The Philippine women’s volleyball team continued its dismal outing after falling at the hands of Iran, 20-25, 13-25, 16-25, in the classification round of the 2023 AVC Challenge Cup at East Java, Indonesia Saturday, June 24.

It was the Philippines’ second straight loss in the tournament since defeating India in a hard-earned five-set win on June 21.

With the loss, the Filipinas, who similarly dropped their quarterfinals assignment against Australia a day prior, have now been relegated to the battle for the seventh place against Uzbekistan on Sunday, June 25.

Down 0-2, the PH spikers somehow took the lead at some point in the straight-set behind veteran spiker Aiza Maizo-Pontillas leading the attack to take a slim 14-13 advantage

The Filipinas, however, couldn’t find a reliable offensive scheme to sustain the against the tough Iranians.

Just as the Filipino team managed to close in on the gap in the third set, 16-17, Iran went on an 8-0 finishing kick to finish off the Philippines and see itself through the battle for fifth against Australia also on Sunday.

The Nationals, composed of Premier Volleyball League (PVL) players from Akari, Petro Gazz and Foton, are set to see action in the Invitational Conference which begins on Tuesday, June 27.