CANDON, Ilocos Sur — Alas Pilipinas slipped to the classification round for seventh place after Australia overtook the host team at the close of pool play in the 2026 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Women’s Volleyball Cup.

The Volleyroos beat Uzbekistan, 25-20, 28-30, 25-16, 25-8, for a 3-2 win-loss record in third spot in Pool A on Friday at the Candon City Arena.

Australia, which beat Alas in five sets last Sunday, bounced back from a minor hiccup in the second frame with a mighty fightback in the next two to secure a battle for fifth berth.

Caitlyn O’Dea hammered 17 kills with two aces and two kill blocks for a 21-point production to lead the Volleyroos, who will take on Indonesia for the No. 5 finish.

Kayla Cantrill and Chelsea Cocks scored 15 and 14, respectively, for the Aussies.

Uzbekistan, which got 11 points from Malikakhon Tursunpulatova, stumbled to its fourth loss in five games.

The Filipinas, on the other hand, will try to salvage some measure of pride despite having their historic back-to-back podium finishes halted following a disappointing 2-3 slate ending in the group stage of the tournament presented by the Philippine Sports Commission, FIVB, AVC, Volleyball World, and Candon City, headed by Mayor Eric Singson.

Alas, whose worst finish in the competition was seventh back in 2023, will tangle Iran in the seventh-place clash on Sunday at 10 a.m.

The Iranians dominated Hong Kong, 25-14, 25-13, 25-18, for a 2-3 slate in pool B.

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan made a loud statement heading into the semifinal today by ending four-peat-seeking Vietnam’s three-year unbeaten run in a hard-fought 18-25, 25-19, 23-25, 25-22, 15-13 victory for a clean sweep of Pool B.

The Kazakhs came back from 1-2 match deficit for their fifth win in as many outings and handed the Vietnamese their first defeat in the tournament that halted their 23-game winning streak.

Kristina Belova and Yuliya Fomenko combined for nine points, eight from attacks, in the tense fifth set to power Kazakhstan back to the semifinal.

Kazakhstan crosses paths with the No. 2 team from Pool A, while Vietnam (4-1) takes on the opposite bracket’s top seed.

South Korea and Chinese Taipei dispute the No. 1 seeding as of press time.

It was a huge breakthrough for Kazakhstan, which lost twice to Vietnam in 2024, including the gold medal match in the AVC Women’s Challenge Cup in Manila, and again bowed to the Tran Thi Than Thuy-led squad in the semis of the 2025 edition in Hanoi.

“We had lost against Vietnam and this win was really important for us. We prepared for this and I think we did a great job,” said Belova, who had 21 points on 19 attacks and two kill blocks.

Zhanna Syroyeshkina added 21 markers on 15 attack points and six aces, while Tatyana Yatskiv delivered 20 points for Kazakhstan. Fomenko had 13 points.

Vietnam star hitter Thuy pounded 25 points, all on attacks, but only four of those came in the deciding set.

Uzbekistan and Hong Kong will square off for ninth place at 1 p.m. today while Kyrgyzstan and Lebanon clash for the 11th spot at 10 a.m.