MANILA — Alas Pilipinas Girls capped their historic world championship debut with a breakthrough finish, rallying past Czechia, 21-25, 25-22, 25-14, 25-22, to secure 15th place in the FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U17 World Championship on Sunday in Santiago, Chile.
Caera Celis powered the Filipinas’ closing victory with a tournament-ending 25-point explosion built on 20 attacks, four service aces and one block, while Jhaynna Bulandres contributed 15 markers, including six blocks.
The victory snapped the Philippines’ five-game losing skid and allowed the Alas Girls to finish their maiden world championship campaign with a 3-6 win-loss record and 15th place overall.
After surrendering the opening set, the young Filipinas quickly regrouped and seized control of the next three frames, dominating the third set before holding off Czechia in a tight fourth to end their campaign on a high note.
The Philippines held a slim 47-45 edge in attacks but inflicted greater damage from the service line, where it outscored Czechia, 13-7.
Czechia enjoyed an 11-9 advantage in blocks, but the Filipinas played the cleaner match, committing only 20 errors compared with their opponents’ 27.
Beyond the closing victory, the Alas Girls made history by advancing to the Round of 16 in their first appearance in the prestigious world tournament.
The Philippines emerged from a tough preliminary pool featuring defending champion China, Mexico, Tunisia, Peru and Venezuela.
The Alas Girls opened their campaign with a straight-set defeat to China before scoring victories over Mexico and Tunisia. Losses to Peru and Venezuela left the Filipinas with a 2-3 record after the pool stage but were enough to send them into the Round of 16.
Their championship hopes ended against South Korea in the knockout round before subsequent classification losses to Japan and Venezuela sent them into the battle for 15th place against Czechia.
The victory over Czechia provided a fitting conclusion to a milestone campaign that exposed the young national squad to some of the world’s leading under-17 volleyball programs and marked another step forward for Philippine youth volleyball./PN
