Vietnam's tallest female volleyball middle blocker shines brilliantly in Mongolia

On her first overseas experience in her career, the 1.95m tall star instantly left her mark.

Lý Thị Luyến - Vietnam’s tallest female volleyball middle blocker has just made a significant impact with Hobby Ace at the Mongolian National Championship.

In the latest match, Hobby Ace defeated Khuvsgul Seven Stars 3-1 (26-24; 25-22; 18-25; 25-21). The key contributor to this victory was Lý Thị Luyến, delivering her most impressive performance since joining the team.

According to statistics, Lý Luyến scored 19 points with 16 attacks and 3 blocks, earning the Most Valuable Player award of the match. This is the first time the 1.95m middle blocker has received this honor at the Mongolian National Championship.

Born in 2000, Lý Thị Luyến is currently the tallest middle blocker in Vietnamese women’s volleyball. She was once called up to the national team but has not been selected in the past two years.

The 25-year-old attacker stands at an ideal height of 1.95m for the middle blocker position, providing a great advantage in blocking.

Hobby Ace is Lý Thị Luyến’s first foreign club. The middle blocker, who is part of the Lào Cai Bronze Medal team, previously attended a try-out for the Korean National Volleyball Championship with teammates Trần Tú Linh and Trần Thị Bích Thủy early last year but was not selected. Later, Bích Thủy got an opportunity when GS Caltex Seoul Kixx’s Asian foreign player was injured for the season, and the rest became history.

Hobby Ace has been a strong team over the past five years, finishing as runners-up three times in the 2019-2020, 2020-2021, and 2021-2022 seasons. However, the team has not ranked in the top 3 in the last three seasons.

Lý Thị Luyến is expected to improve Hobby Ace’s blocking ability with her superior height compared to her teammates. She is one of the two foreign players on the club, alongside Hikaru Tamura from Japan.