Janine Marciano looked down at her jersey and gave a wide smile.
“Oo nga eh, ang saya talaga kapag sa Beda,” she said.
It had been two years since she last dawned San Beda’s crimson and white, the very colors she wore with pride and made famous in the NCAA volleyball tournament.
Marciano, along with batchmate Ces Molina, put the Lady Red Spikers on their backs, leading San Beda to the Final Four multiple times.
After her college career, the 5’8″ open spiker made the rounds to several club teams in the Shakey’s V-League, winning championships with the Cagayan Valley Lady Rising Suns and the PLDT Ultra Fast Hitters. All the while, the 24 year-old still brought San Beda’s name wherever she played.
Recently, Mariciano got a chance to be a part of another milestone for San Beda’s volleyball program. The Mendiola-based spikers were invited to play in the SVL Collegiate Conference for the first time in school history and tapped their famed alum as a guest player to bolster their young lineup.
Marciano missed the team’s debut match against the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons but immediately made an impact in their following match against the University of Santo Tomas Tigresses. Marciano scored 18 points and dug up 10 attacks but failed to lead her alma mater to a win.
“Malungkot ako kasi alam ko na dapat ako ‘yung nag-lead sa kanila at na-guguide sa kanila pero kinulang pa rin kami kanina.”
“Siguro gagawin na lang namin ‘yung best namin next time,” Marciano told Tiebreaker Times after the loss.
Still, Marciano could not help but be proud when she reflected on how far her school has come. During her time, Marciano recalled, San Beda was not relevant enough to be invited to such tournaments.
Thanks to her and other former Lady Red Spikers, San Beda also has a steady volleyball program to go with their famed basketball program.
“Overwhelming kasi finally nakasama na ‘yung Beda sa V-League,” Marciano expressed.
“Masaya ako for them kasi na-eexpose sila, nakakalaro nila ‘yung mga UAAP schools. Big factor ‘yun for them para kapag sumabak sila sa NC may confidence na sila.”
“I think kahit wala na kami ni Molina, kaya nilang gumawa ng name for the school, para maiangat ‘yung school. Ngayon naman kasi nagsisimula pa lang sila,” Marciano continued.
Marciano would have loved to have her friend and former San Beda teammate Ces Molina join her in their school’s first V-League tournament but due to league-enforced constraints enforced by the league Molina plays for, Marciano had to enjoy the moments on her own.
“Sayang kasi parang iniisip lang namin ‘to dati. Sana may next time na lang para solid Beda talaga,” Marciano closed.
