Team above self for diehard Jaguar RJ Dinolan personifies spirit of true student-athlete
CEBU, Philippines — It's always the goal of any student to march the aisle and receive the diploma in front of thousands of people in attendance and then shake hands and exchange high fives with fellow graduates.
But for student-athletes like Ralph Jude 'RJ' Dinolan of the University of San Jose-Recoletos, the concept of team over self is second to none.
Part of USJ-R's dynamic duo, Dinolan is set to graduate on Saturday afternoon, the same day the Jaguars meet the University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors for an all-important semifinal game in the 28th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) men's basketball tournament.
The Jaguars enjoy a twice-to-beat advantage for emerging as elimination round topnotcher for the first time in school history.
"I would definitely love to march and join my fellow batchmates in the graduation ceremonies. But since I am a student athlete, I am already resigned to the concept of team above anything else," said Dinolan. "When I knew that our semis game would happen on the same day of my graduation, I honestly did not have a hard time to decide."
"I've been playing for USJ-R for five years and time and again we always came up short of advancing to the finals. We got ourselves another shot at the finals this time and we will do our very best to achieve that goal. I would rather miss my graduation than miss another chance of going to the finals," added the All-Star wingman.
Rookie coach Leode Garcia of USJ-R echoed the same sentiment and assured the Josenian community that the team will go all-out to be able to get the victory.
"Since day one of the season, our mindset is for the team to enter the finals. Gihatagan gyud na sa tanang players og priority ang goal namo nga makasulod sa finals busa paningkamotan gyud namo kutob sa among mahimo nga makuha namo ang kadaogan batok sa USC karong Sabado," said Garcia, himself a champion Jaguar during his prime.
Edmondo Navarro
of USJ-R Media Center
- Latest
