NU’s Jaja Santiago during the awarding ceremony before Game 2 of the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball Finals between defending champion La Salle and Ateneo on Saturday, May 6, 2017, at Smart Araneta Coliseum. Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Jaja Santiago was quick to defend Majoy Baron after the La Salle middle blocker was feted as the UAAP Season 79 women’s volleyball Most Valuable Player over her.
For weeks, the MVP debate has sparked heated discussions on social media and to many’s surprise, it was Baron, who wound up as the MVP despite Santiago’s dominance all-season long.
“For me, Majoy Baron deserved the MVP award,” Santiago said on Saturday. “We know how hard she worked for that and we don’t have to judge her because she really showed it. I’m proud of her.”
Santiago has long been one of the favorites to win the plum this season, and that claim was further fortified with the 21-year-old bagging hauling three awards namely Best Scorer, Best Attacker, and Best Blocker.
Santiago stressed she has no hard feelings after missing out on the MVP award, saying that what she really wants is the championship.
“I’d like to win the championship more. I don’t mind the awards, but it’s the championship that I want,” she said.
Though Santiago covets raising the trophy at the end of the season, she wouldn’t deny that the murky situation surrounding the NU coaching staff puts her at an uncertain position in terms of her plans of returning for her final year.
“I’m still undecided. Fifty-50,” she said. “It’s great if the coaches stay because we won’t have much difficulty adjusting to the system. We’ll be sad if they leave because for two years, it’s been them who have been pushing us and gives us inspiration. It’s really difficult for us and that’s the reason why I’m still undecided.”
Santiago hopes the Lady Bulldogs can hash things out as soon as possible as she expressed belief in her team’s improvement next year if she decides to comeback for another go.
“Even though we’re unable to get to the Final Four and the championship, the three awards I got tells me that we can compete next year if ever. I know that we have the capacity to show more than what we showed this season, but we still have a lot to fill out,” she said.