By Joel Lidstrom
Press Committee Member

When one thinks of Tufts University, a small university in Massachusetts, table tennis doesn’t come to mind, even among rabid collegiate ping pong aficionados. And when Mainak Nistala and Jason Situ enrolled there, it wasn’t on their radar. Nistala, a Computer Science major, and Situ, a Biology major, knew Tufts to be a place where they could get a broad and balanced school experience. Academics, yes; but with a range of interesting activities and involvement.

Table tennis at Tufts had been overwhelmed by COVID, and there was no evidence of a team. But ping pong players can’t be away from the game very long, and with encouragement from friends, they met to play. They realized with delight that they had played previously in a match at Nationals.

They put out the word to see if they could successfully re-vitalize the disbanded Tufts club. They did, and received their NCTTA reinstatement just this year. I caught up with them in their match against a higher rated California team.

Men’s Doubles Championship Round of 32

Tufts vs. California 3-0

Nistala was magnificent, with backhand blocks, occasional chop blocks vs. loop, and powerful topspin from both the backhand and forehand sides—all played almost casually, and all for winners. Meanwhile, Situ played conservatively with little need to attack. After the match he told me, “Mainak was putting away everything, and I was just chilling…”

Round of 16

NYU vs. Tufts 3-1

The Tufts duo started against NYU’s Hazin and Yuan with a succession of unforced errors. It is interesting how the pressure of playing a significantly higher-rated team affects play. Tufts seemed to be pressing, rushing their attack, while the NYU team was content to keep the ball in play as they cruised to an 11-5 first game win.

Tufts found offensive success in the second game, with attack from both players. After an exchange of fierce rallies and timely defense, Tufts pushed the score to 10-8, and knotted the match score at 1-1 on an anti-climactic wrong court service for NYU.

Tufts lost the third game, but made a comeback in the fourth, as they quickly pushed the game score to 6-2. They weathered the loss of a brilliant 10-hit rally that might have deflated their hope, but instead it was an unlucky net ball and an unforced error that gave the match to eventual semifinalists.

After the match, Nitala and Situ expressed no regret. But they agreed that they had had a great shot, and would use that to propel them into the singles. I mused that they would be back playing doubles next year, with a bigger and better Tufts team, bolstered by their success this year. They smiled, and said they hoped it would be so.

(Photo of Tufts doubles duo Mainak Nistala and Jason Situ; photo credit to Dennis Yang)
_______________________________________________

About 2025 NCTTA College Table Tennis Championships

The championships are hosted by the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association and GoRockford (Rockford Convention and Visitors Bureau). The event crowns national champions in Men’s and Women’s Singles and Doubles, Men’s/Coed Teams, and Women’s Teams. Also this year a first in NCTTA’s history is the Collegiate National Team trials on Thursday April 3rd for the 2025 World University Games.

PongSpace, Peaka Pong, Stiga and Paddle Palace will sponsor the event.
Watch the event on live stream starting Friday, April 4th on http://www.nctta.org/champs/2025/video.html

About NCTTA

The National Collegiate Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) is a non-profit organization established exclusively to promote 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 elite intercollegiate competitions throughout North America. www.nctta.org