After De La Salle University’s hard-fought 25-21, 25-19, 19-25, 25-17 win over National University, longtime Lady Spikers mentor Ramil de Jesus expressed his admiration for a former ward now standing on the opposite side of the net.
Once a libero and a one-time champion for La Salle in the late 2000s, Regine Diego is now leading the Lady Bulldogs as their head coach, going up against her former mentor.
“Natutuwa ako sa kanya kasi [isa siya sa mga kauna-unahang] babae na nag-coach dito sa UAAP,” said De Jesus, beaming with pride over his former mentee.
The 12-time champion coach also mentioned legendary female tactician Dulce Pante, alongside other women who have coached in the UAAP in recent memory, including Adamson University’s Air Padda and Lerma Giron, and current Far Eastern University mentor Tina Salak.
De Jesus, now in his 26th season handling the Lady Spikers, was simply a proud mentor watching one of his former players follow the same path he continues to traverse.
“Siguro sa ngayon nakakatuwa kasi galing sa akin, and then ngayon, nagko-coach ng isang champion team,” said La Salle’s legendary coach.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
With La Salle completing a sweep of the UAAP Season 88 Collegiate Women’s Volleyball first round and NU holding second place with a 5-2 record, De Jesus hopes to see Diego further integrate her system with the Lady Bulldogs in the second round.
Diego is NU’s fourth head coach in five seasons, following Karl Dimaculangan (Seasons 84 and 85), Norman Miguel (Season 86), and Sherwin Meneses (Season 87).
“Yung paghaharap namin siguro, isang bagay yun na makita ko sa kanya yung mga natutunan niya nung player pa siya, so siguro madami din naman siyang ideas. And natutuwa ako dahil very competitive yung team niya at yun pa defending champion,” said De Jesus, who has led the Lady Spikers to 23 podium finishes.
“Hopefully, mas makilala pa niya yung team kasi bago lang siya doon. Hopefully, mas mapagalaw niya pa yung mga tao.”
Despite implementing a new system for the third straight year and losing bona fide superstars Bella Belen and Alyssa Solomon, NU remained competitive.
The Lady Bulldogs lean on Arah Panique and Vange Alinsug on the wings while also unveiling another promising rookie in Sam Cantada.
Whether they can reclaim the throne is still uncertain, but De Jesus hopes Diego can solve the puzzle and find success in her first year as NU head coach.
#WATCH: SWERTE ANG NU, DI SA ‘MIN NAPUNTA 🏹
Ramil de Jesus sees Sam Cantada in the same league as past super rookies like Bella Belen and Shaina Nitura 🏐#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/XfzWo6534w
📹 @lorenzodelc /Tiebreaker Times#UAAPSeason88 pic.twitter.com/r6h5w40a2g
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) March 15, 2026
