# Aby Maraño
**Abigail "Aby" Palmares Maraño** (born 1994) is a Filipino retired volleyball player, a middle blocker who captained the Philippine women's national volleyball team and retired from professional play in September 2026 after a 22-year career.[1](https://asianvolleyball.net/new/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SEAGAMES_BulletinNO1.pdf) • [2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/) • [3](https://www.panaynews.net/aby-marano-ends-storied-22-year-volleyball-career/) She rose to prominence with [De La Salle University](https://www.edgepedia.org/de-la-salle-university) in the UAAP, where she won three straight championships and back-to-back Most Valuable Player awards, and went on to a professional career in the [Premier Volleyball League](https://www.edgepedia.org/premier-volleyball-league) (PVL).[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name and birth | Abigail Palmares Maraño, born 1994; listed at 181 cm as a middle blocker[1](https://asianvolleyball.net/new/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SEAGAMES_BulletinNO1.pdf) |
| Collegiate career | De La Salle University; UAAP titles in Seasons 73, 74, and 75; MVP in Seasons 74 and 75[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/) |
| Individual awards | 12 individual awards in a career spanning over ten years, including two MVP awards and 10 Best Middle Blocker awards[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) |
| National team | Captain of the Philippine women's team; played at the 2018 Asian Games and the Southeast Asian Games from 2015 to 2019[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) |
| Professional clubs | F2 Logistics Cargo Movers, then Chery Tiggo Crossovers, then Nxled, before retiring in September 2026[5](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle) |
| Retirement | Announced on 16 September 2026, at age 33, closing a 22-year volleyball career[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/) • [3](https://www.panaynews.net/aby-marano-ends-storied-22-year-volleyball-career/) |
## Early life and introduction to volleyball
Maraño grew up in Antipolo, a city just outside the Philippine capital, where childhood friends and coaches introduced her to volleyball at the age of eleven and the group played street volleyball together.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) She was raised by a single mother of limited means who could barely pay her tuition on time; Maraño went to school carrying a letter from her mother promising eventual payment, and a high school varsity scholarship became her route to finishing a private school education.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) Multiple collegiate scholarship offers followed, and she committed to De La Salle University under Ramil De Jesus, an 11-time champion coach.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/)
## Collegiate career at De La Salle
De Jesus converted Maraño from an outside hitter into a middle blocker, the position she held for the rest of her career.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) With the Lady Spikers she won three straight UAAP titles from Seasons 73 to 75 and earned back-to-back MVP honors in Seasons 74 and 75.[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/) Her time in Taft also produced a pair of silver medals in the association.[5](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle)
## National team
Maraño's collegiate success led to a lengthy national team career in which she represented the Philippines in international competitions and later captained the national women's squad.[3](https://www.panaynews.net/aby-marano-ends-storied-22-year-volleyball-career/) She played at the [Asian Games](https://www.edgepedia.org/asian-games) in 2018 and at the biennial Southeast Asian Games from 2015 to 2019.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) In 2015 she was ruled ineligible for the Asian Under-23 Women's Volleyball Championship because the tournament's birthday cut-off was 1993, which made her nine days too old to participate.[6](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/othersports/461606/volleyball-star-aby-marano-on-missing-out-on-national-team-no-hard-feelings/story/) At the 31st [SEA Games](https://www.edgepedia.org/sea-games) in 2021 she was listed on the Philippine roster as a middle blocker under head coach Jorge de Brito.[1](https://asianvolleyball.net/new/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SEAGAMES_BulletinNO1.pdf)
