Doosan, the “No. 1” favorite to win the men’s title in the newly launched Handball Unified League H League, defeated the SK Hawks to win its first game of the season. Doosan won a tightly contested 25-23 victory over SK in the men’s regular season match of the Shinhan SOL Pay 23-24 Handball H League at the SK Handball Stadium in Seoul on Wednesday. Doosan, coached by Korean handball “legend” Yoon Kyung-shin, is the reigning champion in the H League’s predecessor, the SK Korea League, having won eight straight titles dating back to last season.
After finishing the first half with a 15-8, seven-point lead, Doosan tied the game at 22-22 with 25 minutes left in the second half, but then pulled away with goals from Chung and others to win their first game in the H-League. Doosan goalkeeper Kim Dong-wook, who recorded 16 saves and a 44.44% save percentage, was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the game. Jung Jeong-kyung with five points and seven assists and Kim Yeon-bin with six points also contributed to the win. In the next men’s game, Incheon City Corporation defeated Hanam City Hall 25-20.Incheon City Corporation’s Jung Soo-young was the standout performer with six points and nine assists .In the women’s game, Seoul City Hall defeated Daegu City Hall 26-20.The H-League is a newly launched handball league aimed at professionalizing the game and held its inaugural regular season opener the previous day. men’s and eight women’s teams from the 스포츠토토존 Korea League will continue to compete in the H-League.