She was bestowed the award after winning seven swimming gold medals, including two record-shattering victories.

"I really did not expect this one," said the 20-year-old Family Care and Child Development junior at the University of the Philippines (UP).

Nelson Mariano of the University of the East won the juniors division plum.

Identities of the season’s best athletes are traditionally kept under wraps until the Awards Night, which was hosted this season by Adamson U at its main auditorium in its San Marcelino campus.

Dacanay, winner of a relay silver medal in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games, could have known about her prestigious trophy Wednesday had she read the evening’s program.

"I would not have been surprised at all but I did not read the program," said the UAAP’s new record holder in women’s 200 meters backstroke and butterfly.

Dacanay’s other gold medals came in the 50 and 100 fly, 200 and 400 individual medley and 400 freestyle.

Her domination of women’s swimming earned her a second consecutive Most Valuable Player (MVP). UST, winner of the general championship for the umpteenth time, had seven seniors MVPs this season, the same number as De La Salle’s.

Emerging MVPs for UST were Bernardita MagAso (women’s athletics), Alfred Mailon (men’s badminton), Camille Roselle Hipolito (women’s judo), Jimboy Baring (men’s table tennis), Princess Pana (women’s table tennis), Juan Mendoza (men’s taekwondo) and Esther Marie Singson (women’s taekwondo).

Making De La Salle proud were Paula Lynn Obanana (women’s badminton), Kristin Prado (women’s basketball), John Paul Gomez (men’s chess), Stephanie Pheasant (women’s football), Yannick Guba (men’s tennis), Catherine Florez (women’s tennis) and Desiree Hernandez (women’s volleyball).

Besides Dacanay, the other MVPs for UP were Vladimir Eguia (baseball), Catherine Perena (women’s chess) and Ronald Rey San Juan (men’s judo), while Far Eastern University produced three MVPs — Nelbert Dacusin (men’s athletics), Arwind Santos (men’s basketball) and Jeremy Pedregoza (men’s volleyball).

The other season MVPs were Ateneo’s Patrick Ozaeta (men’s football) and Michaelmars Danila (men’s swimming), University of the East’s Crisanto Razo (men’s fencing) and Mary Rose Alfonzo (women’s fencing) and Adamson’s Cloiene Muyco (softball).