UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas' floundering women's volleyball program suffered another blow when Maru Banaticla said she will be forgoing her final playing year in the UAAP.
Banaticla said that she has consulted her family before reaching her decision to quit the España-based school and focus on her career in the commercial leagues, where she is currently playing for PLDT MyDSL in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix.
The 20-year-old spiker, the 2009 Rookie of the Year in the league's beach volleyball competitions, has played for the Lady Tigresses since high school.
"This second sem napag desisyunan na lang namin na mag-work na lang rin ako kasi not forever nasa UST ako na maglalaro ng volleyball," she added.
"Kasi may iba din naman na leagues like the Shakey's V-League and this Superliga na maglalaro ako at the same time kumikita ako."
After playing in the beach volleyball competitions in the first semester where she failed to lead UST to a repeat, Banaticla said she asked permission to quit the school's indoor volleyball team after deciding to play in the Superliga.
"Since naglaro na ako dito sa Superliga hindi na ako pwede maglaro doon (sa UAAP)," she said. "And at the same time I'm not in the lineup."
"Bago pa ako maalis sa lineup, nagpaalam na rin ako."
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