TOUGH as the long and often uncertain road might have been for Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Rookie Draft aspirant Jamie Solina, she has much more reasons to keep on chasing a lifelong dream even if the odds have long been stacked against her.
The 5-foot-1 Marinduque-based setter is one of three provincial draft applicants and the farthest from Metro Manila. A product of Marinduque State University, it wasn’t just geography that hampered her volleyball dream at first.
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The young playmaker spent her first nine years studying in Quezon City, followed by a sudden move to Caloocan, which subsequently saw her sent to Marinduque for two years because of a family problem she would rather not discuss.
Still eager to make it in the big leagues, Solina went back to Makati to complete senior high school. But as the pandemic struck, her dream to play in the UAAP and NCAA, like so many things, was sidetracked.
Fate brought her back to Marinduque. And despite her school not having a women’s volleyball program for students, Solina kept up her pursuit of a lifelong dream by juggling her academics with four years of self-training in the province.
“Kung ano lang po ‘yung naiwan sa’king experience nung junior high ako at senior high, yun lang po yung ginamit ko all throughout ng college para maging kondisyon pa rin yung katawan ko kahit wala po akong exposure sa mga malalaking competitions,” said Solina.
“[Nag-self-train po ako] para na rin po nandun pa rin yung setting ko since setter ako, nagtatanong po ako sa ibang mga player na naiwan ko po [dito sa Metro Manila] kung ano pa po yung mga workouts nila then ginagawa ko po mag-isa sa Marinduque.
“Sariling sikap po talaga.”
Doubts and worries aplenty
Taking the leap of faith to join the PVL Combine was by no means an easy decision for Solina to make. But with the support of her kababayans in Marinduque, Solina took what could possibly be a life-changing gambit, in the hope of inspiring young players back home to never let go of their dreams.
“Nung nag-message po sa'kin yung PVL na natanggap po ako, hindi ko po kasi inexpect na ippost yung list ng mga natanggap. Nabigla po ako dun sa mga kasama ko. Nag-doubt po talaga ako sa sarili ko na, ‘Itutuloy ko pa ba?’ kasi ang lalakas talaga nila.”
Solina added: “Pero dahil po sa mga kababayan ko sa Marinduque at sa mga naging naka-team ko po, mga coaches ko, sabi nila is ituloy ko pa rin kasi ito na 'yung opportunity na matagal ko nang hinintay.”
Seeing her name in the 47-player draft pool, one which she didn’t see coming as she looks to follow in the footsteps of her volleyball idols Jia de Guzman and Alyssa Valdez, Solina took one big step closer to realizing her goal.
“Nun’ng pagpasa ko po kasi ng requirements, sabi ko po ‘no expectations’ kasi siyempre we all know naman po na parang UAAP and NCAA [‘yung main leagues]. Nung nakita ko po yung pangalan ko, sobrang answered prayer po kasi talagang pinag-pray ko po ‘to,” said Solina.
“May part po sa’kin na pinanghinaan po ako tumuloy ngayon kasi siyempre yung height ko pa. But because of yung mga tao po na nagtitiwala sa’kin, pinush po nila ako na kayanin po.
“’Yun po 'yung nagpa-boost sa’kin na sige, ituloy ko kasi yun din po yung magiging inspirasyon din po ng mga mas bata pa po sa’kin na nagsstart pa lang mag-volleyball lalo na’t galing pa po akong probinsya.
“’Yun din po yung magiging start sa province po namin sa Marinduque na lumaban din po yung mga batang manlalaro po mula sa’min.”
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