“I’m in charge from now on”: Morales’ words against Italy

“From now on, I will take full responsibility.”

South Korea’s women’s national volleyball team, led by head coach Fernando Morales, fell to Italy 0-3 (16-25, 11-25, 13-25) in straight sets on Thursday (June 14) at the FIVB Volleyball Nations League 2024 (VNL) Week 3 at the West Nippon Exhibition Center in Fukuoka, Japan.

South Korea started with setter Kim Dain, outside hitter Apojit Moon, outside hitters Kang So-hwi and Jung Jung-yoon, middle blockers Lee Da-hyun and Jung Ho-young, and libero Handa Hye, the longest player in the lineup, making her second straight start after the last match against France. She replaced Lee Joo-ah, 스포츠토토사이트 who is known for her mobility, and struggled against Italy’s height.

In response, Italy started setters Alessia Oro and Apojit Antropova, outside hitters Degradi and Miriam Scilla, middle blockers Bonifacio and Sarah Farr, and libero Monica De Gennaro. Egonu, the “world’s best apogee,” guarded the warm-up zone.

She was outgunned. Italy’s Antropova scored a team-high 20 points on the night. South Korea’s Ji Yoon Moon had 10 points. Jung Ji-yoon, who has recently emerged as the team’s ace, started off strong with five points in the first set, but came up short. In the second and third sets, she was completely overwhelmed by the Italian defense, totaling just seven points. She also had seven attack errors.

Kang So-hwi, who started on the left wing alongside Jung Jung-yoon, struggled throughout the match. He scored just two points in the first set, went scoreless in the second set, and didn’t step on the court at all in the third set. Unable to find much of an offense with their main players struggling, South Korea ended up with just 25 team offensive points. Italy had 44. A gap of almost two times.

One of the reasons Korea’s offense struggled on this particular night was the height difference. They were outblocked 2-13 as a team. Sarafa and Bonifazio, the Italian centers, are 192 and 186 centimeters tall, respectively. They were joined by the 6-foot-2 Apojit Antropova as a third wall. Korea was unable to overcome Italy’s strong blocking line. Time and again, they were blocked by their opponents.

Of course, this was somewhat expected. Korea has been practicing for this situation, especially Kang So-hwi, who has done it many times in this tournament. However, it was hard to see it against Italy. In addition, Korea went 1-9 on team serves.

South Korea only won one game against Italy. They outscored their opponents 12-9 in hitting errors, but this frustrated Morales more than anything else. He took the low number of errors as a sign of low confidence. To beat the world’s No. 4-ranked team, Italy, they needed to be aggressive, but instead, they settled for the safe option. In response, Morales shouted “aggressiveness” and “confidence” at his players during every timeout. At the end of the third set, he said, “I’m in charge from now on,” and ordered a bold offense that didn’t care about the errors.

“From now on, I will take full responsibility.”

South Korea’s women’s national volleyball team, led by head coach Fernando Morales, fell to Italy 0-3 (16-25, 11-25, 13-25) in straight sets on Thursday (June 14) at the FIVB Volleyball Nations League 2024 (VNL) Week 3 at the West Nippon Exhibition Center in Fukuoka, Japan.

South Korea started with setter Kim Dain, outside hitter Apojit Moon, outside hitters Kang So-hwi and Jung Jung-yoon, middle blockers Lee Da-hyun and Jung Ho-young, and libero Handa Hye, the longest player in the lineup, making her second straight start after the last match against France. She replaced Lee Joo-ah, who is known for her mobility, and struggled against Italy’s height.

In response, Italy started setters Alessia Oro and Apojit Antropova, outside hitters Degradi and Miriam Scilla, middle blockers Bonifacio and Sarah Farr, and libero Monica De Gennaro. Egonu, the “world’s best apogee,” guarded the warm-up zone.

She was outgunned. Italy’s Antropova scored a team-high 20 points on the night. South Korea’s Ji Yoon Moon had 10 points. Jung Ji-yoon, who has recently emerged as the team’s ace, started off strong with five points in the first set, but came up short. In the second and third sets, she was completely overwhelmed by the Italian defense, totaling just seven points. She also had seven attack errors.

Kang So-hwi, who started on the left wing alongside Jung Jung-yoon, struggled throughout the match. He scored just two points in the first set, went scoreless in the second set, and didn’t step on the court at all in the third set. Unable to find much of an offense with their main players struggling, South Korea ended up with just 25 team offensive points. Italy had 44. A gap of almost two times.

One of the reasons Korea’s offense struggled on this particular night was the height difference. They were outblocked 2-13 as a team. Sarafa and Bonifazio, the Italian centers, are 192 and 186 centimeters tall, respectively. They were joined by the 6-foot-2 Apojit Antropova as a third wall. Korea was unable to overcome Italy’s strong blocking line. Time and again, they were blocked by their opponents.

Of course, this was somewhat expected. Korea has been practicing for this situation, especially Kang So-hwi, who has done it many times in this tournament. However, it was hard to see it against Italy. In addition, Korea went 1-9 on team serves.

South Korea only won one game against Italy. They outscored their opponents 12-9 in hitting errors, but this frustrated Morales more than anything else. He took the low number of errors as a sign of low confidence. To beat the world’s No. 4-ranked team, Italy, they needed to be aggressive, but instead, they settled for the safe option. In response, Morales shouted “aggressiveness” and “confidence” at his players during every timeout. At the end of the third set, he said, “I’m in charge from now on,” and ordered a bold offense that didn’t care about the errors.