MANILA, Philippines – When Henry Sy and SM corporation took over National University (NU) in 2008, gone were the days when its sports teams were in the pitiful ranks of the UAAP.

The Sy revamp gave more financial support to the Bulldogs and made NU sports teams contenders again in the UAAP with 33 more titles before his death. (READ: Henry Sy Sr dies at 94)

In the UAAP cheer dance competition, former cellar-dweller NU Pep Squad is now the team to beat with 5 titles – including a four-peat streak starting 2013.

The team failed in their bid to string 5 straight in 2017 when it fell to 4th place, but the following year, the cheer dance powerhouse made a grand “comebark” in the theme of the Mexican Day of the Dead.  

Aside from its dominance in the UAAP,  the NU Pep Squad also reigned in the National Cheerleading Competition and also saw action in the International Cheer Union World Championships.

After winning its first title in 2014, the NU Lady Bulldogs – under national team coach Patrick Aquino – went undefeated in 80 games that paved the way for a five-peat reign in the UAAP women’s basketball tournament.

The stellar program has recruited and produced numerous players such as three-time UAAP MVP Afril Bernardino and Jack Danielle Aninam who eventually joined Perlas Pilipinas to represent various international competitions such as the Southeast Asian Games and the 2018 FIBA 3×3 World Cup.  

The NU men’s badminton team collected 6 UAAP championships – the most titles from a sport in the history of the university. In 2018, the shuttlers cruised to a fifth straight crown  and extended their streak to 43 ties dating back to 2014. 

NU was also a powerhouse in tennis with both the men’s and women’s teams completing four-peat romps. Two-time MVP Christine Patrimonio led her team to the school’s first tennis crown while her sister Clarice also bagged two of the league’s highest individual honors as well and capped off her UAAP stint with NU’s last title in 2017. 

In UAAP volleyball, the NU men’s beach volleyball team had a three-peat run from 2012 to 2014 while the indoor team ended the Ateneo Blue Eagles’ reign in 2018 with its third UAAP men’s volleyball title. 

In 2012, the NU baseball team clinched the university’s first title in 26 years since its men’s chess team’s title in 1986. 

Under Sy, the NU men’s basketball team was able to acquire the services of Eric Altamirano and beefed up their roster with blue-chip recruits like Ray Parks, the former league star who won the UAAP Most Valuable Player twice.

After 4 Final Four appearances, the Bulldogs made history in 2014 and captured the UAAP men’s basketball championship to end a 60-year title drought. – Rappler.com