ALAS Pilipinas celebrated Independence Day by toppling a higher-ranked Kazakhstan side yesterday 25-21, 25-15, 25-19 to reach the semifinals of the AVC Women’s Volleyball Nations Cup in Hanoi, gaining a chance to improve on its bronze medal finish last year at home.
Ranked No. 74 in the world, the Filipinas will play in the semifinals as the top seeds from Pool A with a 4-1 win-loss record—the same card as the Kazakhs, who are ranked No. 31 in the FIVB rankings, but were relegated to No. 2 after the tiebreak.
The semifinals pit the Philippines against Chinese Taipei at 9 p.m. (Manila time) on Friday, with Kazakhstan taking on Vietnam at 6:30 p.m. at the Dong Anh Arena.
“After yesterday’s match [win over New Zealand], Kazakhstan was already in our minds as we left the court for the dugout,” setter and team captain Jia de Guzman said. “We knew the Kazakhs were a tough matchup and we needed our best to beat them.
“It’s unbelievable, a straight-sets win for us, I’m really proud of my teammates,” she said. “This victory is a big morale-booster for us.”
Bella Belen had 16 points with 11 excellent receptions, while Alyssa Solomon and Angel Canino finished with 14 and 13 points, respectively, for Alas Pilipinas.
“I had the opportunity to face Kazakhstan several times in the past, and they always have different sets of players,” Belen said. “But I have deep in my mind that we can beat them.”
Alas Pilipinas was restless on the eve of the match, with Brazilian coach Jorge Edson Souza de Brito keeping the girls’ focus in check.
“We’re in the top 4, it will be a hard match,” de Brito said. “The mindset for semifinals is the same, play good and take every advantage that we can … I will try to find some weak points [of the opponent].”
Canino, the most consistent on the team, said beating the Kazakhs in straight sets came as a surprise for the team.
“We didn’t expect the match to go only three sets; they’re a strong team,” she said. “Whatever happened in our previous matches was a precious lesson for us. And I’m really grateful for the guidance of Ate Jia [de Guzman] and Ate Dawn [Macandili-Catindig, libero].”
Alas Pilipinas pulled off the upset before a good number of Vietnam-based flag-waving Filipino fans who rabidly cheered the team, chanting “Happy Independence Day!”
