The Alas Beach showcased both its present strength and promising future as rising stars Sofiah Pagara and Khy Progella and the celebrated tandem of Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons produced a historic 1-2 finish at the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Futures in Busan, South Korea.
Pagara and Progella completed an unbeaten campaign by defeating Rondina and Pons, 21-18, 21-13, in an all-Filipino final played under rainy conditions Sunday afternoon.
Coming all the way from the qualification round, the reigning UAAP champions won all seven of their matches. They swept pool play before overcoming Japan’s Paurine Emiri Oto and Takemi Nishibori, 21-12, 21-13, in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, Pagara and Progella rallied past another Japanese tandem, Mayu Sawame and Wakana Akishige, 17-21, 21-13, 15-11, to book their place in the gold-medal match.
The young University of Santo Tomas pair has steadily risen through the Philippine beach volleyball system, winning national-level tournaments before making its mark on the international stage.
Things are looking bright for Pagara and Progella, who won the Sipalay leg of the BVR on Tour last year. The tandem also topped the Philippine National Volleyball Federation Beach Volleyball Invitational organized by BVR at the Nuvali Sand Courts in Santa Rosa, Laguna, in December 2024.
Rondina and Pons, meanwhile, advanced to the final after outlasting Australia’s Jana Milutinovic and Jazz Rayner, 23-21, 21-19.
Rondina is the most decorated player in the group, having won six BVR on Tour titles, including the Sipalay leg with Dij Rodriguez earlier this year.
Pons, on the other hand, has captured three BVR on Tour titles, all with Rondina.
Rondina and Pons also swept the BVR-organized Philippine National Volleyball Federation Beach Volleyball Invitational and National Open tournaments last year.
The veteran tandem continues to lead the national program after helping the Philippines capture a historic women’s beach volleyball gold medal at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games in Thailand.
The podium sweep provides a major boost to the Philippines’ preparations for the 2026 Asian Games and strengthens the country’s long-term campaign toward the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
The Asian Games is an important competitive target, while Olympic qualification will come through designated continental events, the 2027 World Championships, the Olympic Ranking, and the Olympic Q-Series.
With multiple competitive tandems emerging, the Philippines now has a legitimate opportunity to pursue its first Olympic berth in beach volleyball.
