Pink Spiders extend lead after seeing off Kixx, Hillstate

The reigning champion Heungkuk Life Insurance Pink Spiders dominated in the V League again last week, beating last season’s runners-up Suwon Hyundai Engineering & Construction Hillstate 3-2 and GS Caltex Seoul Kixx 3-0 to go six points clear at top

The Heungkuk Life Insurance Pink Spiders celebrate during a V League game against GS Caltex Seoul Kixx at Incheon Samsan World Gymnasium in Incheon on Friday. [YONHAP]

The reigning champion Heungkuk Life Insurance Pink Spiders dominated in the V League again last week, beating last season’s runners-up Suwon Hyundai Engineering & Construction Hillstate 3-2 and GS Caltex Seoul Kixx 3-0 to go six points clear at the top of the table.

Sunday’s game at Incheon Samsan World Gymnasium in Incheon turned out to be as intense as the score suggests. Pink Spider ace Kim Yeon-koung was the hero of the game, scoring 30 points alone — the most she has scored in a single game so far this season.

Sunday’s victory over Hillstate was the second time the Pink Spiders have beaten the Suwon side this season and the fourth in a row overall, including two wins at the end of last season.

The Pink Spiders then faced Kixx at home on Friday and displayed a strong performance, winning the first three sets 25-23, 25-22 and 25-18, despite Kim managing only 14 points.

The two wins allowed the Pink Spiders to retain the top position on the seven-team table with 23 points.

Kixx still remain in second place with 17 points thanks to a 3-0 win the team earned against the Daejeon Jung Kwan Jang Red Sparks on Tuesday last week.

The capital side is tied on points with Hillstate, but edges them out by more wins secured — the deciding factor when teams have the same number of points.

The Kixx have won six games and Hillstate have secured five wins.

It was a disappointing week for the Red Sparks and Gwangju AI Peppers, as both teams suffered two losses.

The Red Sparks suffered a 3-2 loss to Gimcheon Korea Expressway Hi-Pass on Saturday after the loss to the Kixx.

The Daejeon side’s Asian Quota Draft pick Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi still displayed a strong performance despite the loss, as she was the top scorer of Saturday’s game with 33 points.

Mega’s performance was nothing new, as she has been a key player at the Red Sparks so far this season, scoring 207 points as of press time Monday, the fifth-highest scorer in the league.

None of the Peppers’ players have led the team to success so far, with the team claiming only two wins so far.

The Gwangju side reinforced their squad with the likes of former Hi-Pass ace Park Jeong-ah and new head coach Joe Trinsey joining the team ahead of the 2023-24 season, but they failed to save the team from two 3-1 losses to Hilllstate and Hwaseong IBK Altos last week.

The V League will continue this week, as the Red Sparks take on the Pink Spiders in Daejeon on Tuesday, followed by the Kixx’s clash with Hi-Pass in central Seoul on Wednesday.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]