## Professional career
Maraño played club volleyball for the F2 Logistics Cargo Movers, again under De Jesus's mentorship, and captained the team.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) In the 2022 PVL Reinforced Conference, with Dawn Macandili and CJ Saga unavailable, the 5-foot-8 middle blocker stepped in as the Cargo Movers' libero in a debut loss against Chery Tiggo.[7](https://www.pvl.ph/news/aby-marano-takes-on-new-challenge-for-f2)
After F2 Logistics disbanded its PVL roster, Maraño transferred to the Chery Tiggo Crossovers, where she became team captain, and later moved to Nxled before retiring.[8](https://www.pvl.ph/news/aby-marano-makes-seamless-transition-from-f2-captain-to-chery-skipper) • [5](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle) Her commercial career spanned 12 years, and she is described as the most awarded athlete in the professional league, an 8-time Best Blocker.[5](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle) • [9](https://www.thoughtlab.ph/aby)
**Retirement.** On 16 September 2026, the 33-year-old announced her retirement in an Instagram post, saying, "Today, with a heart that is both incredibly heavy and incredibly grateful, I am announcing my retirement from professional volleyball."[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/) She said she was stepping away not because she had fallen out of love with the sport but because she felt she had reached the end of her career.[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/)
## Psoriasis and advocacy
Maraño noticed red patches on her body during the Christmas break in 2018, and in February 2019 a dermatologist diagnosed psoriasis after a skin biopsy, initially advising her to stop playing.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) She chose to continue, treating stress management as central to her condition, and spoke publicly about the disease to educate others, becoming an advocate of self-love who identifies as a #PsoriasisWarrior.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/) • [9](https://www.thoughtlab.ph/aby) Her skin later cleared, with occasional flare-ups.[4](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/)
## Beyond playing
Maraño worked as a vlogger, host, speaker, and former columnist, with a YouTube channel of over 286,000 subscribers, and her endorsements have included Reebok, Samsung, Asics, McDonald's, Gatorade, and Shopee, among others.[9](https://www.thoughtlab.ph/aby) In 2024 she spoke about how the mobile game Mobile Legends helped her mental health during the pandemic, which had sidelined her volleyball career for two years.[10](https://www.philstar.com/sports/2024/10/21/2394174/aby-marano-opens-about-time-she-turned-mobile-legends) The Daily Tribune described her as the middle blocker who changed the game with her intensity and on-court fire, remembered for treating every game as a do-or-die match.[5](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle)
## References
1. [Women's Volleyball, 31st SEA Games 2021, Bulletin No. 1 (Asian Volleyball Confederation)](https://asianvolleyball.net/new/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/SEAGAMES_BulletinNO1.pdf)
2. [Aby Maraño announces retirement from professional volleyball, GMA News Online, 16 September 2026](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/volleyball/1002621/aby-mara-o-announces-retirement-from-professional-volleyball/story/)
3. [Aby Maraño ends storied 22-year volleyball career, Panay News](https://www.panaynews.net/aby-marano-ends-storied-22-year-volleyball-career/)
4. [Maraño inspires with story of triumph over adversity, FIVB, 29 October 2020](https://www.fivb.com/marano-inspires-with-story-of-triumph-over-adversity/)
5. [Tyang Aby's new battle, Daily Tribune, 28 September 2026](https://tribune.net.ph/amp/story/2026/09/27/tyang-abys-new-battle)
6. [Volleyball star Aby Maraño on missing out on national team: 'No hard feelings', GMA News Online](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/othersports/461606/volleyball-star-aby-marano-on-missing-out-on-national-team-no-hard-feelings/story/)
7. [Aby Marano takes on new challenge for F2, Premier Volleyball League](https://www.pvl.ph/news/aby-marano-takes-on-new-challenge-for-f2)
8. [Aby Marano makes seamless transition from F2 captain to Chery skipper, Premier Volleyball League](https://www.pvl.ph/news/aby-marano-makes-seamless-transition-from-f2-captain-to-chery-skipper)
9. [ABY, TeamSuki profile](https://www.thoughtlab.ph/aby)
10. [Aby Marano opens up about the time she turned to Mobile Legends, Philstar.com, 21 October 2024](https://www.philstar.com/sports/2024/10/21/2394174/aby-marano-opens-about-time-she-turned-mobile-legends)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Basketball and court team sports › Indoor volleyball › Clubs, leagues, and college volleyball*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license