UST team captain Aiza Maizo celebrates after being named both the league and the finals MVP during Game Two of the Shakey’s V-League finals last Tuesday at The Arena. (Photo by MARIANNE BERMUDEZ)

With more promising rookies coming in, the future looks good for University of Santo Tomas’ campaign even in next year’s Shakey’s V-League hostilities.

But don’t tell that to coach Shaq delos Santos who swears that his team will have tougher grind in winning a record sixth title as all other teams are out to stop them.

 “We might still have a strong team next year because of an intact line up but we expect a tougher grind since we all know that every team in the league now wants to get a piece of us,” said UST mentor Shaq delos Santos in Filipino.

UST made history Tuesday by winning a record fifth V-League title by sweeping the Adamson Lady Falcons, 23-25, 25-12, 27-25, 25-19, in Game Two of their best-of-three finals at The Arena in San Juan.

La Salle, which has been banned indefinitely from the league, owns three titles while San Sebastian and Adamson have one title apiece. 

Delos Santos may not admit it, but the team that he will bring in the league’s seventh season next year remains a force to reckon with.

For one, Aiza Maizo, the first player to win both the league and finals Most Valuable Player awards at the same time this year, will still be around to give her team the much needed leadership and firepower.

Maizo, who still has two more years to play, will again play along side with the battle-tested veterans setter Rhea Dimaculangan and the hard-hitting Angeli Tabquero.

A native of Iloilo, Maizo, the second Tigress to win the MVP award after Mary Jean Balse, proved to be a vital piece to UST’s championship run this year.

In their finals encounter with the Lady Falcons, Maizo played consistently, averaging 14 points in two games.

But the biggest revelation of the season was rookie Maru Banaticla, who was successful in the filling the void temporarily left by Judy Caballejo, who suffered a back injury early in the season.

The 5-foot-7 Banaticla, a prized recruit from the UST High School team, played like a seasoned veteran all season-long that helped the Tigresses complete a magical conference.

The Tigresses finished the eliminations with a 10-2 card, then swept their five quarterfinal games before sweeping the Far Eastern University anew in the best-of-three semis to clinch their eighth straight finals stint.

Asked about the secret of the team’s success, Delos Santos just smiled before saying:  “I always tell my players that we will participate in a tournament with a purpose. And that is to win.”

“Our victories this year were a testament to our hard work and team work.”

Delos Santos said they dedicate their achievements to ex-UST coach August Sta. Maria.

“He’s the man responsible for what kind of team UST is right now,” Delos Santos said of the Sta. Maria, who left the team two years ago after suffering a stroke.