University of Wisconsin table tennis players are stepping up their game as volunteers. At the 2010 College Table Tennis Championships in Waukesha, Wisconsin, two Badgers from the Madison campus, Davy Zheng and Jay Johnson plan to volunteer their services.

There are about about 75 volunteers needed at the NCTTA championships just outside Milwaukee April 9-11. We, at NCTTA, really treasure our volunteers! We need truly need a great volunteer effort to have a first-rate championship.

Davy Zheng began playing table tennis as a sophomore at Bergen Community College in New Jersey. He got tired of losing to his classmates at basketball, and wanted to beat them in another sport. Davy remembered seeing friends play table tennis during his middle school days in Shanghai so he decided to pick up this fast-paced Olympic sport.

Davy improved his game by watching videos on YouTube of his favorite player, Ma Long. Now he plans to take the umpire test so he can serve at the Nationals. “As a volunteer, it is going to help me watch some of the best players in the nation play up close.” Having played in NCTTA’s New York City Division for a year, Davy is really pumped about meeting players from across the USA and Canada.

Enter another Wisconsin volunteer, Jay Johnson. He started his table tennis career at home in the basement at age 7. He fell in love with the sport and joined the table tennis club at Edina High and played in the Minnesota High School Tournament.
Searching for a college to attend, his high school coach showed him a story about the University of Wisconsin team in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He hooked up with the Badgers and their Top 25 table tennis squad.

In Jay’s first semester with table tennis he was awarded the team’s, freshman of the semester award, taking his interest and commitment to the sport to a new level. Jay will soon volunteer at the 2010 Championships, a few short weeks after helping to organize the second annual Wisconsin High School Tournament on March 14. “Being an umpire or scorekeeper is the best place to watch the matches,” Jay Johnson says.

These University of Wisconsin students from the Madison campus will certainly enrich the Championships through their volunteer efforts. But of course we can always use more volunteers!

Volunteer benefits include a nice t-shirt and a ticket to the Championships Banquet Saturday night. Plus it’s a terrific opportunity to see some of the finest college players in action at the biggest event in college table tennis. For more information, or to sign-up as a volunteer today, just visit the volunteer section of the Championships website.