Korea reaches volleyball quarterfinals

South Korea's women volleyball team advanced to the quarterfinals in the Sydney Olympics on Sept. 18.

The Korean team secured a berth in the final-eight tournament by dominating Germany 3-0 in their second match of Pool B preliminaries held at the Entertainment Center in Darling Harbor.

Ku Min-Jung and Chang So-Yun each had 13 kills.

Korea, which edged Italy 3-2, is 2-0, and will join the quarterfinals in which four teams from each pool will compete. Korea is in its best position to earn a medal in 24 years since it captured the bronze in the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Germany, led by Korean manager Lee Hee-Wan, is 0-2 and has a slim chance to survive.

The Korea-Germany match attracted attention because Korea's manager Kim Cheol-Yong and Germany's manager Lee are classmates of SungKyunKwan University and played on the school's volleyball team together.

Yet, Korea's speed and well-organized teamwork overwhelmed Germany's power and height.