Alas Pilipinas Under-16 girls team earned the respect of defending champion Japan after putting up a gallant stand before bowing, 17-25, 25-21, 16-25, 20-25, in the 2nd Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship on Saturday at the Princess Sumaya Hall in Amman, Jordan.
Xyz Rayco and Nadeth Herbon introduced themselves to the Asian stage by leading the young Alas squad in an impressive debut, backed by the cheers of Overseas Filipino Workers in Amman, AVC and Philippine National Volleyball Federation president Ramon “Tats” Suzara, and officials from the Philippine Embassy in Jordan led by His Excellency Ambassador Wilfredo C. Santos.
Rayco and Herbon spearheaded the Philippines’ strong showing in the second set, scoring nine points each to tie the match at one set apiece. Japan regained control in the third frame, but the Filipinas continued to threaten the reigning champions and nearly forced a decider.
Alas even held a 12-9 lead in the fourth set after Madele Gale’s ace, but Japan turned things around behind Ren Sugimoto, Miko Takahashi, and Rina Hayasaka. Hayasaka delivered two straight kills to seal the victory in their opening Pool B assignment.
“We’ll apply everything we learned in Japan in our next game because we know it’s still going to be a tough fight. We’ll keep giving our all and keep fighting until the end,” said team captain Rayco, a 14-year-old opposite spiker from Saint Michael College of Caraga.
Japan coach Daichi Saegusa lauded the young Filipino squad, particularly setter Resty Jane Olaguir, while Sugimoto also praised Rayco’s performance.
“It was a difficult game because the Philippines was so good,” said Saegusa. “We couldn’t play well, but this match is going to be good for us because we have more games. It was a good opportunity.”
Sugimoto and Takahashi led Japan with 16 points apiece, while Hayasaka chipped in 13 as they look to sweep Pool B with a win over Iran on Monday.
Despite the loss, Alas U16 coach Edwin Leyva expressed pride in his team’s performance, noting how quickly they came together despite limited preparation and diverse backgrounds from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
“The team jelled quickly. It wasn’t like what we feared at first, that they might struggle to connect since they came from different places. Our main issue before was communication because of the different dialects, but they managed it well. They played great, and I’m very happy with how they performed,” said Leyva, who also credited contributions from Gale, Merish Beltran, and Jhenica Sadia.
“Everybody contributed to the game. Our defense was solid. It was really good. Unfortunately, we lacked a bit of energy, experience, and endurance. But we definitely had what it takes to win.”
Alas Pilipinas will try to reach the quarterfinals when they face Iran in a must-win match on Sunday at 11:00 PM (Philippine time).
“We’re hoping to perform even better in tomorrow’s game against Iran. Like I said before, our goal was to win one or two games in the elimination round, and we’re still working toward that,” Leyva said.
