KEPCO’s Ha Seung-woo is leaving the team for a while. The reason is to fulfill his national defense obligations.
“Ha Seung-woo will enlist in the military on April 23,” a KPA official said on April 19. Ha will serve as a full-time reserve soldier, and his expected date of discharge is October 22, 2025.
Ha joined Woori Card as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 rookie draft out of Hyeonil High School-Jungbu, and has been the team’s starting setter since the 2020-21 season, his fifth year with the organization. Under the guidance of setter trainer Shin Young-cheol, he showed a different side of himself and led 스포츠토토 Woori Card to its first championship in the 2020-21 season.
In 2022, Ha Seung-woo, whose position was narrowed by the arrival of Hwang Seung-bin, came to KEPCO in a trade with Jang Ji-won. First professional move.
In 2022-23, Ha served as the team’s starting setter in 31 matches, helping the club to its first playoff victory in its history. In 2023-24, he played in all league matches but was unable to help the team reach the playoffs.
Ha’s departure will also shake up the setter position for the KEPCO. After not signing backup setter Kim Kwang-guk, KEPCO plans to increase the playing time of 20-year-old setter Kim Joo-young and will reportedly look to AsiaQuarter for setter resources.
Kim Joo-young is a Suncheon Jeil High School product who jumped straight into the professional ranks instead of going to college. The fifth overall pick in the 2022 rookie draft, Kim hasn’t gotten much of a chance in his two seasons with KEPCO. He has only appeared in six games in his career.
However, he has already been recognized for his potential since his high school days, and has been developing under the tutelage of head coach Kwon Young-min, who hails from Specter. He’s expected to get a lot of playing time in the upcoming season, so let’s see what he can do.