#THROWBACKFEATURES: TRICIA ROBREDO AND THAT COURTSIDE SPIRIT â RANDOM THOUGHTS AND MUSINGS FROM A NON-UAAP FAN (PART 2)
Hereâs what I found outâŠHope this will connect the dots from the first part of this entry.
Tricia has always been a fan of the UAAP ever since her grade school years⊠which I thought was a natural thing given that her mom is from UP and her dad is from La Salle, and that the parents will naturally influence their kids as it was the occasional talk of the household. But it was her sistersâone of them an Ateneanâwho got her into the UAAP craze, and she eventually got convinced to study there because of the college spirit that it brought, especially when it comes to sports. Once she planned to get there, however, she was undecided with what to take. Her mother then convinced her to become a doctor, so thatâs what she took up.
Suddenly, there came the news about the auditions for the courtside reporter position. Her sisters ended up watching one of these reporters during a televised event, then quipped: âHindi mo yan kayang gawin, no?â
Turns out⊠#challengeaccepted.
She thought it would be a way for her to get close to her dad⊠and it would also be a way for her to forge a close bond with the basketball team. But she never expected anything. In fact, she almost ditched the application process, but she did it anyway because it would be a waste given that she had already printed her application formsâŠ
Lo and behold, after a few grueling callbacks, she got the spot. Her fam was so surprised when they heard the news. Even the netizens caught the buzz:
But there is another problem: There was already another courtside reporter for Ateneo. She had to be assigned somewhere else. Guess where she got placedâŠ
National University.
It was Season 76.
At that time, National University was just forging their path to greatness, with the very hurdle being the menâs basketball tournaments, as they havenât had any recent wins to their belt. She did admit that getting assigned there wasnât really easy, as it will tear anyone into pieces having their loyalties tested. She also needed to build trust with the Bulldogs, given that sheâs a fan of her Alma Materâs basketball team.
It took a painful while. She nearly got embarrassed when she sometimes mixed up the names, mistaking the Bulldogs with the Blue Eagles, and ended up with a few crying fits because she just wants to deliver but she felt like it wasnât working out or she couldnât perform at her bestâŠ
She made efforts nonetheless. It took fruit.
And a few mild teases and inside jokes be damnedâŠthe whole NU community appreciated her for it. Suddenly, they began to treat her as one of their own.
She gave her all in every report; they gave her the support she neededâŠand not just any support: it was something that she will carry beyond the courts for the rest of her life.
But that mutual forge didnât gain them any winsâŠyet. It only made them a step closer to the goal. They still made it to the final four of the menâs basketball team, only to lose in the semis. The ladies got to the basketball finals, only to lose to the Lady Archers. They still got the menâs volleyball championship, thoughâŠand then the CDC title.
There came the talks for Season 77. She almost quitted, not because she thought bad of her performance but because she was about to start Med School, which may mess up her priorities. The NU coach, however, wanted her to stay. He wanted her to witness the winâŠwhen it happens.
There really is something about her...there must be.
She did stay⊠making sure to keep getting better for the next season...
It turned out to be one of the best decisions of her life.
In spite of the huge changes, and with the team losing some of their stars, the menâs basketball team finally got the championship title that season. Some of the NU students and fans eventually believed that her staying once again for this seasonâthe last season of her UAAP courtside careerâhelped them win the championship title, (as mentioned) the first in 60 yearsâŠ
They finally gave her the monicker: âLucky Charm.â
This is just one of the many spectators... Lemme add another one:
HALA: May nalungkot pa nung malaman na last day na niya... :(
Suddenly... The NU Memes page began to make do with this caption of her... (may comment pa si Tricia, in fair! Find her verified account from the sea of 13 comments...)
...and finally... the National University FB page made it official...starting on my brother's birthday.
Three days later...
And even a year later, may pa-flashback pa ang NU Memes... but the original link from ABS-CBN sports is broken already. I'll give you the backup link in the end.
Three years later...and it's still felt.
And BTW, who wouldnât forget her CDC Crowd Check?
DAYUMN. She looked SOOOOOOOO cool. (Fun Fact: I think I watched this video several times and I just canât unsee it again everytime it appears on my feed... because so far, this was the only video proof of her on-court action on YT... so would I thought.)
Is it also safe to say that she also made them a two-peaterâŠeven if she ainât part of that CDC team and that she only was there to report courtside?
But that would be up to the spectators of that time to judge. I digressed.
Save the best for her last, I guess...
Pero teka, may mga pahabol pa: While she will no longer report courtside, she eventually ended up interviewing the newest batch of courtside reporters for the next season, withâŠwho is that guy? (No offense: I really donât know him. Fill me in.*)
I was hoping that these series of posts will be able to get me out of this near-obsession and get this thing over with, but I know that my thirst for her on-courtside adventures wonât be quenched that easily, given that some of the media that was supposed to be availableâespecially the videosâwerenât there. Like I said, all I have are some articles, social media posts, and a few blogs that had featured her...
Or I may have yet to find them. (Just realized I need to step out of Youtube to find the goldâ they have the whole game videos on Dailymotion⊠and I realized that I need to listen to that Pod Prospects episode⊠maybe I can get a little more info and some clarifications, as I wanted to dig further.)
But any final words?
Iâll probably leave you with her so-called CSR valedictory address (initially featured on the ABS-CBN website, which may summarize her entire journeyâŠ) and after this, Iâll try to put the whole darn thing to rest.
Still, I hope that Iâve bled everything there is to bleed in this entryâŠ
Kahit na sobrang huli na ako sa balita.
Fingers crossed.
*UPDATE: I really didn't know him when I wrote this article a long time ago...I just now found out that it was Mikee Reyes, who was a former UP Maroon player turned commentator.
