On top of the heap

Celebration is in order for the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in the UAAP and De La Salle-College of St. Benilde (CSB) in the NCAA as both schools topped the general championship race in their leagues. While basketball and volleyball are clearly the most popular sports in the varsity calendar, UST and CSB focused on a wide variety of disciplines to emerge as overall champions.

For UST, the victory was particularly special because it was the UAAP host this past season. UST athletics director Fr. Rodel Cansancio, OP, masterminded the unfolding and conclusion of the brilliant season not just for the school but for the entire league. UST won its ninth straight general championship in the seniors division and eighth in a row in the juniors division, cementing an enviable legacy as the UAAP’s winningest member with 49 collegiate and 25 high school crowns in history. From the spectacular opening ceremony to the final rites, Fr. Cansancio was at the helm of the proceedings as Season 88 president, making sure there were no hiccups throughout the campaign that featured unprecedented milestones including the start of construction of the UAAP Arena in Pasig, the staging of UAAP events at New Clark City, the introduction of golf and boys tennis as demonstration sports and the extension of the league’s broadcast rights with Cignal up to Season 93.

UST topped 13 events, was runner-up in six and took third place in two to collect 356 points for the collegiate crown. The haul included title romps in beach volleyball, table tennis, standard and blitz chess, judo and women’s 5x5 and 3x3 basketball. “It wasn’t a one-man show,” said Fr. Cansancio, quoted by Rob Andrew Dongiapon in The Varsitarian. “It was the effort of the whole Thomasian community. Right now, I have nothing but gratitude, first to our mighty God for all the blessings He gave us throughout the season.”

On the national scene, former and current UST athletes were credited for bringing in 10 golds, two silvers and 12 bronzes at the SEA Games last year. Among the standouts were pole vaulter EJ Obiena, decathlete Hokett de los Santos and poomsae specialist Justin Kobe Macario.

CSB, on the other hand, captured its sixth NCAA general championship and its first since 2015. The harvest was bolstered by winning nine events in men’s and women’s table tennis, men’s and women’s tennis, women’s soft tennis, men’s volleyball, men’s badminton, men’s taekwondo and co-ed chess. CSB finished second in seven events. At the SEA Games last year, CSB was represented by wushu’s Agatha Wong, bowler Artegal Barrientos, Olympic weightlifting gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz, karate’s Samantha Veguillas, water polo’s Matthew Romero, handball’s Jesseray Arciaga and Felipe Marasigan and speed skater Renee Benitez.

CSB sports director Stephen Fernandez, a 1992 Olympic bronze medalist in taekwondo, cited the school’s support system as key to the winning tradition. “Striving for excellence in multiple events was backed up by a strong support service and commitment to the institution,” said Fernandez. “Grateful for the support from administration, associates, faculty, students and alumni. Reclaiming the general championship was truly a collective effort by the different teams that competed this season. I’m looking forward to a more challenging season now that we’ve regained the general championship. As they say, it’s hard to win a championship but it’s tougher defending it.”

Congratulations to UST and CSB for the stellar performance. Perhaps, a project for the future is a showdown between UAAP and NCAA champions in various sports now that Cignal has broadcast rights to both leagues.