Alas Pilipinas celebrates after beating Chinese Taipei in the semifinals of the 2025 AVC Women's Nations Cup, June 13, 2025 in Hanoi, Vietnam. Handout/AVC
MANILA -- The Philippine women's national volleyball team continues to rise in the FIVB world rankings amidst their historic run in the 2025 AVC Women's Nations Cup.
Alas Pilipinas reached the tournament final on Friday night after holding off Chinese Taipei in a five-set thriller, marking their return to the championship phase of an Asian-level tournament after 64 years.
They will be up against host nation Vietnam, who took care of business against Kazakhstan in the other semifinals. The gold medal match is scheduled for Saturday night -- the first time that the Philippines will be playing for gold since the 1997 Southeast Asian Games.
READ: Alas Pilipinas through to Nations Cup Finals after thriller vs. Chinese Taipei
As it stands, they are at No. 46 in the FIVB rankings after their hard-earned win over Chinese Taipei, and can rise even higher if they pull off an upset of Vietnam in the championship match.
Regardless of the result of the final, the chief of the country's volleyball federation believes that this campaign has given everyone involved a reason to be proud.
"The program is working," said Ramon "Tats" Suzara, the president of the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) and the AVC, and an executive vice president of the FIVB.
"The past three years were all upward for our national program in all disciplines—volleyball and beach—thanks to the support of our stakeholders," he added.
Three years ago, the national women's team was ranked 156th by the FIVB, but leapt a whopping 90 rungs in 2023 to jump to No. 66. Their campaign in last year's AVC Challenge Cup, wherein they claimed the bronze, propelled them to No. 58.
Ahead of their showdown against Vietnam, the players and head coach Jorge de Brito are staying on an even keel and keeping their performance in perspective.
"Last year, our best brought us to the bronze, and this time, it's going to bring us to higher heights," said skipper Jia de Guzman. "So we're just going to bring our best again—and no matter what, this is for the country."
"I'm really happy because we were able to win this game, not just for us but for the Philippines," said Bella Belen, who had a triple-double of 14 points, 19 receptions and 16 digs against Chinese Taipei. "No words can explain how much we wanted this game and we're going to prepare hard for us because it's in Vietnam."
First serve between Vietnam and the Philippines is scheduled for 9:00 p.m.