Eya Laure embraces the long view as Choco Mucho’s first chapter ends in heartbreak

Eya Laure did not leave Choco Mucho’s season-ending loss talking like someone weighed down only by disappointment. Even after a painful five-set defeat to Akari ended the Flying Titans’ run in the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference, her words carried more patience than frustration.

For Laure, the sting of elimination was real, but so was the understanding that this chapter with Choco Mucho is still in its earliest stages. What hurt in the moment, she seemed to suggest, may eventually become part of something more meaningful if the lessons are taken the right way.

That perspective mattered even more considering how much this conference represented for her personally. After sitting out for nearly a year before finally returning to competitive action this season, Laure entered Choco Mucho not only trying to help a contender, but also trying to rediscover rhythm, confidence, and comfort in a new environment.

That kind of transition was never going to be measured by one match alone, even if the ending arrived sooner than expected.

Laure still delivered the kind of all-around performance Choco Mucho needed in an attempt to stay alive, finishing with 20 points, 11 digs, and 12 receptions in a demanding outing that asked her to contribute on both ends of the floor. But rather than dwell on her individual numbers or the narrowness of the loss, she quickly turned the conversation toward what still needs to be built.

“Madami-dami pang dapat matutunan, I would say,” Laure admitted to reporters after the match. “I think maging patient lang talaga ako sa sarili ko kasi unang conference pa lang.

“Mahaba-haba pa ‘yung pagsasamahan natin, and nandiyan naman silang coaches at ‘yung teammates ko na trabahuin namin.”

Those words painted a clearer picture of where Laure currently stands—not as someone searching for instant validation, but as a player fully aware that meaningful success with a new team often takes more time than people are willing to give it.

In many ways, Choco Mucho’s abrupt exit felt less like a finished campaign and more like an unfinished first step. The pieces may already be there, but the cohesion, trust, and shared rhythm that define contending teams still appear to be taking shape.

Even in defeat, Laure said it was evident that the Flying Titans were already beginning to process the loss not just emotionally, but constructively. The disappointment was there, but so too was a sense that the group had already begun shifting its attention toward what comes next.

“Siyempre, lahat kami self-reflect and siyempre, nandun na din na malungkot, but makikita naman na everyone’s looking forward kagad sa next conference,” she said.

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‘NO REGRETS’

Choco Mucho’s Eya Laure is keeping her head held high after a tough end to her first conference as a Flying Titan. #PVL2026 @spinph pic.twitter.com/wG5PwZxaVX

— John Mark Garcia (@johnmarkdg_) March 28, 2026

“I think prioritize talaga muna namin is mag-recover.”

That response hinted at a team trying not to let one difficult ending cloud the work that still lies ahead. For Laure, the conference seemed to reinforce that progress in volleyball is rarely linear, especially when adapting to a new structure and a new coaching voice.

Rather than resist the uncomfortable parts of that process, she made it clear she wants to absorb all of it—the good, the bad, and everything in between.

“Wala naman kasi I think that’s all part of growing talaga sa sport na ‘to,” she said.

“Lahat talaga, ako personally gusto kong i-absorb pangit, maganda, para malaman ko din kung paano ‘yung paraan kahit mahirap to learn more, lalo na sa sistema ni coach Dante.”

That may be the most revealing part of Laure’s outlook after the loss. Instead of treating the conference as a failed ending, she appears to be viewing it as a necessary beginning—one that exposed weaknesses, demanded adjustments, and offered a clearer understanding of what it will take to truly flourish inside Choco Mucho’s system.

For a player returning from a long layoff and stepping into one of the most closely watched rosters in the league, that kind of maturity may matter just as much as production.

And even with the season ending earlier than she and the Flying Titans would have wanted, Laure did not sound like someone second-guessing the path she chose. If anything, the experience seems to have only strengthened her belief that she made the right decision in joining the team.

After the long wait to return and the expectations that came with her arrival, Laure remained firm in how she viewed this new chapter.

“Being part of the team, being part of Rebisco, worth it lahat,” she said.

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