Aby Marano and Robert Bolick. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Aby Maraño was inside a familiar place in San Juan Arena, but only this time, she was only a spectator
Clad in a yellow shirt, the feisty volleybelle was cheering for San Beda newcomer and boyfriend Robert Bolick.
Maraño witnessed how Bolick and the Red Lions retained the National Collegiate Championship title, formerly the Philippine Collegiate Champions League, with his beau at the forefront of the attack.
READ: San Beda feasts on Letran, named PCCL co-champion
“Definitely, I’m so happy for him,” Maraño said Thursday. “His confidence is back and I know he’s very happy.”
Maraño said she saw how Bolick became a shell of his former self after losing playing time with De La Salle University and how his stint with San Beda has revitalized him.
“Everyday he doesn’t get lazy, every training no matter how early he’s there,” Maraño said. “He always told me coach Ford [Arao] and coach
Jamike [Jarin] always motivated him.”
“I’m not surprised they became champions today.”
It wasn’t just Bolick’s coaches who pushed him further as Maraño played her part too.
A champion athlete herself, she knows what it feels like to lose and how to get back up.
READ: Maraño stays positive despite losing 2 titles in 2 days
“I, too, came off a devastating loss when I failed to win a title in my final year with La Salle,” Maraño said. “But we were always with each other and who better to lift his spirits than me.”
“Everybody knows Aby Maraño gets to motivate her teammates, and I try to help Robert in any way possible, whatever I can do for him.”