MANILA, Philippines — From a winless campaign in the opening leg to a historic silver-medal finish.
Alas Pilipinas completed its remarkable turnaround in the 6th SEA V.Cup Leg 2, defeating Indonesia in a thrilling four-set battle, 25-13, 23-25, 25-19, 33-31, on Sunday afternoon at the Chiang Mai Gymnasium in Thailand.
The silver medal marked the first-ever SEA V.Cup podium finish for the Philippines in both the men’s and women’s divisions, capping an impressive resurgence by the Filipina spikers.
“We told everybody to focus on ourselves and not focus on our opponent; we should just focus on what we can,” Japanese head coach Taka Minowa said during the post-game interview.
Alas Pilipinas carried the momentum from its stunning victory over higher-ranked Vietnam on Saturday, where the Filipinas prevailed in four sets, 22-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-22.
The Philippines and Indonesia then battled through a dramatic fourth set that featured nine deadlocks, with Alas finally breaking away in the closing exchanges.
Fifi Sharma delivered a crucial kill block before an attack error by Indonesia handed the Philippines the 33-31 victory and the historic silver medal.
Alyssa Solomon paced Alas Pilipinas with 19 points, while Bella Belen and Eya Laure chipped in 17 points apiece in the thrilling victory.
