Alas Pilipinas Women put up a stronger fight against regional powerhouse Vietnam but still fell short, absorbing a 14-25, 28-30, 22-25 loss to open the second leg of the 2025 Southeast Asia V.League on Friday evening at the Ninh Binh Gymnasium in Vietnam.
Rising stars Shaina Nitura and Clarisse Loresco emerged as the Nationals’ bright spots, but another sluggish start proved costly as they slipped to a 0-1 record in the four-team pool that also features defending champion Thailand and Indonesia.
Much like their encounter in the tournament’s opening leg, the Nationals fought valiantly but failed to avenge their four-set defeat to Vietnam last Saturday, August 9, in Nakhon Ratchasima, where they fell 13-25, 21-25, 25-23, 9-25.
(C) SAVA
The setback extended Alas Pilipinas’ struggles against the Vietnamese, marking their fourth consecutive loss since the 2025 AVC Nations Cup Final, the 2025 VTV Cup, and the first leg of the SEA V.League.
Still reeling from a narrow second-set defeat, the Nationals showed grit in the third frame, battling back from a 7-13 deficit to tie the set at 19-all, aided by three crucial Vietnamese errors.
In a tense back-and-forth exchange, Loresco’s offspeed hit knotted the count at 21-all, but Vietnam sealed the win with a spike from Hoang Thi Kieu Trinh, consecutive attack errors by Nitura, and a backrow hit from Vi Thi Nhu Quynh to complete their straight-sets triumph.
Earlier in the second set, Alas Pilipinas recovered from a 10-12 hole as Nitura, Loresco, and veterans Vanie Gandler and Dell Palomata powered an 8-2 run to take an 18-14 lead against a Vietnam squad that sat out Tran Thi Thanh Thuy for the frame.
However, no lead proved safe as Vietnam erased three set points and weathered Alyssa Solomon’s late surge. Gandler and Eya Laure struck back-to-back to tie the set at 28-all, but a sharp hit from Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen followed by a costly Loresco miscue put the Nationals in a two-set hole they could not recover from.
(C) SAVA
In the opening frame, Alas Pilipinas committed nine errors and had no answer to the attacking prowess of Thuy and Bich Tuyen, allowing Vietnam to cruise to a 25-14 start.
In the day’s earlier match, reigning Most Valuable Player Pimpichaya Kokram powered Thailand to a dominant 25-16, 25-16, 25-21 victory over Indonesia.
