MANILA, Philippines – Two weeks after its Asiad stint, the Philippine women’s vollebyall team moves on quickly to its next challenge: the 2018 Asian Women’s Volleyball Cup in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. 

The Philippine spikers are grouped in Pool C together with Australia, Iran and Kazakhstan. 

The Nationals will open their campaign against Australia on Sunday, September 16. 

The Filipinas last faced the Aussies in the 2015 Asian Women’s Volleyball Championship where they lost in 4 sets. But in the 2017 edition, the Philippines placed 8th overall while Australia was relegated to the classification round and finished 10th. 

Both teams qualified for this year’s Asian Cup after finishing in the top 10 of the 2017 Seniors championship.

The Philippines will also take on Iran on Monday, September 17 and Kazakhstan the next day, September 18.

Pressure is on the Filipinas to win twice and advance to the quarterfinals as the bottom two teams in Pool C will be relegated to the Challenge Cup. 

National team captain Aby Maraño along with mainstays  Alyssa Valdez, Mika Reyes, Jia Morado, Cha Cruz and Denden Lazaro will continue to power the team in the tournament.

Maika Ortiz and Mylene Paat will try to sustain their Asian Games form after proving their worth in the continental games. 

Veteran Aiza Maizo-Pontillas, Grethcel Soltones and Risa Sato make their return to the national team, while Melissa Gohing, Jasmine Nabor and Jema Galanza are set for their Philippine team debut.

One of the team’s leading scorers Jaja Santiago will be skipping the Asian Cup due to her commitments to her professional club Ageo Medics in the Japan V Premier League. Setter Kim Fajardo is also sidelined due to a knee injury. 

The team will also be missing the services of the UAAP Season 80 women’s volleyball champions Dawn Macandili, Majoy Baron and Kim Dy, who are touring New York as a reward for the De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers’ three-peat title.  – Rappler.com