MANILA, Philippines – Team Philippines put up a gallant stand in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games Men’s Volleyball Finals but fell in the hands of powerhouse Indonesia 3-0 on Tuesday, December 10, 2019 at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
It’s been a very long time since the Philippines' Men’s Volleyball entered the SEA Games finals. Tonight, the national spikers made a history but it wasn’t easy as they faced powerhouse and undefeated Indonesia.
Jitters probably hit the Filipinos as they got blanked by the Indonesians early in the opening set that forced them to call a timeout.
Not only Indonesia is one of the strongest teams in Asia but the Filipinos actually met the Indonesians a week ago in the elimination round and lost 3 sets to none.
Semis hero, Bryan Bagunas slowly getting his rhythm midway of the set. But unforced errors were once again haunting the nationals that opened an opportunity for Indonesia to widen the gap.
Rex Intal and Mark Espejo joined efforts in catching up with Indonesia, The duo managed to trim the lead down to just 2 but they fell a little short in the opener, 21-25.
It was a better 2nd set start for Team Pilipinas as the spikers began to put pressure on their opponents. The Philippines even took an early lead but service errors kept Indonesia closer.
The Philippines maintained a 2-point advantage past half of the second. The Filipino blockers got some good deflections that gave them the lead.
A service error cost Philippines anew. With that fiasco, the nationals handed over the lead to Indonesia.
Likewise, Indonesia committed an unforced error and gave the Philippines a chance to extend the set starting at 24-all.
It was a dejavu after where Philippines managed to tie the game at 24 apiece but still gave the set to Indonesia just like in the eliminations. 27-25 and a 2-0 set-lead in favor of Indonesia.
Down 0-2, the Filipinos felt the pressure while the Indonesians gained a whole lot of confidence and eyed to wrap up the tournament anytime soon.
Intal and Bagunas tried to rally with decent digs but Indonesia maintained a safe distance and got closer to its ultimate goal.
Mark Espejo and Rex Intal kept the fire burning for his team in spite of a huge scoring disadvantage in the 3rd set of the finals.
Few more minutes of intense volleyball game, Team Indonesia finally cruised to victory and copped the gold medal while the Philippines garnered another silver.
25-21, 27-25, 25-17 is the final score in favor of the Indonesians.
Mabuhay Pilipinas Men’s Volleyball Team! We’re very proud of you!
— Joey Boy Capos, The Summit Express
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| Despite the lost to powerhouse Indonesia, Philippines Men’s Volleyball still put the country on the global sports map. Mabuhay Team Pilipinas! Credit: Twitter/Philippine National Volleyball Team |
It’s been a very long time since the Philippines' Men’s Volleyball entered the SEA Games finals. Tonight, the national spikers made a history but it wasn’t easy as they faced powerhouse and undefeated Indonesia.
Jitters probably hit the Filipinos as they got blanked by the Indonesians early in the opening set that forced them to call a timeout.
Not only Indonesia is one of the strongest teams in Asia but the Filipinos actually met the Indonesians a week ago in the elimination round and lost 3 sets to none.
Semis hero, Bryan Bagunas slowly getting his rhythm midway of the set. But unforced errors were once again haunting the nationals that opened an opportunity for Indonesia to widen the gap.
Rex Intal and Mark Espejo joined efforts in catching up with Indonesia, The duo managed to trim the lead down to just 2 but they fell a little short in the opener, 21-25.
It was a better 2nd set start for Team Pilipinas as the spikers began to put pressure on their opponents. The Philippines even took an early lead but service errors kept Indonesia closer.
The Philippines maintained a 2-point advantage past half of the second. The Filipino blockers got some good deflections that gave them the lead.
A service error cost Philippines anew. With that fiasco, the nationals handed over the lead to Indonesia.
Likewise, Indonesia committed an unforced error and gave the Philippines a chance to extend the set starting at 24-all.
It was a dejavu after where Philippines managed to tie the game at 24 apiece but still gave the set to Indonesia just like in the eliminations. 27-25 and a 2-0 set-lead in favor of Indonesia.
Down 0-2, the Filipinos felt the pressure while the Indonesians gained a whole lot of confidence and eyed to wrap up the tournament anytime soon.
Intal and Bagunas tried to rally with decent digs but Indonesia maintained a safe distance and got closer to its ultimate goal.
Mark Espejo and Rex Intal kept the fire burning for his team in spite of a huge scoring disadvantage in the 3rd set of the finals.
Few more minutes of intense volleyball game, Team Indonesia finally cruised to victory and copped the gold medal while the Philippines garnered another silver.
25-21, 27-25, 25-17 is the final score in favor of the Indonesians.
Mabuhay Pilipinas Men’s Volleyball Team! We’re very proud of you!
— Joey Boy Capos, The Summit Express
