MANILA – Alas Pilipinas Women’s quarterfinal bid came to a painful end after Kazakhstan overturned an opening-set loss to defeat the Filipinas in four sets, 27-29, 26-24, 25-23, 25-19, on Thursday at the Okazaki Central Park General Gymnasium in Aichi, Japan.
Needing a victory to keep their knockout-stage hopes alive, the Filipinas drew first blood in a marathon opening set but failed to sustain their momentum as Kazakhstan swept the next three frames to shut the Philippines out of the 2026 Asian Games women’s volleyball quarterfinals.
Alas showed early determination in a tense opening frame, surviving a prolonged exchange before squeezing out a 29-27 victory.
Kazakhstan, however, quickly turned the match around.
The Filipinas stayed within striking distance in the second and third sets and repeatedly threatened to erase the Kazakhs’ advantage, but Kazakhstan proved steadier in the crucial closing exchanges.
The Kazakhs escaped with a 26-24 victory in the second set before taking another tightly contested third frame, 25-23, to seize a 2-1 advantage and push Alas to the brink of elimination.
The Philippines’ resistance weakened in the fourth set as errors began to pile up. Kazakhstan capitalized and pulled away to an 18-12 advantage, leaving the Filipinas scrambling to keep their Asian Games campaign alive.
Alas attempted one final rally, but Kazakhstan answered each challenge before closing out the set, 25-19, and completing the four-set victory.
Angel Canino carried much of the Philippine offense with a game-high 24 points, while Alyssa Solomon provided 20 points.
Eya Laure contributed seven points, while Bella Belen, Dell Palomata, Thea Gagate and Amie Provido chipped in four points apiece.
Kazakhstan countered with a more balanced attack as four players finished in double figures.
Tatyana Nikitina paced the Kazakhs with 19 points, followed by Zhanna Syroyeshkina with 17, Polina Ufimtseva with 14 and Kristina Belova with 12.
With a quarterfinal berth no longer possible, Alas Women will shift their focus to the classification round as they attempt to finish their Asian Games stint on a winning note./PN
