South Korea lost to Japan in the semifinals of the women's volleyball tournament at the Asian Games on Monday, dropping to the bronze medal contest against Thailand.
Japan defeated South Korea in straight sets, 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-16) in the semifinals at Park Arena Komaki in Komaki, just north of Nagoya.
South Korea went undefeated in the group phase and eliminated Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals but could not get past the host country in its quest for its first gold since 2014.
South Korea will take on Thailand at 4 p.m. Tuesday with the bronze medal on the line. South Korea missed the podium at the 2023 Asian Games and has never gone consecutive Asiads without a women's volleyball medal.
South Korea stayed close in the first set. But down 14-13, South Korea fell further back on an ace and blocks by Japan.
In the second set, South Korea briefly led before falling back 21-19. South Korea got a couple of points back while down 23-19 but ran out of steam.
South Korea conceded four straight points in one stretch to go down 12-6. South Korea cut it to 13-11 but did not get close again.
Na Hyun-soo scored a team-high 14 points, but no one else scored in double figures. Four players scored in double digits for Japan. (Yonhap)
