THE Philippines scored a thrilling 22-25, 25-21, 26-24, 23-25, 15-12 win over Mongolia on Monday to sweep Pool D of the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Challenge Men’s Cup at the University of Taipei Hall in Taiwan.
Hard-hitting Marck Espejo, Steven Rotter and Ryan Ka joined forces in the fifth set to out off the Mongolians en route to 2-0 win-loss record and a slot in the knockout final 12 stage that starts on Wednesday.
Espejo erupted for 36 points on 29 kills, five service points and two blocks for the team fielded by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation led by Ramon “Tats” Suzara.
The Filipinos also swept Macau, 25-21, 25-15, 25-14, last Sunday.
Mongolia finished the eliminations at 1-1 while Macau went winless.
Suzara congratulated the team of Brazilian coach Sergio Veloso but reminded them to sustain their momentum in the tournament that features 15 Asian nations.
The Philippines joins host Taiwan, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, India, Vietnam and Bahrain in the playoff round along with either Saudi Arabia or Thailand, which has yet to complete their pool play.