Second-generation star Sophia Dignadice lived up to the hype in her first game for the Gilas Pilipinas Women in the SEA Games 2025.
BANGKOK — Sophia Dignadice is the real deal.
A second-generation basketball star, Dignadice displayed her pedigree as a guard as she helped manufacture Gilas Pilipinas Women’s 76-67 comeback win over Malaysia to begin SEA Games 2025 here at the Nimibutr Stadium on Saturday.
Reinforcing a team that's still missing two players due to commitments with the UAAP, Dignadice meshed well with her teammates even as she was one of the newcomers to the national team program.
With two-time UAAP MVP Kacey Dela Rosa manning the inside, Dignadice made the most of Gilas Women’s offensive arsenal while also creating shots of her own — finishing with 11 points, five rebounds, and five assists in 23 minutes of action.
[RELATED: Gilas Pilipinas Women start SEA Games 2025 with big win over Malaysia]
Despite her young age, she was one of the players who played heavy minutes and was on the court in the crucial moments of the match.
She helped spark the pivotal 18-1 finishing kick for Gilas to turn things around, as the Philippines still trailed by six, 60-66, with six minutes left in regulation.
After the match, the daughter of nine-time PBA champion Yves Dignadice said that it didn’t catch her off guard that the team had that much trust in her.
“Honestly, I kind of did,” Dignadice told POC Media when asked if she expected to play during the clutch.
“Just because I know how well I can help my team. And I'm just glad I was able to reciprocate that on the court.”
Just like home
Regardless of her performance, there was still some adjustment on the part of the 17-year-old as she gets used to the play of international basketball — and how physical it is.
“Yeah, for sure [there were adjustments]. And they're much faster here. So it's definitely a good adjustment,” she said.
“But it's actually really good for me. Because coming back to the States, I know that this is just going to help me even more,” she continued.
On the flip side, though, the crowd atmosphere was one adjustment she welcomed.
Though used to playing with fans in the US, Dignadice got her first-hand experience of the lively Filipino crowd even as Gilas is the "away" team in Thailand, who were armed with drums and waving flags.
“It's definitely different compared to how it is in the United States. I never expected so many people from the Philippines to come out to support. And obviously that means so much to me. And it was just such a good moment,” said Dignadice.
“First game, first win. I think it's going to improve the morale of the team.”
Gilas Women return to action on Sunday, December 14, against Singapore at 9:00 a.m. local time.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.