Capital1 Solar Spikers’ newest PVL recruit Jerrili Malabanan. –PVL IMAGES
VIGAN, Ilocos Sur — With renewed confidence and passion, Jerrili Malabanan is embracing a fresh start with Capital1 as she returns to action in the 2025 PVL On Tour this weekend at Chavit Coliseum.
Almost two years since her last stint with Cignal in the second All-Filipino Conference in 2023, Malabanan is back in the pro scene — recharged and ready to continue what she started.
READ: PVL: Capital1 taps Jerrili Malabanan, four other free agents
The hard-hitting outside spiker took a mental break from the sport, stepping away from volleyball completely for a time.
“Late last year, that’s when I started playing volleyball again,” Malabanan said during the PVL welcome dinner Friday night. “For the first few months that I stopped, I didn’t really watch any volleyball. I felt like I was mentally burned out.”
“Eventually, I started missing volleyball. It was part of my life for many years, so it’s something that I really missed,” she added.
During her time off, Malabanan pursued other interests, including baking cookies — similar to what fellow Far Eastern University standout Rachel Anne Daquis did during her time in Spain before joining Farm Fresh.
Capital1 Solar Spikers’ latest recruits led by Jerrili Malabanan ahead of the new PVL Conference.
Grateful for a second chance, Malabanan is determined to repay the trust Capital1 placed in her.
“I’m happy that I’m back to playing volleyball. I was gone for like one and a half years, so I’m still trying to adjust again and get my body back to what it was before,” she said. “I’m just taking it one day at a time. It’s been so long since I last played. Coach Jorge (De Brito) always tells us to be better than the last training — that’s what I’m doing right now.”
Malabanan joins a retooled Solar Spikers squad with Rachel Austero, KC Galdones, Nikka Yandoc, and Ypril Tapia, forming a deep wing spiker rotation alongside top pick Bella Belen, Leila Cruz, Shola Alvarez, Jorelle Singh, and Trisha Genesis.
She also reunites with coach Roger Gorayeb, who brought out the best in her and led BaliPure to a PVL title in 2017.
Capital1 kicks off its PVL On Tour campaign against Creamline on Sunday and Cignal on Monday.
The returning spiker is eager to mentor and play alongside the team’s rising stars, especially three-time UAAP MVP Belen, once she wraps up her duties with Alas Pilipinas.
“I’m excited for them to come out of their comfort zones,” Malabanan said. “I know they’ve been with their teams for a long time, so I believe they have more to give and more to offer.”