Rondina, Pons Exit Nuvali Challenge After Narrow Loss

Sisi Rondina and Bernadeth Pons saw their determined campaign end in heartbreak after falling to Switzerland’s Annique Niederhauser and Menia Bentele, 20-22, 22-24, in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Nuvali Challenge on Thursday at the Nuvali Sands Courts.

Alas Pilipinas finished pool play with a 0-2 record, placing last in Group H.

After a late rally in the opening set fell short, the Philippines carried momentum into the second frame, surging to an early lead and holding a 19-16 advantage following a crucial service error by Bentele. However, the Swiss duo responded with a decisive 4-0 run to seize a 20-19 lead, eventually closing out the victory with Niederhauser scoring off the block and Bentele delivering the match-winning attack.

“I’m proud of the result. Pons only trained with me for one and a half weeks, yet we were able to keep up with them,” Rondina said after the loss.

“The level of competition in the Challenge is really high. I’m very grateful to compete against players from around the world,” added Pons.

Bentele scored 13 points, while Niederhauser added 12 for Switzerland, who had also eliminated the Philippine pair in last year’s Nuvali Challenge. Rondina finished with 12 points, while Pons contributed six in their final game.

Earlier, the Filipinas lost 19-21, 17-21 to Denmark’s Sofia Bisgaard and Cirkeline Hog.

In the men’s division, Ronniel Rosales and Ranran Abdilla were forced to withdraw from their opening match against Team USA’s Hagen Smith and Ryan Ierna, dropping to 0-1. Rosales required medical attention early in the second set after a sudden spike in blood pressure, with the Philippines trailing 2-3. The match was halted, resulting in a 21-10, 3-2 victory for the Americans.

Elsewhere in men’s action, Australia’s Thomas Hodges and Ben Hood came from a set down to defeat Latvia’s Ardis Bedtridis and Arturs Renkivics, 19-21, 21-19, 15-11, in Pool G. Switzerland’s Adrian Heidrich and Yves Haussener cruised to a straight-sets 21-14, 21-12 win over Great Britain’s Frederick Biakoloz and Issa Batrane in Pool H. Meanwhile, Italy’s Alex Ranghieri and Manuel Alfieri edged Germany’s Momme Lorenz and Tilo Rietschel in a tight three-set match, 21-16, 19-21, 17-15, also in Pool G.