Alas Pilipinas Women are headed to the semifinals of the 2025 VTV Women’s International Cup—and a familiar face—Eya Laure—led them there. Rested and inspired, Laure and the rest of her teammates stamped their class with a rousing sweep of Thailand’s Est Cola, 25-17, 25-21, 25-21, on Thursday night at the Vinh Phuc Gymnasium in Vietnam.
Eya Laure, again, was at the forefront of it all, delivering a scintillating showing in the three-set knockout match against Thailand’s under-21 squad. Laure, known for her powerful kills and clutch hits, was a consistent presence throughout as the Philippines turned back a gutsy stand from the young Thais.
The two squads were actually neck-and-neck in the opening frame, with the Thais holding the Filipinas to a 13-13 tie. But five points from Brooke Van Sickle, who provided plenty of firepower to Eya Laure’s heroics, and three errors from the Thais powered Alas Pilipinas to an 8-0 surge and a 21-13 lead. The Jorge de Brito-helmed squad never looked back, ending the set at 25-17.
Eya Laure, Alas Pilipinas Turn Back Stiff Challenge
The young Thais, though, didn’t roll over and die after their first set heartbreak. Instead, they gamely fought back and took a late lead in the second set, 19-18. But Van Sickle and Laure restored order immediately, firing the next three points to move Alas ahead, 21-19. Est Cola tied the set at 21 but couldn’t quite overcome the Filipinas, who sealed the second frame with a service ace from—who else?—Eya Laure.
The third set was more of the same: Thailand putting a scare on Alas and then Alas responding with flair. This time, Est Cola built a 13-10 lead, but Vanie Gandler sparked a telling 10-2 run for the Philippines to wrest control of the match again. An Eya Laure kill block followed by a service errors from Vi Thi Yen Nhi ended the match and sealed the nationals’ semis berth.
With the win, Alas Pilipinas Women booked a semis date against defending champions Korabelka of Russia on Friday. Est Cola, meanwhile, will play in the 5th–8th classification round starting with a showdown versus Australia, whom the Philippines beat to get to the quarters.
