ALAS PILIPINAS SETTER OLAGUIR TURNING HEADS IN AVC U16 TILT

AMMAN, Jordan — Resty Jane Olaguir continued to shine as Alas Pilipinas girls’ setter, spelling the difference in their 2nd AVC Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship campaign.

A day after she caught the attention of Japan coach Daichi Saegusa, who said Olaguir is “a very good setter” in their 25-17, 21-25, 25-16, 25-20 win to fend off Alas.

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The 15-year-old setter displayed her brilliant playmaking anew, helping Alas reach the quarterfinal round after sweeping Iran, 25-21, 25-22, 25-22, early Monday (Philippine time) at Princess Sumaya Hall here.

Olaguir credited her impressive play to her coaches — including the ones back home — after preparing her for her first international stint.

“I’m really happy [to hear that from the Japanese coach] and I’m grateful to all our coaches, especially Coach Wata, who helped me learn how to become a better setter,” Olaguir told the Inquirer. 

Alas U16 coach Edwin Leyva believes their opening day loss to defending champion Japan prepared them to stay focused and be more composed against the Iranians amid an intense duel.

READ: Alas Pilipinas girls sweep Iran, advance in AVC U16 Asian Championship

“The loss actually helped us. We talked to the players about improving their on-court attitude. We can do a lot more if we learn to adjust to both controllable and uncontrollable situations,” said Leyva.

“Some of them said the lights were too bright or the crowd was too loud, but we reminded them that those are things we can’t control. What we can change is our attitude and how we respond.”

Olaguir, the playmaker from Gracel Christian College Foundation Taguig, vows to approach Alas’ next game with the same mindset.

“We’ll give our best and prove that even if we’re small, we can still play with great skill and heart,” she said.

2025-11-03T10:46:54Z