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US NCAA-BOUND ELLA FAJARDO STILL WANTS TO INCLUDE GILAS IN HER 2021 TO-DO LIST

Ella Fajardo expresses plans to join Gilas in the 2021 FIBA 3x3 U-18 World Cup coming August this year despite the forthcoming US NCAA Division I stint.

/ 16 January 2021

Gilas prospect Fajardo and Gilas women’s head coach Pat Aquino on Thursday (Friday, Manila time) chatted following the latter’s recruitment trip in the United States.

From there, Fajardo bared her plans in representing our country still, despite her US-career draws near.

“I was actually talking to coach Pat today and I told him I’m thinking of going back to the Philippines in July for the World Cup in August,” shared Fajardo to Philstar.com in a message. 

“He actually came to New Jersey to personally greet me,” she added.

The World Cup has been announced to kick off on August 24 which will take place in Debrecen, Hajdu-Bihar in Hungary.

Fajardo has shown great pride for the country as she was part of the team that snatched the bronze medal in the FIBA U-18 Asia Cup in 2019.

In the same year, Fajardo also represented Gilas U-18 3×3 squad in the World Cup where she and her team clinched the 8th spot. 

The 17-year-old Fajardo is finishing her final year in high school with Gill St. Bernard and after that, she is set to play for Division 1 school Fairleigh Dickinson University in the 2021-2022 US-NCAA season.