MANILA, Philippines — Ateneo mourns the passing of two of its men’s basketball team members, Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili, who drowned during a team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora on Monday.
“The entire Ateneo community mourns the loss of Rene and Divine. The University extends its heartfelt condolences to their families, friends, teammates, coaches, and loved ones. We ask the community to keep them in their prayers during this most difficult time,” Ateneo wrote in a statement.
“The University is providing support to the families of Rene and Divine, as well as to their teammates and members of the Ateneo community affected by this tragedy.”
Baterbonia, 19, recently played in the Palarong Pambansa finals two weeks ago and committed to the Blue Eagles program. He was last year’s Palarong Pambansa MVP after leading Davao to a championship.
The 21-year-old Adili, a Nigerian foreign student athlete, played in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament last year.