NCTTA Newsletter
February 2008

Spring competition gets underway with NCTTA division play and ACUI regional singles qualifiers; some current and former college standouts enjoy success at the US Olympic trials; plus, the 2008 Championships are coming and volunteers are needed. Read on to find out how you can help.

Spring Division Play
Championships qualification at stake for winners of NCTTA's 17 divisions
Seventeen NCTTA Divisions across the United States and Canada are battling in in February for the title of Division Champion and the chance to qualify to the 2008 College Table Tennis National Championships in Rochester, Minnesota. Many divisions are ultra competitive with multiple teams having a legitimate shot at the division title. Mid-Season Rankings this year were on average 500 points per team higher than last year! Expecting a great conclusion to the 2007-2008 college table tennis season in the weeks ahead. Check out the complete Spring schedule and results for all divisions on the NCTTA website.

Southern California Division

USC and UC San Diego have battled for dominance in the Southern California Division since the 2004-2005 season, with USC winning that year, but UCSD having the upper hand of late, capturing both the 2006 and 2007 division titles. After going undefeated with a convincing 4-1 victory over UCSD in the Fall, USC seemed poised to recapture the division crown. San Diego's Balboa Park Activity Center hosted the Spring divisional tournament and although UCLA, Caltech, and UC Irvine fought relentlessly throughout the day, it came down to USC vs. UCSD, just as it has the past 3 seasons. UCSD needed at least a 4-1 victory to win the division; it seemed possible after they won the first two matches. But USC rebounded to win the next two matches and secure their path to the Championships! On the women's side, USC enjoyed similar success, building on their undefeated Fall performance to capture the division title over Caltech and UC San Diego.

ACUI Regional Schedule
Don't miss the ACUI singles qualifier in your region; check the schedule and register today!
ACUI regional tournaments are coming up in February. These tournaments serve as qualification for singles and doubles entries to the 2008 College Table Tennis Championships. When and where is your regional tournament? Check the regional competition schedule. NCTTA Divisions are different than ACUI Regions, so if you're not sure which region you're school is in, check out this list of states and provinces in each region. Once you're ready, you can register for the tournament in your region online.

Volunteer for the 2008 Championships!
A variety of volunteer opportunities are available - April 11-13, 2008 in Rochester, Minnesota
The 2008 College Table Tennis National Championships is the the culmination of the 2007-2008 competition season. It's also a table tennis event that needs a lot of volunteer help to run. Volunteer positions are available in a number of different areas including:

• Umpires and Officials
• Venue Setup/Breakdown
• Transportation
• Registration
• Results and Information
• Production and Announcing

US Olympic Trials at Drexel University
Two current NCTTA members advance to the North American Trials in Vancouver
Han Xiao (Maryland) and Whitney Ping (Stanford) advanced to the North American Olympic Qualification Tournament for a chance to represent the US at the 2008 Summer Olympics. At the U.S. Olympic & National Team Trials held at Drexel University last month, more than half of the 21 players competing had come up through the college ranks, 7 being current NCTTA players. Han Xiao placed 2^nd at the trials, securing his trip to Vancouver, where from April 4-6, he will compete to become one of just 3 men representing North America at the Summer Olympics. Whitney Ping placed 4th in the field of 9 women to earn her spot at the North American Qualifier, her 5-3 record edging Texas Wesleyan's Jasna Reed (4-4). Former college standouts Eric Owens (Texas Wesleyan) and Jackie Lee (UC Berkeley) also finished in the top 4 to move on to the North American Trials while Texas Wesleyan's Mark Hazinski (8-3) came out on the short end of a 3-way tie for 3rd place and ended up 5th, just missing qualification. Adam Hugh (Princeton), Judy Hugh (Rutgers) and Barbara Wei (University of Pennsylvania) also competed at the event. The 2008 Summer Olympics will be held in Beijing, beginning on August 8.

Join an NCTTA Committee
Here's your chance to get involved with NCTTA!
Want to do something with your time that will be fun and also go toward a worthwhile goal? See something in NCTTA that you'd like to change or improve? Well, here's your opportunity to make a real difference in the organization. Contact one of the following committee chairs to become an NCTTA committee member. You'll learn a lot about how the organization works and it'll look great on your resume!

• Media Relations Committee (VACANT Chair) -- NEEDS MEMBERS
• Alumni Development Committee (Liang Liu, Chair) -- NEEDS MEMBERS
• Coaching Committee (Mike McFarland, Chair) -- NEEDS MEMBERS
• Disabled Athletes Committee (Ling Ling Pan, Chair) -- NEEDS MEMBERS

Winter Wonders Deals from Table Tennis Pioneers
Take advantage of savings of up to 56% on select products

This month take advantage of great deals on a variety of products from major table tennis brands at the Table Tennis Pioneers Winter Wonders 2008 sale. And while you're browsing the TTP website, go ahead and join the Table Tennis Pioneers affiliate program. It's easy to setup and your club gets a commission (up to 10%), for any sales generated through your site. Encourage members of your club and all your friends to use it. Earn commissions on top of the already generous NCTTA discounts. No risk, so it's practically a no-brainer.

Table Tennis Pioneers and Killerspin are the exclusive NCTTA League Sponsors for the 2007-2008 competition season. All NCTTA divisions will be playing with Killerspin 3-star balls and Killerspin barriers this season. Please remember to take advantage of the generous DISCOUNTS (up to 20%) on tables, racquets, rubber, balls and just about any other table tennis equipment your club might need.

NEWGY Industries, our valued Championship Sponsor has a great new affiliate program. Add a Newgy online store section to your club's website and earn amazing commissions of 23.75% on sales through your site. They even have videos to help you get setup quickly. Hard to imagine an easier way to earn some extra money for your club.

Writers Needed
You think this newsletter writes itself?
Any Communications, English or Journalism majors out there? Or anyone else with an interest in writing for that matter. NCTTA is looking for people to help write-up short articles for the monthly newsletter you're reading right now. It's not a huge time commitment (maybe 5-10 hours a month) and it's a great resume builder; you can say that you wrote for a nationally, scratch that, internationally distributed newsletter. Plus, the best way to improve as a writer is to, well, write ... a lot. Course if you figure out a way to have the newsletter write itself, that would be okay too.