace and opponent's serve error. OK Financial Group again approached the match point with 14-13 due to opponent's serve error. OK Financial Group confirmed its playoff run with the signal team's last score.
On the day, OK Financial Group beat Hyundai Capital by banking on its offense capabilities of Song Hee-chae (15 points) and Shin Ho-jin (12 points) along with Leo who scored 43 points (52.63 percent in attack success rate) with two blocking and one serving ace. OK Financial Group, which won the semi-playoff, will play the first playoff game against Woori Card at Jangchung Indoor Stadium at 7 p.m. on Sunday.
"I am very grateful to the players for their good work. I am grateful to the players who proved the volleyball that I am pursuing. I thought about 60% of the possession rate for Leo, but it was regrettable that he got more possession rate than that. Nevertheless, Kwak made good use of Song at an important moment. Signal players also showed good performance despite overlapping Leo in the last minute of scoring, but they showed good performance," Ogino said.
"Our card, which we will meet in the playoffs, is a team with good blocking, so our offense will not be easy. It is said that our team's serve is weak, but we have to put it in the course we want and shake the opponent's receiving to break down the attempt to allocate the offense evenly. Since the height of the two opponent middle blockers is good, we will also discuss the direction of the attack with Kwak Myung-woo," he said, expressing his direction in preparation for the match against Woori Card.
Players from OK Financial Group also smiled at the joy of winning the semi-playoff. The cheering of 2,310,000 spectators filled the Evergreen Indoor Stadium on the day was also a big boost to the team.
Veteran Song Hee-chae first said, "I imagined that I would play volleyball again in the spring after returning to my close friendship, but I think I created a good opportunity ahead of the playoffs. Rather than feeling pressured to do well, I think I could have done my part by helping other players. I was deafening to the cheering of the opposing fans in Cheonan. I wanted them to pay back in Ansan, and I also looked forward to the cheering of the home fans. I am fortunate that I was able to receive the energy of Ansan and go to the playoffs in a better atmosphere."
Shin Ho-jin, who experienced volleyball for the first time in spring, said, "I had to smile well, but I couldn't smile throughout the game. I tried to enjoy it, but the weight felt bigger than I thought. It was a day when I needed to recover my mental health more than anything technical. I also paid a lot of attention to receiving. At the last minute of the score, I knew he was the ball that went up to Leo, but the toss was so high to the net that I wondered if he could hit him. I hit him momentarily, but I feel like my memory is gone. I thought it was over as I watched the ball fly backward."
Leo, who proved himself as the "king of Ansan," said, "Mental part of the day was the most important. Even in a tough game like today, someone has to go up to the next stage, and our team proved that qualification. Our team showed as solid a receiving as the opponent team did. I thought I would handle the ball at the last minute of the score, but when I saw the signal team trying to hit me, I gave it up with determination to just try. Fortunately, I ended up with a score. I was angry at the moment, but I forgave the team because they were able to win (laughs). Not only our home fans, who were amazing today, but also our away fans showed enthusiastic cheering for us. That kind of picture is interesting, and I am enjoying that kind of atmosphere, too."
Players also expressed their commitment to play in the playoffs with Woori Card. He reiterated that volleyball should bring about results based on "OK" alone.
Song Hee-chae said, "Leo can't hit all the balls, so we can disperse the opponent blockers only when the offense is distributed. When Leo didn't work out, he uploaded a lot of posts on other sides. The team rewards the setter's belief. The preparation period for the playoffs was short, and recovery from fatigue became important. I remember losing in semi-playoffs against KEPCO in a row when I was with Woori Card. After all, I don't need an opponent's record. We have to expect results from our play." 배트맨토토
"Now that we're in the playoffs like this, I want to gather around and play a game that I don't regret. (Song) If Hee-chae is in a good mood, she wins. If she's in a bad mood, it will be a difficult game," Shin Ho-jin said. "I will smile and have fun in the playoffs."
Leo also said, "We expect a very interesting game between Woori Card and the playoff. The opponent team also lost consecutive games at the end of the season, so they must have prepared really hard. It's important that we played at our pace regardless of whether we care or not. It doesn't depend on the opponent team, but we should expect good results from our own volleyball."
