(LEAD) (Asiad) S. Korea loses to Japan to drop to bronze medal match in women's volleyball

NAGOYA, Japan, on September 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea dominated Chinese Taipei 5-0 in a baseball match on Monday, marking the start of their bid for a fifth consecutive Asian Games baseball gold medal. Pitcher Gwak Been played the entire game, tossing six innings without allowing a single hit and striking out 10 batters. Five different batters contributed to the scoring, each driving in a run.

Gwak was replaced by Jo Byeong-hyeon, who pitched two innings without allowing hits, before Park Yeong-hyun pitched around a couple of hits in his one inning. The South Korean team, composed of stars from the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), will face Hong Kong at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Toyohashi Municipal Baseball Stadium. The final Group C game will be against Thailand at noon on Wednesday in Okazaki.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the Super Round, with the gold medal match scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Sunday in Toyohashi. With two underdogs in the mix, South Korea is expected to dominate Group B and advance to the Super Round with ease. Despite facing a strong lineup from Chinese Taipei, South Korea managed to score just a run in the second inning, with the bases loaded, courtesy of a sacrifice fly by Park Jae-hyun.

In the seventh inning, they added two more runs, this time with a double by Park Jun-soon and a sacrifice fly by Cho Hyeong-woo. Another sac fly by Roh Si-hwan put South Korea ahead in the eighth, and Yoon Dong-hee sealed the victory with a solo home run.