By NIKOLE JAVIER
Against a young Korean squad, the Philippines encountered little problem in posting a 25-18, 25-13, 25-17 win to secure a quarterfinals seat in the 2022 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Cup for Women at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday, Aug. 25.
The Filipinas found their footing right away, establishing an 11-4 lead on the way to finishing third in Group A elims behind powerhouse China and Vietnam.
That was the good news. And the bad one?
Represented by AVL champion Creamline, the Nationals will be facing regional power Thailand in the quarters on Saturday.
For sure, that’s going to be a helluva of a challenge for the Nationals that coach Sherwin Meneses said they need to raise their level of game a notch higher to have a chance of beating many-time SEA Games champion.
“Hopefully, gumanda pa ‘yong performance namin sa quarterfinals. ‘Yong Thailand grabe na exposure talaga nila sa international tournaments,” said Meneses.
The win assured the Nationals of bettering their 9th place finish in the 2018 edition held in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.
Despite losing, the Koreans earned kudos for fighting to very end.
“We were also a young team before and we know what kind of energy they bring. We’ve watched the games they played. Kahit down two sets sila, same pa rin energy nila na lumalaban sila. Alam naming hindi kami dapat magpabaya,” said PH team captain Jia Morado-de Guzman.
Morado-de Guzman credited the team’s improved performance to a system they built through hard work and lots of sacrifices.
“Sobrang saya namin kasi we sacrificed a lot this whole year, actually for the past years. And it goes to show din na it’s easier to achieve things when you’re training in a system, in a long term program,” added Morado-de Guzman
Tots Carlos led the PH team 12 points, including two blocks, while Jema Galanza had 11 kills.
They dominated the Koreans by producing more blocks, 12-3, with Ced Domingo and Michele Gumabao accounting for three each.
