The Philippine national women’s team came up with a strong start, dealing Timor-Leste a 7-0 rout in their opening game in the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN)-MSIG Serenity Cup 2025 on Thursday evening at the Viet Tri Stadium in Vietnam.
National coach Mark Torcaso said he needed to findi out how strong the Filipinas, and the final scoreline was beyond expectation.
“We are going to see what we can do over the next six months and make this team ready. And it starts with the (ASEAN)-MSIG Serenity Cup 2025,” said Torcaso before the game.
The Filipinas, who just moved up two rungs up to no. 39 in the FIFA women’s rankings, are preparing for the 2026 AFC Women’s Asia Cup.
They drew two goals apiece from Quinley Quezada and Diane Tolentin, and this put them in the Group B lead with Myanmar.
Myanmar earlier turned back Australia, 2-1, with Win Theingi Tun chipping in the winning goal in the 47th minute.
The Filipinas put on the pressure immediately, knocking in four goals in the first half, off newcomer Aaliyah Schinaman, a 5’5” find from San Mateo California.
Schinaman, an NCAA Division 1 player of the University of California-Berkley, let out a left-footed shot from close range to the bottom left corner off an assist by Chandler McDaniel, fell through in the second minute.
Quezada, a members of the Filipinas squad that went to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, added a second goal in the seventh minute, off a right-footed shot to the center of the goal, after her first attempt got blocked.
Skipper Hali Long was next, with a header off from the center of the box, following Chandler McDaniel’s assist with her cross pass, sending the Philippines ahead, 3-0, in the ninth minute.
Thirteen minutes before the first half ended, Quezada connected again, with her left-footed shot from the center of the box to the center,! handing the Filipinas a 4-0 spread in the 32nd minute.
This time Quezada scored with the help of Dionesa Tolentin’s a cross following a set piece situation.
In the second half, Tolentino struck in succession in the 57th and 64th minutes to bring the Filipinas lead up to 6.
Fil-Australian Adelaide Wyrzynski, a newcomer playing out Tarleton State University in Texas, added a final mark in the 75th minute.
The Filipinas will next clash with Australia on Sunday.
