The Philippine Women’s National Football team opens up their title defense at the MSIG Serenity Cup 2025 by crushing Timor Leste for their first game last night, August 7.
Dream Start for the Filipinas
Filipinas Rookie Aaliyah Schinaman marked her debut with a close-range finish just two minutes in, redirecting a ball from Quinley Quezada’s setup. Playing at the Việt Trì Stadium in Phú Thọ, Vietnam, Quezada doubled the lead in the seventh minute after her initial effort was blocked, while captain Hali Long made it 3–0 two minutes later with a well-timed header off a Chandler McDaniel corner.
The defending champions continued to dictate the pace, with Quezada netting her second in the 32nd minute after chesting down Dionesa Tolentin’s cross and firing past goalkeeper Gorette da Deus. Timor-Leste struggled to create chances, forcing Filipinas keeper Olivia McDaniel into only one notable save in the 55th minute to deny Godeliva Martins. The halftime whistle came with the Philippines firmly in control at 4–0.
Tolentin Strikes Twice in the Second Half, and Wyrzynski Finished the Job
Tolentin extended the lead in the 57th minute with a precise lob from a tight right-side angle. She added her second seven minutes later, tapping in from close range after a defensive mix-up. Awarded MSIG Player of the Match honors, Tolentin provided the spark that maintained the team’s momentum after the break.
Substitute Adelaide Wyrzynski, also making her international debut, capitalized on a goalkeeping error in the 75th minute to complete the scoring. The Filipinas finished with a narrow edge in attempts but made their chances count, showing composure in front of goal and defensive discipline to secure the clean sheet.
FINAL SCORE: PHILIPPINE 7 – 0 TIMOR LESTE
Hali Long: “We don’t take any team lightly.”
National team veteran Hali Long said that they don’t look at certain teams as an “easy win” for them and wanted to play games as seriously as possible.
“We don’t take any team lightly. We don’t know which way this group is going to go. It was a pretty good game before us, the 2-1 with Myanmar coming on top. Looking forward to looking at that game and seeing what results we can pull out in the next game.”
“But really proud of the group that we put out today and all the subs that came on the bench really had good energy,” she then added.
“Overall, I think it was pretty good, the goals that we wanted to get. We definitely could have gotten more so there’s more growing and learning,” said the 30-year-old Defender for the Filipinas.
Up Next: Matildas of Australia
The result put the Philippines at the top of Group B with three points and a +7 goal difference, ahead of Myanmar, who earlier beat the Australia Under-23 team with a final score of 2–1.
The Filipinas face the Australian side next on August 10, Sunday at 8:30 p.m. (Manila time), looking to build on their statement win in the tournament’s opening round.
