Vietnam too much for Alas Pilipinas in AVC Nations Cup finals

MANILA, Philippines -- Alas Pilipinas knew that host Vietnam would be a tough nut to crack ahead of their AVC Nations Cup gold medal showdown Saturday.

The Filipinas, however, never expected the Vietnamese were this too rock-solid.

And the Nationals got a rude awakening Saturday night after they were smashed by the hosts in a stinging 25-15, 25-17, 25-14 defeat that sealed the latter the gold and the former settling for the silver before a hostile crowd at the Dong Anh Arena in Hanoi.

The perennial Southeast Asian Games silver winner just simply imposed its will and used the vaunted duo of skipper Tran Thi Thanh Thuy and Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyenas as its two-headed battering ram to crush whatever hopes of an upset left in Alas to hammer out the quick, merciless straight-set triumph.

When the smoke of battle dissipated, Vietnam was the last country standing and ruled the annual event for the second straight year after also reigning supreme a year ago at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

Alas, for its part, had its spirit crushed and ended up setting for the silver.

But that medal shone as bright as Vietnam’s gold for the Philippines as it was its best finish in an Asian-level tournament in the sport, surpassing the bronze that Alas had earned last year.

If there’s another silver lining, Alas could go home bringing this experience from the Vietnamese capital and learning from it with hopes that someday, it will find ways to settle the score.

And that will be the day for Alas.