IF there really is room left in Alas Pilipinas Women’s player pool for the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, there’s more than a few names from both the pros and college ranks who deserve a second look.
From emerging talent to established top guns, Philippine volleyball has the luxury of choice on who to field in its bid for a first SEA Games medal in 20 years.
READ: De Brito unsure when Alas SEA Games pool will be complete
And in the words of head coach Jorge Souza de Brito himself, ‘everyone is available to play in the national team, especially the good ones.’
This wishlist will exclude names from the expanded 23-player pool obtained by SPIN.ph, with the only differences from the PNVF’s 20-player shortlist being MJ Phillips, Thang Ponce and Cla Loresco.
For reference, the first 20 players invited to the national team are as follows:
- OUTSIDE HITTERS: Angel Canino, Bella Belen, Shaina Nitura, Eya Laure, Vanie Gandler,Alleiah Malaluan
- OPPOSITE HITTERS: Alyssa Solomon, Kat Tolentino, Leila Cruz
- MIDDLE BLOCKERS: Dell Palomata, Amie Provido, Maddia Madayag, Thea Gagate, Fifi Sharma
- SETTERS: Jia de Guzman (c), Mars Alba, Julia Coronel
- LIBEROS: Dawn Catindig, Justine Jazareno, Jen Nierva
Notwithstanding factors such as citizenship-related eligibility considerations, here’s at least a player from every position who should be thrown in the mix for a final 14 spot in Thailand.
OUTSIDE HITTER: Brooke Van Sickle (Petro Gazz)
The two-time PVL MVP already donned the national tricolors once in the 2025 VTV Cup earlier this year.
But with her shock exclusion from the SEAG pool despite the passport-only rule, it begs the question on why Van Sickle wasn’t in either the 20 or 23-player versions of the Alas Women pool.
A PVL champion and former best outside hitter, Petro Gazz’ 5-foot-7 spiker continues to scale new heights in the pros by arguably being the league’s best two-way player in the league today.
Her fiery offense is a given plus her efficient floor defense, too. So bar any citizenship concerns relative to the tournament’s demands, there isn’t quite any other reason not to have BVS onboard.
And with a stacked outside hitter core with the likes of Belen, Canino and Nitura already there, Van Sickle would easily be the cherry on top of one of the country’s most explosive core of national spikers in recent memory.
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Savi Davison (PLDT), Casiey Dongallo (UP), Rhose Almendralejo (Bacolod Tay Tung)
OPPOSITE HITTERS: Shevana Laput (La Salle) and Trisha Tubu (Farm Fresh)
It’s often the other way around when it comes to lists like this in which two outside hitters and one opposite hitter are to be considered.
But a towering Laput and a dominant Tubu are much too good to not be in the mix for a national team spot.
Firstly, the 6-foot-2 Fil-Australian winger’s entry to Alas has yet to get past citizenship and federation-related roadblocks in recent months.
Unless there’s more to the SEA Games’ passport-only rule that hasn’t quite surfaced yet, or also unless Laput is dealing with undisclosed fitness or injury-related issues, this 22-year-old dynamo should be a clear-cut shoo-in in any Alas roster for any tournament.
And don't forget, she's the UAAP's reigning best opposite hitter, too.
With Tubu, it’s simply been long overdue for her to be in one of these national team pools.
Twice a PVL best opposite hitter, Tubu, 25, has carried the load for Farm Fresh since the start of its awe-inspiring resurgence in the league.
She leads the Foxies’ local core in scoring (14.6 points) per game) and is even the fourth-overall best spiker in an import-laden field with a 38.18 percent success rate.
She has the high hops, the power hits and the consistency, too, in doing it all at a high level.
So, why not her for Alas then?
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Tots Carlos (Creamline), Eli Soyud (Akari)
MIDDLE BLOCKERS: Riza Nogales (ZUS Coffee) and Niña Ytang (UP)
A quick run-through on social media when you put the words ‘Alas’ and ‘middle blockers’ together will have these two names all over the search results.
They might relatively be under-the-radar talents who don’t get a fair share of the limelight too often, but their talent and pedigree alone already speak volumes on why they deserve to be in the national team.
When it comes to 22-year-old Nogales, she’s no longer just the 6-foot defender who was overlooked by PVL teams in the draft earlier this year because of fitness issues.
This third-rounder is now a PVL best middle blocker awardee in just her rookie year, anchoring ZUS Coffee’s net defense en route to a franchise-best 4-0 start in the 2025 Reinforced Conference.
And with 5-foot-11 Ytang, winning second-best middle blocker behind 6-foot-2 Alas Pilipinas mainstay Thea Gagate for three straight seasons isn’t just proof of her talent.
It also shows competitive consistency that is imperative in any national team, let alone ours.
HONORABLE MENTIONS: AC Miner (ZUS Coffee), Pangs Panaga (Creamline), Majoy Baron (PLDT)
SETTER: Lams Lamina (NU)
Including high school and college preseason tilts, Lamina has seven best setter plums to her name with National University.
While she has been called up to Alas earlier in this year’s national team window, Lamina would either be in the reserve list or hardly utilized in games.
But with a squeaky-clean resume in her young career, she should at least have a fighting chance to get what would presumably be one or two additional setter spots behind captain Jia de Guzman.
Notwithstanding possible scheduling conflicts with NU’s UAAP Season 88 buildup, Lamina’s exclusion from either version of the SEA Games pool was easily a head-scratcher.
A last-minute callup, with no set training camps yet in the home stretch before the tournament, won’t do any harm right?
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Tia Andaya (Choco Mucho), Alohi Robins-Hardy (Farm Fresh), Gel Cayuna (Cignal)
LIBERO: Kath Arado (PLDT)
When it comes to the best Philippine liberos over the last decade or so, the names Macandili and Arado are both atop anyone’s list.
With Macandili, now Catindig, still manning the floor defense as lead libero-slash-co-captain, why not give Arado that shot, too?
In fact, she’s more than earned it by sustaining her gutsy form for PLDT and more so as of late now that Arado is a five-time PVL best libero and a two-time champion, as well.
Her defensive presence in those two title runs wasn’t just felt. It was rather decisive and imperative to the High Speed Hitters’ chances of striking gold for the first two times in franchise history.
Not to mention, she even scooped up her first PVL Finals MVP nod in this year’s Invitational tilt.
Kath still has it and is still very much national team material. Need we say more?
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Alyssa Eroa (ZUS Coffee), Detdet Pepito (UST), Kyla Atienza (Creamline)
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