06/12/2017 14:18
The silent star player of DRESDNER SC – Piia Korhonen
2018 CEV Volleyball Cup - Women
Dresden, Germany, December 6, 2017. When you talk to Piia Korhonen about statistics, she smiles shyly and blushes a bit. The young opposite from Finland is even better than everyone was hoping for since she currently is the top scorer in the German national league and she is leading the way in the MVP ranking as well. “That’s nice but to me it is more important that we win as a team,” says the 23-year-old. They actually do. After losing a thrilling tiebreak battle against SC POTSDAM in the first match of the season, DRESDNER SC have won seven matches in a row. Will the Germans continue their streak in international competition as well? On December 13, DRESDNER SC face Pays d’Aix VENELLES VB in the first round of the 2018 CEV Volleyball Cup – Women.
One thing is for sure: Korhonen will play an important role in this match. DRESDNER SC head coach Alexander Waibl knew after three minutes of footage that “Piia is exactly the player we were looking for.” It looks like he was right. Until now, Korhonen has scored an average 5.5 points/set while 5 points/set are usually some kind of a magic threshold. However, Waibl does not only appreciate the numbers: “Piia has a calm way of playing the game. She is no player who does exceptionally well in one match and completely falls apart in the next one. She always finds a way to score.”
While she is exceptionally good at scoring points, celebrating them is another thing though. While DRESDNER SC’s team captain Myrthe Schoot and others go full out celebrating to push the team, the Finn is different. “I am also happy when we score. I just cannot show as many emotions as others do. However, it is the same with mistakes. I think it’s a good thing that we have so many different personalities in the team,” Korhonen says.
She truly is a great example for the cool Finnish stereotype and draws strength from tranquillity – on and off the court. While her teammates meet up to do something exciting on a day off, DRESDNER SC #12 prefers to be alone to take a walk in the park or at the river. That is her thing.
However, when the lights turn on at Margon Arena the lonely wolf becomes a real teammate, one who puts her team’s objectives above her own goals. Korhonen is a reliable pillar for DRESDNER SC and Pays d’Aix VENELLES VB will surely have a hard time to keep her from scoring.
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