Everyone — from the capacity crowd rocking the Alonte Sports Arena crowd, to the officials and medics on the sidelines — was on their feet in anticipation.
The Vietnamese, having just saved three match points, were sweating bullets.
The arena barker, the legendary Rolly Manlapaz, yelled in his signature vibrato, “Pilipinas! Make some noise! Hindi pa tapos! Puso!”
Everyone’s hearts were racing — everyone except for the Philippines Women’s Volleyball Team.
Placid as an undiscovered lagoon, the Philippines anticipated Vietnam’s serve. Dawn Macandili lifted the heavy short serve right into the waiting Kim Fajardo’s hands. Maika Ortiz swooped behind her, faking a running hit and taking a blocker with her.
Fajardo tossed the ball right in front of her, arcing towards a mid-flight Alyssa Valdez.
With only one blocker to beat, Valdez unfurled as the crowd let out an audible gasp. They knew. This was Valdez’s point.
As the Phenom brought in the final point and signaled the end to an epic match, it dawned on the ladies in red: they had finally beaten Vietnam.
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For years, the Philippines fell into a volleyball stupor as their neighbors, including Vietnam, fortified their programs.
Aby Maraño, one of the National Team’s veterans, recalls never beating Vietnam in six tries throughout her career.
Coming into the 2017 AVC Senior Women’s Championship, the Philippines were clear underdogs against Vietnam. Coming off just a two-week Japan training camp and two straight losses in the tournament, the Philippines kept an optimistic outlook on their outing against Vietnam. They had nothing to lose and all the experience to gain.
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Every set was a war of attrition. Feeding off the ruckus crowd, the Philippines rallied back from big deficits in the first two sets. Alyssa Valdez provided the back-breaking aces that gave the Philippines a 2-0 lead.
With the fourth set swinging Vietnam’s way, the National Team remained calm as the visitors crumbled under the pressure. In the fourth set, Vietnam surrendered errors that gave the Philippines the cushion needed to clinch the match.
“‘Yun ‘yung sinasabing ibang klaseng puso,” mused the much-criticized National Team head coach Francis Vicente. “‘Yun ‘yung gusto talagang manalo. ‘Yun ‘yung maganda.
“‘Yun ‘yung nakikita kong napakagandang resultang nagpapalitan kami ng ideas, binibigyan ko sila ng mga dapat mangyari sa laro kung paano magiging attitude nila.”
Although she was the clear star and closer of the team for the match, Valdez gave full credit to her teammates and all the locals who kept cheering them on.
“We played for each other. Everything we did, iniisip talaga namin na we’re doing this for each other. We wanted to help each other achieve something great,” said Valdez, who tallied a tournament-high 20 points.
“In the end, everything we do talaga is for all our countrymen na walang sawang sumusuporta sa amin. Sila talaga ang nagbibigay ng lakas sa amin.”
Her jersey stained by her constant diving on the floor, Dawn Macandili still had enough breath left to express her gratitude for all the trust bestowed on her.
“Ramdam ko po talaga na may tiwala sa akin ‘yung teammates ko and ‘yung coaches ko kaya ginawa ko lang ‘yung best ko para masuklian ‘yun,” expressed Macandili who marked 19 digs and 12 excellent receptions.
The tournament isn’t over. The quarterfinals lay ahead, with powerhouse Thailand waiting to keep their prominence on the region.
While they will again be underdogs, Francis Vicente will continue to push his girls to the limit.
“Ayoko magsalita, pero hindi natin alam, di ba? Baka kayanin. Tatrabahuhin natin ‘yan.”
