Ateneo creates scholarship funds honoring late student-athletes Rene Baterbonia, Divine Adili
Ateneo de Manila University has established scholarship funds as a tribute to deceased student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili.
In a memo addressed to the Ateneo community on July 16, AdMU president Fr. Roberto Yap announced the Blue Eagle Athletic Scholarship Funds.
"In every season of loss, our university is called not only to grieve, but to rise—to let sorrow become the ground from which new life takes root. It is in this spirit of healing and restoration that we share a hopeful step forward," Yap wrote.
Adili and Baterbonia drowned during a team-building activity held by the Ateneo Blue Eagles men's basketball team in Dipaculao, Aurora on June 8.
"More than a tribute, these funds are our promise that [Rene and Divine's] names, their spirit, and the joy they brought to Ateneo athletics will live on in the young Eagles who follow them," the statement continued.
Each fund was created to give financial assistance to "deserving student-athletes" from outside Metro Manila. AdMU's Office of Admission and Aid will be administering the scholarship funds and "ensuring that Divine's and Rene's legacy continues to open doors, lift dreams, and form men and women for and with others," the statement read.
Baterbonia, who had just transferred to AdMU after graduating from senior high school at Ateneo de Davao University, hailed from Talacogon, Agusan del Sur. Adili, a 6'10" sophomore at AdMU, was a Nigerian national who played for the university in season 88 (during academic year 2025–2026) of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines.
Following the student-athletes' deaths, multiple agencies launched parallel investigations of the incident, including the Philippine National Police, National Bureau of Investigation, and the Philippine Sports Commission.
On June 26, the PNP–Criminal Investigation and Detection Group recommended the filing of hazing charges against 11 individuals connected to the tragedy, including former Blue Eagles men's basketball head coach Tab Baldwin, who had resigned amidst the investigations.
On July 13, the NBI recommended to the Department of Justice the filing of charges against Baldwin and 11 others. The bureau is seeking charges of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide against the resigned coach, six assistant coaches, and a physical therapist.
