VIETNAM remained a puzzle the Philippines can’t solve.
Alas Pilipinas put up a tough fight but it wasn’t enough to topple host nation Vietnam, 20-25, 21-25, 21-25, in the 2025 VTV Cup on Sunday in Vinh Phuc.
READ: All you need to know before Alas sees action in 2025 VTV Cup
The nationals have now lost seven head-to-head matches in a row to Vietnam since the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Manila.
All seven matches were won by the Asian powerhouse in straight sets, with the VTV Cup being their second straight win over the Philippines in a 15-day period since the 2025 AVC Nations Cup final.
This was the closest the Philippines has come to Vietnam in terms of set scores over that seven-year stretch as it managed to surpass the 20-point mark in all three sets.
With eight new players, the new-look Alas Women kept the one-two punch of Tranh Thi Thanh Thuy (T4) with 14 points and Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen on their toes in the opening set.
The match was tied at 20-all before the nationals yielded five straight points to the hosts.
Vietnam found its rhythm early in the second frame and even held a 20-13 lead.
Even so, Alas mustered an 8-1 run led by their newest first-choice scoring weapons in two-time PVL MVP Brooke Van Sickle and Capital1 winger Leila Cruz.
T4 and Tuyen had just enough steam to repulse a brewing comeback and put the Philippines away in straight sets.
Alas Women will have less than 24 hours to regroup before facing China’s Sichuan Wuliangchun in their second pool play match on Monday, 5:30 p.m.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
