Women’s professional volleyball team GS Caltex rode the firepower of Giselle Silva to halt IBK’s winning streak.
GS Caltex came from behind to win the Dodram 2023-24 V-League Women’s Second Round home match against IBK 3-1 (19-25 25-19 25-22 25-20) at Jangchung Gymnasium in Seoul on Monday.
Silva was the star of the show for GS Caltex. Silva poured in a team-high 35 points, including two aces and one block, to lead her team to victory.
Outside hitters Kang So-hwi (17 points) and Yoo Seo-yeon (11 points) also contributed double-digit points.
GS Caltex secured 22 points (8-4), pulling within one point of second-place Hyundai E&C (23-7), which has played one less game. At the same time, the gap with fourth-placed Jungkwanjang (16-5 W-7 L) widened to six points.
Enterprise Bank, which saw its two-game winning streak come to an end, remained in fifth place (14-5 W, 7 L).
While Brittany Abercrombie (registered name Abercrombie) led the way with 25 points and middle blocker Jung-min Choi had a match-high 18 points, the rest of the wing attackers’ offense was a bit lackluster.
Choi was responsible for nine of the team’s 12 blocks on the night. The nine blocks are tied for the fourth-most in a single game in program history. The top spot in this category is held by Kim Se-young (retired), who recorded 12 against GS Caltex on February 8, 2017, while playing for Hyundai E&C.
It was a good start for IBK. They took the first set thanks to Choi Jung-min’s eight points, including three blocks.
However, GS Caltex turned the tide when Silva’s offense came alive. After a lackluster first set with three points and a 17.6 percent attack percentage, Silva turned things around with 11 points in the second set.
GS Caltex took the third set and moved closer to victory. At 20-19, Silva’s back-attack and an opponent’s error combined to widen the gap.
At 24-22, Kang So-hwi broke through Abercrombie’s block with a quick opener to take the set 2-1.
Silva’s offense was on fire in the fourth set. She tormented IBK with 13 kills and a 61% attack percentage.
At 22-20, Silva scored the final three points to seal the match.