Philippines falls short in third set comeback, bows out of AVC Challenge Cup for Men

The Philippine national men's volleyball team staged a late third set comeback but ultimately fell short, absorbing a 25-20, 25-17, 25-23 sweep loss to Bahrain in the Final 12 round of the 2023 AVC Challenge Cup for Men on Wednesday in Taiwan.

The Filipinos bowed out of podium contention as Bahrain advanced to the quarterfinals.

Down two sets, the Philippines was in control early in the third set before Bahrain regained the momentum, rejecting Ryan Ka for a 20-16 spread.

An attack error from the side of the Philippines sent the opponents to a 23-18 cushion but three consecutive infractions from Bahrain gave some signs of life for the Filipinos, 23-21.

Bahrain then destroyed a three-man Philippine block for the match point, 24-21, before Marck Espejo unleashed a kill from the opposite side. But Ka's attack went wide as Bahrain completed the sweep.

The Philippines, who swept the pool stage with a 2-0 win-loss card, will still compete in the classification round.

The winner of the tournament will advance to the 2023 FIVB Challenger Cup, which acts as a qualifier to the 2024 Volleyball Nations League (VNL).

—Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA Integrated News