ALAS Pilipinas bagged bronze in Leg 1 of the 5th SEA V.League after getting its first and only mark in the win column coutesy of a 25-20, 25-20, 16-25, 25-13 triumph over Indonesia on Sunday in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.
The Filipinos complete a hat-trick of third-place finishes after winning bronze in both legs of last year’s regional meet.
READ: Angel Canino wins best outside spiker award in SEA V.League Leg 1
This also becomes the 20th all-time podium finish for the Philippine women’s national volleyball team in international play - half of them being bronze.
As far as head-to-head matchups go, Alas has now won four in a row against Indonesia dating back to the 2024 AVC Challenge Cup for Women in Manila.
Alas block party
Net defense proved to be Alas' best weapon en route to the bronze, with the nationals put up five of their 11 blocks in the second set alone through Fifi Sharma and Dell Palomata's towering exploits.
Before gaining that much-needed separation, the one-two punch of Angel Canino and Alyssa Solomon first had to erase an early 8-13 first-set deficit with a commanding 12-3 blitz.
Indonesia went on to hit the brakes on a red-hot Alas charge in the third set, leaving the Philippines gobsmacked.
A recurring eight-point deficit proved too much for the nationals to erase, forcing another set to keep Indonesia's podium bid alive.
Canino made sure to slam the door shut on the Indonesians' last shot at sudden death by mounting an explosive 18-6 start.
That lead proved unassailable in the end, one not even a string of mini-scoring runs from Indonesia could erase as the Philippines make it three bronze medals in a row in the regional meet with the one and only win that was enough to send them to the podium.
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