PHL finishes strong vs Iran to earn 7th place in Asian U-23 Women's Volleyball Championship

The Philippines avenged their opening game loss to Iran with a straight sets victory, 25-15 25-21 26-24, to finish seventh place in the Asian U-23 Women's Volleyball Championship on Saturday at PhilSports Arena.

The team took the first two sets comfortably and bounced back strong against the fatigued Iranian squad, who came off a a grueling five-setter against India on Friday.

The Filipinas looked poised for an easy sweep after posting a commanding 18-13 lead in the third set, but Iran rallied for five straight points on the serve of team captain Mahsa Saberi to turn the tables, 21-20.

A miscommunication from the Philippines put the Iranians at setpoint, 24-22, but a service error from Samaneh Siavoshi gave the Philippines a chance to force deuce.

Team captain Alyssa Valdez pounced on the opportunity with a through the block kill to tie the game, 24-all. Jaja Santiago then provided the strong finishing kick with a tip and a quick hit from the middle.

Valdez finished with 21 points to bounce back from her measly eight-point outing against Chinese Taipei on Friday, while Santiago played her best game of the tournament with 17 points.

Neda Chamlanian, meanwhile, led Iran with 10 points, but she was the only player to score in double digits for the weary team. Saberi and Mina Roosta added six points apiece.

"We really wanted to go one rank higher, maybe fifth or sixth, but it's just a dream right now. Maybe in the near future we can achieve it," said head coach Roger Gorayeb on their seventh place finish. "But for now, going to the top eight is already a big achievement." - RAF, GMA News