ALAS Pilipinas Women suffered a straight-sets defeat against defending champion China, 18-25, 22-25, 8-25, in their opening match of the 2026 Asian Games women’s volleyball tournament on Wednesday at the Okazaki Central Park Gymnasium in Nagoya, Japan.
The Philippine squad put up a strong fight in the second set but struggled to sustain its momentum as the Chinese side pulled away to complete the victory.
China, ranked No. 7 in the world, established control early in the match before the Filipinas mounted their best challenge in the second frame.
The Philippines battled China to a 20-all deadlock, keeping the set within reach before Chinese spiker Xin Tang helped her team close out the frame and take a 2-0 lead.
China then dominated the third set, racing to an 11-3 advantage and extending the gap to 20-5 as Alas found it difficult to penetrate the Chinese defense.
The defending champions maintained their pressure until the final point to open their title defense with a convincing win.
Angel Canino led the Philippine attack with 14 points, followed by Eya Laure with 10 and Alyssa Solomon with nine.
Thea Gagate added three points, while team captain Jia De Guzman recorded 13 excellent sets in the loss.
Despite the setback, Alas Women will have an opportunity to recover in their next assignment against Kazakhstan on September 17.
The match will be crucial to the Philippines’ bid to advance to the quarterfinals, with only three teams competing in Pool B. (Adrian Co)
