The first round of the playoffs on the 22nd

Professional volleyball women's Heungkuk Life Insurance and Jeonggwanjang will have a "firepower battle."

Heungkuk Life Insurance will play the first playoff game against Jeong Kwan-jang at Samsan World Gymnasium in Incheon at 7 p.m. on the 22nd.

Heungkuk Life Insurance, which finished second in the regular league behind Hyundai Engineering & Construction by one point, aims to advance to the championship game (best-of-five series) against Jeong Kwan-jang.

Heungkuk Life had an advantage against Jeonggwanjang this season with 4 wins and 2 losses.

Heungkuk Life Insurance's flagship player Kim Yeon-koung ranked second overall in offense, sixth in score tally, and sixth in serve. Her outstanding defense capability is another strength of her. She has many experiences in major games, and her mere presence has greatly influenced players' performance.

Kim Yeon-koung boasted an average score of 24.67 points per game against Jeonggwanjang this season. If she supports the offense of Willow and Raina, who showed good performance in the sixth round, she will have a long shot.

If the sub-receiving that is somewhat lacking comes to life, the offense can be stronger.

They are also certain in their motivation. Heungkuk Life Insurance defeated Korea Expressway Corporation in the championship game last season, losing games three to five, and gave up the trophy in the championship game. Heungkuk Life is preparing to avenge itself.

"I didn't win the championship game last year, but I think I have another chance," said Marcello Avondan, head coach of Heungkuk Life Insurance. "I will make it this year because I failed to make it at the end of last year."

In the latter half of this season, Chung ranked third with a seven-game winning streak. He made it to the postseason for the first time in seven seasons.

His attack power is second to that of Heungkuk Life Insurance. His team's attack success rate was 42.54 percent, ranking first in the league. Another advantage is that he has various attack options such as fast attack and time difference attack.

Jeong Kwan-jang has a strong offense led by Mega, the seventh-ranked scorer, and Jia, the eighth-ranked scorer, and the middle blocker (center striker) line led by Jung Ho-young and Park Eun-jin is also solid.

In particular, Mega and Jia's score success rate is approaching 44 percent. They displayed remarkable concentration in the fifth and sixth rounds to lead their seventh consecutive win. Jeong Kwan-jang also defeated Heungkuk Life Insurance in the sixth round match. Another positive sign is that they secured the third place early on and rested.

However, it is regrettable that Lee So-young left the lineup due to an ankle injury.

"We entered the spring volleyball league as the third-ranked team in the regular season," said Ko Hee-jin, head coach of the association, who said maintaining composure is the most important postseason. "As a challenger, I will do my best to play one game and one game," he said. "I will make sure that fans of the association can watch the game at Suwon (home court of Hyundai Engineering & Construction)."

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