NCTTA Newsletter
October 2010

The 2010-2011 competition is here and we've got a run-down of the division competition schedule. Plus, the search for a 2011 Champs site is re-opened yet again and a team in only it's second season makes the leap from club sport to intercollegiate team. Which one? Read on for all this and more ...

Can't wait for fall compeition to get underway? Here's a list of upcoming division competitions:

October 22nd @ Texas Wesleyan University (Texas)
October 24th @ Cornell University (Upstate NY)
October 24th @ Penn State University (Mid Atlantic)

October 30th @ University of Akron (Ohio), tentative
October 30th @ UC Berkeley (NorCal)
October 31st @ Virginia Tech (Virginia)
October 31st @ Decatur Gym (Georgia)

November 6th @ University of Toronto (Eastern Canada)
November 6th @ Carleton College (Minnesota)
November 6th/7th @ Fashion Institute of Technology (NYC)
November 7th @ Lindenwood University (Midwest)
November 7th @ Harvard University (New England)

November 14th @ University of Florida (Florida)

November 20th @ Portland State University (Northwest)
November 20th @ Santa Monica College (SoCal)
Novmeber 20th @ Governor’s State University (Upper Midwest)

December 4th @ University of Akron (Ohio), tentative

Still Time to Complete Membership Requirements for Upcoming Season
Late registration deadline extends until 48 hours before first division competition

Though the October 1 early registration deadline has come and gone, there's still time to join NCTTA and compete in the 2010-2011 Competition Season. Schools/clubs can still complete the following steps up until 48 hours before the first division competition:

1. Fill out and submit the Online Membership Form.
   Men's/coed and women's teams from the same school must register separately.
2. Pay the appropriate membership fee for your school (online as part of the Online Membership Form). No membership fees accepted at division meets.
3. Take the Fall Eligibility Form to your school’s registrar office to have them verify your players’ eligibility and turn it in to your Division Director at the first meet.

Be sure to take your team's eligibility form to your school's registrar office well before your division meet as it can take the registrar some time to process it.

Don't delay, complete your team's membership requirements today!

NCTTA Re-Re-Opens Bidding for 2011 Champs Site

It’s back to the drawing board for the 2011 NCTTA championships site.

Since Texas Wesleyan pulled out in September as a site for the April 2011 games, Fort Worth is out of the picture. NCTTA contacted Bloomington, Indiana, the 2nd choice in the bidding process, but the facility is no longer available in early April.

Long story short, the NCTTA leadership has decided to start the bidding process over again. Yes, there have been many more twists and turns than we wanted, but we continue to believe we will come up with a viable site for the championships when all is said and done. Are we disappointed? The answer is yes, but life goes on.

For those who are new to the world of college table tennis, the 2010 championships were held near Milwaukee, Wisconsin after Rochester, Minnesota hosted the games in 2008 and 2009. Over the years, we’ve held the championships in states like Texas, Ohio and California. Where do we go next? Stay turned and we will let you know.

No matter where it will be, the championships in April 2011 figure to attract more than 30 of the best collegiate table tennis teams from the United States and Canada. Big-league sponsors like Newgy Industries and Killerspin help make the championships a great event year after year.

Cities interested in hosting the 2011 Championships should check out the Championships Bidding Guidelines and submit a completed Bid Application by November 1, 2010. The winning bid will be announced by mid-November.

Sponsor Corner
Special thanks to our sponsors, Newgy and Killerspin!

NCTTA, would like to thank Killerspin for its support of college table tennis. Killerspin is the exclusive NCTTA League and Championship Equipment sponsor through 2011. Member schools just need to fill out the Killerspin Premium Membership Program Application to receive phenomenal discounts. Browse all your favorite Killerspin equipment in the online Killerspin store.

Also, special thanks to NEWGY Industries, for its continued support of college table tennis especially the Newgy-NCTTA Scholarship Program (see above). Newgy offers a great way to fundraise for your club and help out our sponsor as well by signing up and participating in their Newgy Robo Pong Affiliate Program.

George Taplin Attends World Senior Games

Hats off to Kansas Division Director George Taplin, who recently took a leave of absence to attend the World Senior Games in Utah.

What’s this all about? For senior citizens, it is like the Olympics with every sport imaginable – from table tennis to badminton to pickle ball, tennis and much more. For men and women, who are in their fifties and on up, the event is also a great way to promote health and, at the same time, pump up the economy in Southern Utah. With the USA economy still in tough shape, every little bit helps.

Founded in 1987 by Daisy and John H. Morgan, Jr, the senior games in Utah went on from Oct. 4-Oct. 16, 2010.

With Taplin away for the World Senior Games (they hosted 26 events), Zach Moore stepped up and filled in to oversee the action when the NCTTA’s Kansas regional tournament was held October 2 on the campus of Kansas State University.

At NCTTA headquarters, we want to say thanks to Zach Moore and kudos to Taplin for taking time to participate in a worthy cause! Anything to promote healthy lifestyles and fitness, for young or old across the USA, is a good thing.

Governors State Becomes Intercollegiate Team in Second Season

The new kid on the block a year ago in collegiate table tennis circles, Governors State University is hoping to make more waves in the Upper Midwest Division this fall. The Governor’s State women’s team qualified for the Championships last year as a club sport and recently became an intercollegiate team heading into its second season.

Team tryouts are history and a dozen GSU students made the team at a 41-year-old school that prides itself on its diverse enrollment, its affordable tuition and well-respected faculty in the Chicago area.

Professor T.J. Wang, who teaches accounting at GSU, is the architect of the team that competed at the 2010 NCTTA Championships in Wisconsin last April. Wang needed to do a rebuilding job because there were no returning members from the talented squad that played in the championships held near Milwaukee.

Read more ...

Maria Montano - Tyler Brady Marriage Made By
Table Tennis

Maria Montano and Tyler Brady grew up thousands of miles apart on different continents, but table tennis brought them together and eventually lead to marriage.

In what figures to be one of the biggest social events in the heart of the Dixie Division, Montano and Brady celebrated their wedding day in Central Mississippi on October 9. Table tennis lovers from the University of Southern Mississippi and Mississippi College joined family and friends for the ceremony at Saint Paul Catholic Church and a reception at Luckett Lodge in Brandon. Wedding guests on the humid fall Saturday included Dixie Division Director Herb Bennett of Hattiesburg, MC team sponsor Andy Kanengiser, and MC Athletic Director Mike Jones.

Maria Montano, who grew up in Venezuela in South America, first met Tyler Brady during their table tennis playing days at Southern Miss. a few years ago. You might say it was love at first serve on the Hattiesburg campus (sorry, couldn’t resist).

Montano was a table tennis standout at Southern Miss. and later at Mississippi College where she earned her bachelor’s degree in biological sciences. Her table tennis resume includes stops at the 2007 Championships in Columbus, Ohio for the USM Golden Eagles team and at the 2009 Championships in Rochester, Minnesota as part of the Mississippi College Choctaws team. As a member of the MC team dominated by Chinese players, Maria taught her teammates to loudly cheer in Spanish during the championships in Minnesota and on the MC campus.

Tyler, who moved to the Jackson, Mississippi area to work in the real estate business after finishing up at Southern Miss, was a regular at MC practices when Maria was a member of the team.

Maria and Tyler won’t be around when Mississippi College hosts the Dixie Division tournament on Oct. 16. Word has it that they will be on their honeymoon in Jamaica. Congrats to the happy couple from table tennis fans everywhere!

Got an idea for a future story or newsletter topic? Email the NCTTA Media Relations Chair.