Alas Pilipinas Women battled until the end, but eight-time champion Thailand proved steadier, escaping with a hard-fought 25-17, 19-25, 25-15, 18-25, 15-10 victory in the first leg of the 2026 SEA V Cup on Saturday at Dong Anh Gymnasium in Vietnam.
The Philippines will try to salvage a bronze-medal finish when it faces Indonesia on Sunday at 5 p.m. (Manila time) in a clash between the tournament’s winless teams.
Meanwhile, Thailand and Vietnam will square off for the championship.
(C) SAVA
Mars Alba and Alyssa Solomon were inserted into the starting lineup in the second set and immediately sparked the Filipinas. They teamed up with Bella Belen, Vange Alinsug, Thea Gagate, and Fifi Sharma to help level the match at one set apiece, 25-19.
Thailand, however, responded emphatically in the third set as Sasisaporn Janthawisut powered the defending champions to a commanding 18-7 lead en route to a 25-15 set win.
Alas Pilipinas refused to back down, with the trio of Belen, Solomon, and Eya Laure leading the charge in the fourth set to force a deciding fifth frame.
But Ajcharaporn Kongyot and Kaewkalaya Kamulthala took control in the decider, steering Thailand to the gritty five-set victory.
(C) SAVA
Belen once again led Alas Pilipinas with 20 points, including seven in the fourth set. Solomon, despite coming off the bench, added 13 points, although she was held scoreless in the third and fifth sets.
Alinsug and Laure contributed eight points each, while Niña Ytang recorded three of the Philippines’ 10 blocks despite seeing limited action.
Janthawisut paced Thailand with 18 points, while Kongyot finished with 12, including eight in the deciding fifth set.
Alas Pilipinas also showed marked improvement in limiting its errors, committing just 23 in the five-set contest—six fewer than the 29 it had in its four-set loss to Vietnam on Friday.
