Photo from Usports
Alas Pilipinas Women made quick work of Australia on Tuesday afternoon, cruising to a 25-13, 25-15, 25-20 sweep to firm up their hold on second place in Pool A of the 2025 VTV Women’s International Cup at the Vinh Phuc Gymnasium in Vietnam.
The commanding victory allowed the Nationals to finish the group stage with a 2-1 record, rebounding strongly from a Day 1 loss to hosts Vietnam and building crucial momentum heading into the knockout quarterfinals.
Their final seeding, however, remains dependent on the outcome of the pool’s last preliminary match between Vietnam and Chinese club Sichuan Wuliangchun. If Vietnam completes a sweep of Pool A with a win, the Philippines will lock in the second seed and face Thailand’s U-21 squad, Est Cola, in the quarterfinals on July 3 at 8:30 p.m.
Should Sichuan pull off an upset, though, all three teams—Vietnam, Sichuan, and the Philippines—will end up with 2-1 records, forcing organizers to use set ratio and point quotient to determine the rankings.
Alas had to shake off a slow start early in the match, but once they settled in, they overwhelmed the Australians with superior ball movement and firepower. MJ Phillips sparked the first-set turnaround with a timely block, followed by a flurry of points from Dell Palomata that turned a 6-7 deficit into a 21-12 lead. Vanie Gandler then delivered back-to-back aces before Brooke Van Sickle sealed the set with a roof block.
In the second set, with the score tied at 6-all, Leila Cruz fired off two straight aces to spark another Filipina run. Phillips connected on a sharp middle hit, and Australia’s errors contributed to a 9-2 rally that opened a 15-8 gap. Alleiah Malaluan later delivered a powerful crosscourt kill to wrap up the second set.
Australia made a brief push in the third, slicing a six-point Alas lead down to three, 17-14. But the Filipinas responded with poise, leaning on Gandler’s offense, a crucial block from Fil-Am setter Tia Andaya, and more Aussie miscues to stretch their advantage to 22-15. Malaluan’s kill, a net touch violation on Australia, and a final block from La Salle’s Amie Provido sealed the win.
Australia ended the group stage with an 0-3 record and will now face either Chinese Taipei or Pool B leader Korabelka in the quarterfinals.
