SANTA ROSA, Laguna — Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons saw their spirited stand come to a painful end after falling short against Switzerland’s Annique Niederhauser and Menia Bentele, 20-22, 22-24, to bow out of the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Nuvali Challenge on Thursday at the Nuvali Sands Courts here.
Alas Pilipinas ended the modified pool play with a 0-2 record, finishing at the bottom of Group H.
After a late fightback in the opening set fell short, the Philippines carried that momentum into the second frame, racing to an early lead and eventually building a 19-16 advantage after Bentele committed a crucial service error.
However, Bentele and Niederhauser responded with a decisive 4-0 run to seize a 20-19 lead before surviving the extension to complete the hard-fought victory in the tournament organized by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission under the leadership of Patrick Gregorio.
Niederhauser scored off the block before Bentele delivered the finishing attack that punched Switzerland’s ticket to the Round of 24.
(C) PNVF
“I’m proud of the result. It’s just nice because Pons only trained with me for one and a half weeks, but we were able to keep up with them,” said Rondina after the loss.
“The level of competition in the Challenge is really different. So I’m very grateful to compete against volleyball players from around the world,” Pons added.
Bentele finished with 13 points for Switzerland, which also eliminated the Alas pair in last year’s Nuvali Challenge, while Niederhauser added 12 markers in the win.
Rondina scored 12 points, while Pons was limited to six in their final game of the tournament powered by Rebisco, Akari, Ayala Land, and PLDT.
Earlier in the day, the Filipina duo absorbed a 19-21, 17-21 defeat to Denmark’s Sofia Bisgaard and Cirkeline Hog.
(C) PNVF
On the men’s side, Ronniel Rosales and Ranran Abdilla were forced to withdraw from their opening match against Team USA’s Hagen Smith and Ryan Ierna, dropping to 0-1 in the tournament hosted by the City of Santa Rosa and backed by The Medical City South Luzon and Jersey Haven.
Rosales was rushed for medical attention early in the second set after experiencing a sudden spike in blood pressure, with the Philippines trailing 2-3 at the time.
The match was subsequently halted, resulting in the Alas pair’s withdrawal and a 21-10, 3-2 victory for Team USA.
In other men’s division matches, Australia’s Thomas Hodges and Ben Hood rallied from a set down to defeat Latvia’s Ardis Bedtridis and Arturs Renkivics, 19-21, 21-19, 15-11, in Pool G.
Switzerland’s Adrian Heidrich and Yves Haussener followed with a straight-sets 21-14, 21-12 win over Great Britain’s Frederick Biakoloz and Issa Batrane in Pool H.
Meanwhile, Italy’s Alex Ranghieri and Manuel Alfieri survived a tight three-set battle against Germany’s Momme Lorenz and Tilo Rietschel, 21-16, 19-21, 17-15, also in Pool G.
