Alas Pilipinas confidence high as podium battle vs Thailand looms
RIFFA, Bahrain—Alas Pilipinas will need to muster resilience and resolve in its quest for a podium finish, renewing its rivalry with powerhouse Thailand in the bronze medal match of the Asian Youth Games (AYG) on Wednesday at Isa Sports City.
The Filipina spikers showed early promise but couldn’t sustain their form in a 26-28, 25-18, 25-19, 25-18 semifinal loss to Iran on Monday night. After snatching the opening set, the team struggled with side-outs and service reception against the taller and steadier Iranian squad.
Rhose Almendralejo carried the scoring load with 25 points, including 23 attacks, while Sam Cantada added 14. Raine Alonzo chipped in seven and Ysabella Cruz had five. But the usually reliable Harlyn Serneche, the country’s flag bearer, was limited to just three points across the first two sets.
Still, libero Atasha Doroja remains hopeful as they prepare to face a familiar foe.
“We tried our best, we gave it our all,” said Doroja. “But there’s still a lot we need to work on—our lapses. I think we can adjust those going into our battle for third.”
“There’s more room to grow, for each of us—emotionally and in terms of skills. We’ll keep working on that in the coming days, months and years.”
The young team will look to bounce back against Thailand, which swept their preliminary encounter, 25-21, 25-18, 25-14, before falling to Indonesia in the semifinals. Despite that early loss, Doroja believes the rematch gives them an edge.
“We’ve faced them already, so it won’t be new when we enter the court. We’ve studied them and we’re more familiar with their play now. That’s already an advantage for us.”
Doroja also expressed heartfelt thanks to the Filipino community in Bahrain.
“Thank you to all the Filipino fans who came and supported us, win or lose. We’ll bounce back. We’ll get that third place.”
Meanwhile, swimmer Jamesray Ajido and weightlifter Alexsandra Ann Diaz added to the Philippines’ medal tally in a campaign already marked as the country’s best in AYG history.
Ajido claimed silver in the boys’ 100-meter butterfly at Khalifa Sports City.
