Alas Pilipinas Men won’t be going home empty-handed after eking out a 25-16, 23-25, 25-11, 25-22 win against New Zealand in their battle for 10th spot in the AVC Men’s Nations Cup on Tuesday in Bahrain.
The four-set escape marked the Filipinos’ first victory in the 11-nation tournament as they went winless in the elimination round and bowed to Thailand in the classification phase.
Opposite hitter Steven Rotter led the charge with 20 points anchored on 17 attacks, two aces, and one block laced with seven digs while outside spikers Louie Ramirez and Marck Espejo chipped in 14 markers apiece.
After splitting the first two sets, the Philippines surged ahead in a dominant Set 3, with Ramirez leading the charge and firing an ace that extended Alas’ lead to 17-8 before Espejo completed a combination play for a 24-11 cushion.
New Zealand then committed one of its 31 errors, allowing the Philippines to move a set away from winning it.
A Lloyd Josafat quick attack saw Alas taking a 20-15 advantage in the crucial Set 4, but the world no. 66 New Zealand staged a rally courtesy of a 5-1 rampage capped by a service ace from Seth Grant, 20-21.
Espejo, though, stopped the bleeding for Alas by unloading back-to-back attacks from the left side while middle blocker Peng Taguibolos punctuated it with a quick play.
Taguibolos finished with seven points while veteran setter Joshua Retamar and Josafat each tallied four markers.
Grant top-scored New Zealand with 13 points on 10 attacks, two aces, and one block while Andrew Salmon chimed in with 12 markers as they finished last in the contest.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News