The Philippines' Alas Pilipinas U18 team fell short of a bronze medal at the 2025 Asian Youth Games, losing 26-24, 25-20, 26-24 to Thailand in the third-place match in Riffa, Bahrain. The closely contested game saw the Filipinas blow late leads due to errors. It marked their second defeat to Thailand in the tournament.
At Isa Sports City in Riffa, Bahrain, on October 29, 2025, Alas Pilipinas U18 faced Thailand for the bronze medal in girls' volleyball at the Asian Youth Games. The Filipinas put up a strong fight but failed to hold onto late leads.
In the first set, they battled back from a 10-16 deficit to grab a 24-23 advantage on an ace by Ysabella Cruz, but she followed with a service error, and Harlyn Serneche and Rhose Almendralejo missed attacks. The third set saw a similar pattern, with the Philippines leading 23-21 before losing five of the next six points.
“We were able to keep it close at the start, but in the end, we were unable to stay with them. Our lapses and our errors came out in the end,” said middle blocker Jai Adrao in Filipino.
Rhose Almendralejo led in the loss with 15 points on 13 attacks, while Serneche and Sam Cantada added 8 each, and Adrao contributed 5. It was their second loss to Thailand after a 25-21, 25-18, 25-14 defeat in the preliminary round, though they showed improvement this time with support from a passionate Filipino crowd.
“We fell short but we still fought,” Adrao added.
Thailand's Natthawan Phatthaisong paced with 13 points, joined in double figures by Sasithorn Jatta (12), Nattharika Wasan (11), and Wisaruta Sengna (10). Alas U18 finished with four wins and three losses, their defeats only to Thailand and Iran.