5 days ago
Gallant Alas Men scare Pakistan in four-set loss as Marck Espejo goes down with injury
Without team captain Marck Espejo in the last three sets, the Alas Pilipinas Men put up a valiant effort against Pakistan before absorbing a 25-18, 25-12, 18-25, 25-22 loss to open the 2025 AVC Nations Cup on Tuesday in Bahrain.
Espejo suffered an awkward landing in the final play of Set 1 and never returned since then, but that only set the stage for the bench to step up amid a threat of a sweep loss.
Leo Ordiales came up big for the Philippines, coming up with six points in a 9-4 run that allowed the Filiipinos to establish a much-needed 15-10 lead over Pakistan in Set 3.
His other National University teammates also joined in on the rampage with middle blocker Peng Taguibolos and outside spiker Buds Buddin extending that lead to a 20-14 advantage while a Lloyd Josafat quick hammer sent Alas to the set point, 24-17.
An Afaq Khan attack error enabled the Philippines to drag Pakistan to a fourth set.
Alas sustained the pace come Set 4, which they opened with a blazing 5-0 start behind Ordiales and the towering tandem of Josafat and Taguibolos.
But Pakistan slowly crawled back and took a slim 16-15 cushion before they clinched a crucial 22-18 lead off a service error from Alas rookie Jackson Reed.
Alas answered with a 3-0 rampage of its own capped by a Buddin rejection on Murad Khan on the opposite side that sliced the gap to a solitary point, 22-21.
Buddin, however, went wide on his final attempt, paving the way for the victory for last year's runner-up finishers.
The loss saw a breakout game for Ordiales, who detonated for 22 points on 15 attacks, five blocks, and two aces laced with four digs while Steven Rotter and Buddin each finished with 10 markers as they fell to 0-1 in Pool C.
Murad Khan, Afaq Khan, and Musawer Khan led the charge for world no. 49 Pakistan with 14 points each as they took the lead with a 1-0 card.
Up next for Alas Pilipinas is world no. 45 Chinese Taipei on Wednesday with the winner securing a strong chance of advancing to the quarterfinals.
—JKC, GMA Integrated News
