And although they already are the cream of the crop of the country’s most prestigious collegiate league, the MVPs of each of the 26 events in the 14 sports calendared in the season by the 65-year-old league will also run as leading contenders for the Athletes of the Year (AOY) trophies.
There will be four AOYs to be selected-male and female for the collegiate or seniors division and boys and girls for the high school or juniors division.
But premium in the selection of the AOY would not lie solely on his or her athletic conquest but weight will also rest on academics, an aspect that is imbedded in the league’s foundations all these years.
The awards rites start at 6 p.m. with University of Santo Tomas (UST) bringing home the biggest trophies as overall champion in the collegiate and high school divisions. Athletes who have also won medals or competed in international competitions will also receive citations.
The champions in the other events were: University of the Philippines men’s badminton and women’s fencing, judo and taekwondo; University of the East (UE), men’s fencing and football and women’s athletics and softball; Ateneo, men’s basketball; and Far Eastern University (FEU) women’s volleyball.
The MVPs:
Narciza Minerva (AdU, women’s basketball), Jose Enrico Villanueva (Ateneo, men’s basketball), Roland Lester Guballa (Ateneo, boys‚ athletics), Ronald Papa (Ateneo, boys‚ swimming), Mariella Benitez (DLSU, women’s football), Joseph Orillana (DLSU, men’s baseball),
Priscilla Mae Trinidad (DSLZ, girls’ volleyball), Michelle Nisce (DLSU, women’s swimming), Oliver Dimakiling (DLSU, men’s chess), John Paul Gomez (DLSZ, boys‚ chess), Sommer Bisagas (DLSU, women’s tennis), Ralph Waldy Soguilon (DLSU, men’s athletics), Paula Obanana (DLSU, women’s badminton),
Ailyn Ege (FEU, women’s volleyball), Lloyd Escoses (FEU, men’s badminton), Marcelino Arellano (UE, boys‚ basketball), Rolando Canlas (UE, men’s fencing), Mark Madrona (UE, men’s football), Jerico Magno (UE, boys’ volleyball), Mercedita Manipol (UE, women’s athletics),
Ediza Yator (UE, women’s softball), Evan Grabador (UP, men’s swimming), Jennifer Labon (UP, women’s judo), Michael John Brieva (UP, boys’ table tennis), Kristine Silverian Calulo (UP, women’s taekwondo), Ma. Dinah Remolacio (UP, women’s fencing),
Rhoda Casino (UST, women’s table tennis), Art Tomas Calingasan (UST, men’s tennis), Harold Baring (UST, men’s table tennis), Shercila Cua (UST, women’s chess), Charles Adam Oliver (UST, men’s judo) Tshomlee Go (UST, men’s taekwondo), Jojo Von de Guzman (UST, boys’ taekwondo), Lea Langit (UST, girls’ swimming) and Anthony Irvin Guiao (UST, men’s volleyball).