Alas Pilipinas finished second in Pool A, which included undefeated and host country Vietnam, Sichuan Wuliangchun from China, and Australia. The Philippines finished the preliminary round with six points in two wins and one loss.

In the quarterfinals, Alas Pilipinas will face the third-ranked ranked from Pool B, Est Cola, which comprises the under-21 national team of Thailand with two players from the senior team – Kuttika Kaewpin and Natthimar Kubkaew.

Team captain Kuttika Kaewpin will miss the rest of the tournament after being called to the Thailand women’s national volleyball team that is currently competing in the Volleyball Nations League.

Take a look back at the games of Alas Pilipinas in the preliminary round.

Loss Against Vietnam

Alas Pilipinas suffered a straight-set loss at the hands of the host country, Vietnam, 20-25, 21-25, 21-25, on July 29.

Brooke Van Sickle and Leila Cruz led the Philippines with 12 points apiece, followed by MJ Phillips with 10 points. Dell Palomata scored seven points while Eya Laure and Alleiah Malaluan combined for seven points.

For Vietnam, Nguyễn Thị Bích Tuyền led the team with 19 points in 16 attacks, two blocks, and an ace. Team captain Trần Thị Thanh Thúy added 16 points in 14 attacks and two aces, while Trần Thị Bích Thủy contributed 11 points in eight attacks, two blocks, and an ace.

Vietnam recorded 48 attack points compared to the Philippines’ 37 points. However, in the blocking department, Alas Pilipinas recorded nine block points compared to Vietnam’s seven.

The main difference of the match is the aces as Vietnam recorded six service aces while the Philippines only had three. Both teams also managed to limit their errors – the Philippines giving away 14 points while Vietnam had 13 errors.

Win Against China’s Sichuan Wuliangchun

After that first-game loss, Alas Pilipinas quickly bounced back and defeated Sichuan Wuliangchun of China, 25-12, 25-22, 19-25, 25-15, on June 30.

Brooke Van Sickle once again led the Philippines with 17 points in 12 attacks, three aces, and two blocks. Vanie Gandler and MJ Phillips added 13 points apiece, while Dell Palomata contributed 11 points.

For Sichuan Wuliangchun, Yang Jingjin was the lone bright spot with 26 points in 25 attacks and one block. Wang Sijia and Yu Tianyi had nine points apiece.

Aside from the blocking, the Philippines dominated the whole match. Alas Pilipinas recorded 52 attack points, compared to just 48 of Sichua Wuliangchun. The Philippines also recorded six service aces, half coming from Brooke Van Sickle, compared to just one ace from China.

In block points, Sichuan Wuliangchun recorded nine block points, while the Philippines had seven.

Alas Pilipinas also managed to limit their errors to just 16, much less than Sichuan Wuliangchun’s 29 errors.

Win Against Australia

Alas Pilipinas ended the preliminary round with a straight-set victory against Australia, 25-13, 25-15, 25-20, on July 1.

For the third time, Brooke Van Sickle led the team with 15 points in 12 attacks, two blocks, and an ace. Vanie Gandler contributed 11 points in eight attacks and three blocks, while Dell Palomata added 10 points in five attacks, two blocks, and three aces.

For Australia, Ella Schabort was the lone player who scored in double digits as she finished the match with 10 points in six attacks, three blocks, and an ace.

Throughout the game, Alas Pilipinas played great volleyball from the service line, tallying 11 service aces in the match. Dell Palomata, MJ Phillips, and Vanie Gandler each had three service aces. In comparison, Australia only tallied two aces in the match.

The Philippines also dominated the spiking department, recording 39 attack points compared to Australia’s 25. However, Australia recorded more block points with nine compared to Alas Pilipinas’ seven.

In terms of unforced errors, Alas Pilipinas only had 12 errors, compared to 18 of Australia.

What’s Next for Alas Pilipinas?

In the quarterfinals, Alas Pilipinas will face Est Cola, which is composed of Thailand’s under-21 national team with one player from the senior team – Natthimar Kubkaew. Team captain Kuttika Kaewpin was part of the team, but she will miss the rest of the tournament after being called up by the senior team to play in the Volleyball Nations League.

In the preliminary round, Est Cola’s single win came at the expense of the Vietnam U21 team, 33-31, 20-25, 25-22, 25-18. They suffered a five-set heartbreaking loss against the undefeated Korabelka, 25-27, 25-11, 13-25, 25-22, 11-15.

Est Cola was also defeated by Chinese Taipei in four sets, 24-26, 25-21, 21-25, 23-25, to finish the preliminary round in the third spot.

Alas Pilipinas and Est Cola will face each other on Thursday, July 3, 8:30 p.m. (Ph time).