Taking notice from a Southeast Asian powerhouse has lit a fire under Alas Pilipinas.

From a breakthrough bronze medal last year, Alas doubled up with a historic silver finish in the AVC Women’s Volleyball Nations Cup held in Hanoi.

The Filipinas’ inspiring performance was a warning shot of what the regional competition could expect from the team with just six months left before the Thailand SEA Games unfurls.

“They’ve recognized that the Philippines is growing. And we have to take advantage of that because the fact that they say that means we are starting to become a threat,” Alas skipper Jia de Guzman said.

The veteran setter was reacting to what Vietnam coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet said of the team following their gold medal match last Saturday.

Kiet has considered Alas a serious contender and a threat to Vietnam with its fast growth and improvement.

“That means also that we have to continue what we’re doing right now. We cannot stop,” De Guzman said.

Alas made an impressive run in the Nations Cup despite fielding a relatively young team with grizzled veterans De Guzman and libero Dawn Catindig leading the charge for the Brazilian Jorge De Brito-mentored squad.

The Nationals had a 4-1 win-loss record in pool play, including a victory over Indonesia, which has denied Alas a podium finish in the last three editions of the SEA Games. The Pinay spikers outlasted Chinese Taipei in the semifinal before giving three-peat winner Vietnam a good challenge in the final before eventually yielding.