In the din of revelry over their 10th UAAP women’s volleyball title Saturday, De Jesus said his team would miss the services of the prolific setter who acted as hinge from which the Lady Archers moved.
“There will only be one Kim Fajardo, it’s impossible to find someone like her again,” said De Jesus of his setter whom he said had the license “to do what she feels like doing inside the court.”
In Game 2 of the finals against Ateneo, Fajardo was even scoring on kills—twice over—and made four aces on top of setting up guns with 43 excellent sets.
“In the game, I tell her what I want to happen but inside the court she will do what she has (to do),” said De Jesus, referring to their working relationship.
Fajardo played her last collegiate match and is setting her sights on a club career with F2 Logistics in the Philippine Superliga.
Kim Kianna Dy, another heroine of the finals, said they worked around Fajardo and tried to give her a nice sendoff.
At first, Fajardo said she was not comfortable seeing her teammates dedicating their game to her.
“But if that’s what would make them play better, then why not?” she said.
One of the most impressive Filipino players in last year’s FIVB World Clubs, Fajardo is one of the favorites to make the national team to the Southeast Asian Games this August.
“I will miss these guys, nobody sees how hard they work,” said Fajardo, part of the three La Salle championships.