Alas Pilipinas defeats Kazakhstan, advances to AVC semis

Alas Pilipinas secured its second consecutive semifinal appearance in the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Women's Volleyball Nations Cup after defeating Kazakhstan in a straight-sets victory, 25-21, 25-15, 25-19.

This win allowed the Philippine team to top Pool B with a 4-1 record, marking their biggest win to date against the same Kazakh squad that beat them in the semifinals last year.

Bella Belen led Alas Pilipinas with 16 points, followed by Angel Canino with 13 and Alyssa Solomon with 14, with the trio combining for 43 points.

Team captain Jia de Guzman admitted they had already set their sights on Kazakhstan after their win against New Zealand.

Kazakhstan played without their skipper Sana Anarkulova, who did not suit up after getting injured the day before.

Alas has now advanced to the semifinals where, as Pool B No. 1, it will tackle the Pool B No. 2, which is either Chinese Taipei or Hong Kong.

Host Vietnam, the defending champion, will finish at No. 1 in the first group, while Kazakhstan is No. 2 in Pool B.