By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Another Filipina received a prestigious award during the closing ceremonies of the Southeast Asian V-League tournament in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.
Alyssa Solomon, the recently added young spiker from the National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs program, was given the Best Opposite Spiker award following the bronze medal finish of the Alas Pilipinas women’s national volleyball team.
The young offensive ace wrapped up her SEA V-League campaign with a huge performance of 25 points derived from 21 successful attacks, steering Alas Pilipinas to a come-from-behind win over Indonesia during the bronze medal match.
Despite joining the national team volleyball program late due to her commitment to the UAAP, Solomon quickly shone for Alas and kicked off her debut during the FIVB Challenger Cup.
As a first-timer playing with her ates inside the court, Solomon immediately received several starting roles and didn’t disappoint the coaching staff led by head coach Jorge Souza de Brito.
After a tremendous outing in the FIVB Challenger Cup, Solomon earned the starting role in the SEA V-League and provided Alas with consistent scoring.
During the second leg of the tournament, Solomon wrapped up the final two games with back-to-back double-digit scoring performances.
This is the third major award that a Filipina received during the prestigious Asian volleyball tournament. Last leg, Thea Gagate and Jia Morado-De Guzman also earned distinctions as the best individual talents in their respective roles.
Gagate, the no. 1 overall pick during the 2024 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Rookie Draft, received the Best Middle Blocker award while De Guzman bagged the Best Setter award.
