Shaq de los Santos, the last head coach to deliver the UST Golden Tigresses a UAAP championship, is back at the helm, replacing longtime tactician Emilio “Kung Fu” Reyes, who is transitioning to program director of both the women’s and girls’ volleyball programs.
The Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA) announced the coaching shuffle Tuesday night, which also sees Reyes retain his head coaching duties for the girls’ team.
“The University of Santo Tomas is pleased to announce the appointment of Cesael ‘Shaq’ De los Santos as the new Head Coach of the Women’s Volleyball team,” IPEA said in a statement posted on Facebook.
De los Santos, who steered the Tigresses to their last UAAP title in 2010, returns to the role he left in 2011, having served as one of Reyes’ assistants for the past two seasons.
A former head coach of the FEU and UP women’s volleyball teams, de los Santos currently leads the Cignal HD Spikers in the Premier Volleyball League.
He also served as head coach of the Philippine women’s national team from 2018 to 2021.
In the past two UAAP seasons, de los Santos mentored UST’s middle blockers, including Em Banagua, Pia Abbu, Marga Altea, Blessing Unekwe, and Bianca Plaza.
Reyes, who steps down after a 10-year tenure as head coach of the Tigresses, did not win a title during his stint but guided the team to multiple Final Four appearances.
He amassed a 64-36 win-loss record in 100 elimination-round games during his time at the helm, and went 4-9 in postseason play.
He has long been a key figure in UST volleyball’s grassroots development, serving as head coach of the UST Junior Golden Tigresses since 2013.
The coaching transition follows UST’s bronze-medal finish in UAAP Season 87, where the Tigresses dropped their last three games and missed out on a top-two seed.
