Defensive Choppers at the College Table Tennis Championships should provide an interesting perspective and matches.

Sam Lu of the University of Michigan and Kevin Ball of Colorado State don’t know each other and have never played, but those that have played both of them can attest to a very DIFFERENT playing style then most of the general playing field. Lu and Ball are defensive choppers which essentially means they will stay in a defensive posture returning repeated attacks to generally tire or frustrate an opponent.

Kevin Ball is excited to make it to a National tournament for once, “I expect this event will be really exciting and much more intense than local tournaments. I am really looking forward to meeting people from this awesome sport. It is so hard to find people my own age that play table tennis competitively.”

The 2015 TMS College Table Tennis Championships has 232 athletes participating and their age group is exactly the demographic Ball seeks, so it should be a great time for him as he will be playing in the Men’s Singles event.

In addition, other players may need to keep a keen eye out for Ball as he shares with us a couple of his trade secrets, “I like to find other player's weaknesses and exploit them. I'm a defensive player so watch out for some killer chops and surprise attacks!”

Generally in table tennis tournaments, the majority of players are not defenders so one may think it is a bit lonely for this type of play, but actually it can be an advantage. Lu explains, “it's pretty cool to be unique, more people will want to practice with you. Unfortunately a side effect is that I can't watch someone play, see their playstyle, and know exactly how to play against them, since their game will be so different when they play against me.”

Lu is a member of the University of Michigan Table Tennis team that could end up in the Top 5 of the competition, “We are going to do good, I daresay top five. We got a new player, Ethan Jin, and I've been practicing hard on my forehand, which was very weak last year.”

Whether one is on a team or playing in the singles event, it will certainly be some interesting matches when Ball or Lu are on the table!

The 2015 TMS College Table Tennis Championships is hosted by the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association and the Visit Eau Claire and is one of the premier table tennis tournaments in North America featuring 6 events: Men’s and Women’s Singles and Doubles, and Men’s/Coed Teams, Women’s Teams.  The event is sponsored by TMS International, Double Fish, Joola and PepPod.

Players and spectators alike will enjoy a jam-packed weekend of table tennis at the TMS College Table Tennis Championships. The event starts Friday April 10th and continues through Sunday April 12th at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire campus.

About NCTTA

The National Collegiate Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) is a non-profit organization established exclusively for promoting the sport of table tennis at the college level. As the national governing body for college table tennis in the United States and Canada, NCTTA organizes intercollegiate competition throughout North America. www.nctta.org

About USA Table Tennis

Headquartered in Colorado Springs, USATT is the national organizing body for table tennis in the United States, serving 9,000+ members and nearly 300 clubs. USATT sanctions 200+ events a year including the US Open and US Nationals. USATT is affiliated with the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), as well as the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). www.usatt.org