“I’m happy to help the team in any way I can.”
Samsung Fire’s Eddy (24-Mongolia) is stretching his legs in the V-League Men’s Division. After a lackluster start to the season, the 24-year-old has recently been deployed as a middle blocker (center) instead of his natural position of outside hitter (right) and is taking steps toward the 토토사이트 Korean Dream.
Eddy broke into the Korean scene in 2017 as a junior at Suncheon First High School. He went on to play at Sungkyunkwan University before being selected by Samsung Fire with the first overall pick in this season’s Asia Quarterly Draft. His prowess as an apogee spiker, combined with his length (198 centimeters), raised expectations that he would accompany his college mentor, Samsung Fire coach Kim Sang-woo (50), to the professional stage.
However, Eddie’s adjustment to the V-League was not a smooth one. He was given a chance as an outside hitter at the beginning of the season, but was pushed aside by Park Sung-jin (23) and never really showed much promise as an attacker. He also struggled to compete with last season’s rookies, Kim Jun-woo (23) and Son Tae-hoon (30), for the middle blocker spot, and his struggles were compounded when Bayar Saihan (23-Mongolia), who came to Korea around the same time, became a starter for OK Financial Group.
However, Eddie has come into his own since the second round of the regular season. In his first start as a middle blocker on the 19th against KB Insurance in the second round of the Dodram 2023-2024 V-League Men’s Division, he scored eight points with an attacking success rate of 55.56% to help the team come from behind to win the set 3-2. His scoring routes were varied, with three fastballs, one block, two back-row attacks, and two service points. Coach Kim said, “We brought Eddie in to add height, and he did a great job. I will help him improve his performance as a middle blocker.”
In the post-match press conference, Eddie said, “I’m training as a middle blocker and an outside spiker. “I’m working on my middle blocker and my apogee spiker, and I think I can help the team more as a middle blocker,” he said. “I want to be better in situations where I have to follow and block the opponent’s attack or take over the toss when the setter falls down. “She’s been playing middle blocker for the last six years, but I’m just starting to play middle blocker a lot,” she said, adding that she believes her serve and fundamentals are better.
The presence of Kim and coach Ji Tae-hwan (37), a former middle blocker himself, is a great support for Eddie. While the first round was stressful, Eddie is now looking ahead. “At the beginning of the season, I was very stressed because I couldn’t help the team. “My coach and manager are very good at teaching me how to position myself in front of the setter and how to prepare for different situations after receiving. I will try to do better,” she concluded.