▲ The U-17 women's national volleyball team
The under-17 (U-17) women's national volleyball team, led by head coach Lee Seung-yeo, has advanced to the round of 16 as the top team of their group after sweeping all five of their matches in the group stage of the 2026 International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) U-17 Girls' World Championship.
The national team will face the Philippines, the fourth-place team from Group B, in the round of 16 at 9:00 AM tomorrow (the 13th).
Composed of middle and high school players, the U-17 national team comprehensively defeated Algeria with a set score of 3-0 (25-10, 25-17, 25-18) in their fifth and final Group D match of the tournament held in Los Andes, Chile, today (the 12th, Korea time).
Having previously defeated Puerto Rico, Taiwan, Italy, and the Dominican Republic, South Korea secured victories against Algeria as well, finishing the group stage in first place with 5 wins, no losses, and 15 points.
Taking advantage of Algeria's shaky defense right from the start of the first set, South Korea pulled far ahead by scoring eight consecutive points.
After taking the first set 25-10, South Korea managed the physical stamina of its starting players in the second set by giving a rest to key outside hitter Son Seo-yeon (Sunmyung Girls' High School).
Trailing 8-9 in the second set, the national team turned the game around with five straight points and did not relinquish the lead thereafter.
In the third set, tied at 15-15, South Korea seized the momentum by scoring four consecutive points through a block by Jang Su-in (Gyeongnam Girls' High School), an opponent attack error, and an open attack by Muntiara (Gyeongnam Girls' High School).
Jang Su-in, who played through all three sets, recorded 13 points, while Eom Min-seo (Hanbom High School) contributed 12 points.
Son Seo-yeon scored 6 points in the first set alone.
Son has amassed a total of 97 points across five matches in this tournament, currently ranking first overall in scoring.
(Photo: Capture from the FIVB official website, Yonhap News)
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