NCTTA
Newsletter
July
2008
Still summer, but the college table tennis season will
be upon us sooner than you think. We've already got some teams in the
Florida Division getting ready with a preseason warm-up
tournament. Our annual preseason rankings survey will help determine
which teams look strongest heading into 2008-2009. Plus there's new
scholarship opportunities for this year at Lindenwood University and
through the Newgy-NCTTA National Scholarship program. And we're
wrapping up the process of reshaping our board and committees, looking
to fill the open Historian and National Division Director
Representative slots.
Lindenwood University Scholarship Program
NCTTA is proud to have Lindenwood as the latest school offering college table tennis scholarships!
Texas Wesleyan, Darton College, Puerto Rico and now ... Lindenwood University. That's right Lindenwood
becomes the most recent addition to the ranks of college table tennis
scholarship programs. Men's and women's table tennis will become the
42nd and 43rd varsity athletic programs at the school, which is located
in the St. Louis, Missouri area. The table tennis program is headed up
by Randy and Kelly Kendle who also founded the St. Peters table tennis
club.
So, is Lindenwood the next college table tennis
powerhouse in the making? I guess only time will tell. But, for the
time being, Lindenwood is actively recruiting student athletes to build
their team. Read more about the Lindenwood Table Tennis Program online or contact Randy Kendle or Kelly Kendle for scholarship information or with any other questions you might have.
Preseason Rankings Survey
NCTTA needs your help in developing a preseason
rankings for the 2008-09 season. We would very much like every active
NCTTA team answer the survey questions below to help us formulate the
most accurate possible Preseason Rankings.
Teams that do not reply to this survey will NOT be included in the Preseason Rankings.
Please send email to info@nctta.org by August 11th with your names, school/team (coed or women's) and answers to these questions:
- Which players that competed for your team in the 2007-2008 season will be returning to compete in the upcoming 2008-2009 season?
- Do you know of any new players that will be joining
your team and participating in the upcoming season? If so, what are
their estimated ratings?
- What is your projected varsity team roster for the upcoming season?
- Do you currently have or do you plan on recruiting a coach for the upcoming season?
- How many non-NCTTA tournaments does your team plan to attend during the upcoming year?
- In terms of practice space and time during the
2008-2009 season, do you anticipate having more, less or the same
amount as in years past?
Best of luck to all teams competing in the upcoming season!
Florida Division Preseason Tournament
Several teams from the Florida Division organize a season warm-up event
In
Florida, they take their college football pretty seriously. You can bet
that about this time of year many in the state are getting ready for
the start of the college football season, trying to figure out which of
the stateside football powerhouses have the best shot at a conference
or national title. Turns out they take their college table tennis
pretty seriously too. While many college students might be chillin' at
the beach, the Florida Division is gearing up for the college table
tennis season by holding its first ever preseason tournament at the
University of Central Florida on July 27th. Florida State, Florida,
North Florida, and Florida International will join the host school to
compete under relaxed NCTTA rules. It'll serve as a great introduction
to college table tennis for North Florida and Florida International
(both new to NCTTA this year) and a final tune-up before the college
table tennis season starts in earnest in the Fall.
Sponsor
Corner
Support
our sponsors, they make College Table Tennis possible!
Table Tennis Pioneers has redesigned their website. Now more streamlined and easier to navigate, but same great product selection and prices as always. Check out their Summer Sizzlers sale for great deal on all your favorite brands: Andro, Donic, Stiga, Yasaka and more!
Table Tennis
Pioneers and Killerspin
are
the exclusive
NCTTA League Sponsors for the 2007-2008 competition season. Killerspin
was also the 2008 Championships Equipment Sponsor, generously providing
tables, balls and other equipment for the event.
Please remember
to take advantage of the generous NCTTA Member
DISCOUNTS
(up to 20%) on tables, racquets, rubber, balls and just about any other
table tennis equipment your club might need.
Special thanks to NEWGY
Industries, our valued Championship Sponsor who is now
launching the NCTTA/Newgy National Scholarship Program (details
elsewhere in the newsletter). Thanks to Newgy for their continued
generous support of
College Table Tennis!
Member
Feature: Willy Leparulo
Part of an ongoing series profiling a notable NCTTA member club,
athlete, or organizer
This month's feature member profiles NCTTA's long-serving President Willy Leparulo:
Willy’s involvement in college table tennis began ten
years ago when Leparulo was playing with fellow table tennis friend
Lewis Shi from Harvard University. Shi was a player on Harvard’s
table tennis team and was an officer in the League of Northeast
Intercollegiate Table Tennis (LNITT). Willy became extremely
interested in the league and contacted group organizers who said that
Leparulo would need to recruit four to five schools near his home
school of Florida State University to join the league. Willy with
the help of a few others recruited fifteen schools and the LNITT became
known today as the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association
(NCTTA). Ever since then, the NCTTA has seen exponential growth
and now exceeds 120 schools. “Willy has endured and sacrificed a lot
for college table tennis, to the point were some people just shake
their heads,” said Joesph Wells, Vice President of NCTTA. With
Leparulo at the focal point of the NCTTA’s future, he hopes to continue
the success from the past years and expand upon it ...
Continue
reading the rest of the story ...
If you would like to nominate a person or club you feel has made a difference in NCTTA for a
future Member
Feature, email Nathan Reilly at reillyn@fsuimail.ferris.edu.
Newgy-NCTTA
Scholarship Progam
Scholarship application deadline is fast approaching for the program's first year
The NCTTA National
Table Tennis Scholarship Program,
seeded with generous initial support from our friends at Newgy
Industries, is open to student athletes at NCTTA member schools.
Scholarships are open
to students pursuing their first degree and will be
awarded based on a combination of table tennis skill, academics, essay
and financial need. Find out more about the program, including how to
submit an application at the Scholarship Program website.
The August 15, 2008 application deadline for the 2008-2009 academic year is rapidly approaching.
Though a limited number of scholarships will be available in the first
year, but we hope to expand the program in future years.
Get more involved in NCTTA!
Join a committee, help improve college table tennis
Currently we are "the few and the proud" but with your help we could
become "the great and the many"! Announcing openings for Committee
chairs and members in the list below. Committee chairs can expect to
lead a group of like-minded individuals to reach specific goals both
short and long term. Committee members can expect to work with a group
of like-minded ... well you get the idea, it's about teamwork mostly.
Get some great leadership experience and help out
the sport we all love at the same time.
- Championships (chair)
- Women's (chair)
- Alumni and College Relations (chair)
- Rules and Audit (chair and members)
- Website (chair)
- Coaches (members)
- World University Games (members)
- Disabled Athletes (chair and members)
- Recruiting (members)
- Eligibility (members)
If you're interested, please send an email to info@nctta.org by August 11th with the following information: name, experience in table tennis (playing or otherwise), what you do for a living (student, working, whatever).
Board Openings: Historian and Division Director Rep.
Two board positions are currently open, with your help, they won't stay that way for long
NCTTA is currently looking to fill the Historian position and the National Division Director Representative
position on the NCTTA Executive Board. Join a great team of talented
and dedicated people that are committed to making a difference in the
table tennis world.
- Historian:
This is a 2 year term and would require a person to be available for
meetings once a month and the ability to check email frequently. Please
read the NCTTA Bylaws to learn more abou what the position consists of and specific responsibilities.
- National Division Director Representative:
This is a 1 year term and would be elected by current NCTTA Division
Directors to serve as their representative on the Executive Board.
This person would need to have the ability to check email frequently
and be available for meetings once a month.Please read the NCTTA Bylaws to learn more about what the position consists of and specific responsibilities.
If you're interested in either of these positions, please send an email to info@nctta.org by August 11th with a statement of intent that includes the following information: name, experience in table tennis (playing or otherwise), what you do for a living (student, working, whatever), and why you are interested in the position.
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