CHAPTER FIVE 1988: March Tournaments. Dave Williams (TTT, June-July, 1988, 67) reports on an unusual Southern California exhibition match: “The Orange Coast College Table Tennis Club played host to an exhibition match between the Southern California All-Stars and a visiting team of Japanese Collegiate Champions. The match, held Mar. 24th at the Basil Peterson Gym on the campus of Orange Coast College, was played on three Stiga tables under excellent tournament conditions. “The Japanese team consisted of four men (Toshiaki Okamoto, Susumu Sato, Koji Matsushita, and Kiyonobu Iwasaki) and two women (Hiroko Yamaya and Asako Tsuchikawa). “Accompanying the JCC team were Manager Manji Fukushima [the 1967 U.S. Open Champion]; Yoshinari Takeyama, Director of the Japan University Table Tennis Federation; Koichi Ito, Chief Secretary of the Japan University TTF; and Suguru Araki, JTTA liaison to the United States. Representing the Californians were Masuru Hashimoto, Rutledge Barry, Najib Yakub, and Attila Malek. Lan Vuong and Wei Wang represented the women. Despite the short notice of the exhibition and the fact that no All-Stars trained specifically for this event, all [sic] made a good showing. [Perhaps, but, though the women lost only 1 game, won 9, the men won only 1 game, lost 17]. Koji Matsushita, World #54, and former Afghanistan National Champion Najib Yakub provided one of the many outstanding displays of contrasting styles, with Matsushita chopping back Najib’s persistent, hard-hitting loop-drive attacks. Najib, a veteran of much international play who received most of his early training and encouragement from his brother Karim Amiri (also a former Afghan National Champion), felt that ‘the Japanese Collegiate Champions exhibited fine discipline and sound technique from their regular training regimen,’ and that ‘camaraderie between fellow team members and their coaching staff was evident, contributing to their winning spirit and performance.’ “Quick, sharp offensive play characterized both sides of the women’s matches. “Mixing high loops to augment her attacks, Lan Vuong played well even without a warm-up. “Emphasizing the aggressive play of Yamaya and Tsuchikawa, Wei Wang noted that ‘the Japanese women attacked all serves,’ necessitating counterdrives to continue rallies. The California women’s resourceful play and precise counter-hits from both forehand and backhand proved too much for the visitors.” Kelly Boyce (TTT, Apr.-May, 1988, 19) covers the Mar. 5th Tulsa, OK Winter Open for us: “The Tulsa TTC, sponsoring its umpteenth tournament in 17 years [and how many of those were written up in Topics?], had a record turnout of 60 players playing on seven well-lit
Detroiter tables until midnight. (Hey, Mr. Tournament Director, how about some one-game matches?) “Zvonko Basaric (2463) of Houston/Yugoslavia, with his wicked side-spin loop drives, had little trouble downing chopper Richard Hicks (2152) of Indiana 12, 6 in the finals. In the Under 2000 event, local player Troy Sanchez (1742) upset Oklahoma City’s Russell Finley (1976), Houston’s Eric Owens (1926), and, in an 18-in-the-third final, Tulsa’s Stefan Zolarek (1972).” Other results: Women: Sybil Phillips d. Joy Johnson, -18, 13, 16. Open Doubles: Basaric/Owens d. Hicks/Jim French, -16, 14, 6. Mixed Doubles: Winners: Zolarek/Phillips. U1900: Kyle Sanchez d. Reed Kyker, 16, -18, 17. U-1800: Hamid Ahmadi d. K. Sanchez, -12, 19, 17. U-1700: Steve Sumner d. Ahmadi, 16, -7, 17. U-3400 Doubles: T. Sanchez/Ahmadi d. Andy Bloxom/Jack Haynes, forfeit. U-1600: Ted Price d. Gary Sanchez, 18, 18. U-3200 Doubles: French/Leonard Williams d. Henry Popper/Ahmadi, 15, 15. U-1500: Price d. Jacob Toumayan, 15, 17. U-1400: Williams d. Toumayan, 19, -21, 19. U-1300: David Shaha d. Bill McMillin, 9, 5. U-1200: Shaha d. McMillin, 10, 14. Senior’s: Hicks d. Kenny Owens, 21, 17. U-17’s: Eric Owens d. Shaha, 15, 16. U-15’s: Owens d. Shaha, 9, 13. Scott Preiss, for one (TTT, May-June, 2000, 66), has been most impressed with Eric Owens: “Here was a kid who was racing motorcycles at five [see photo], and finished a full 26mile marathon in 4 hours and 6 minutes at age nine.” The Michigan State Championships, sponsored by Donic, were held Mar. 13th in Detroit’s Cobo Hall. Here’s David Cafone (TTT, Apr.-May, 1988, 29) to tell you of their success: “Among the more than 90 entries were 19 new USTTA members (eight of them juniors) and 11 new players who purchased playing permits. The event received excellent publicity. “Jim Doney captured the Open title, downing Mike Veillette in a four-game final that was perhaps the toughest match of the tournament. “Bob Allshouse, Bob Beatty, Aaron Smith, Chris Wibbelman, and Lou Budi were all key to the running of this well-received tournament. Guenther Schroeder’s T.G. Enterprises provided 20 Donic Compact tables and Nittaku balls for the event.” Results: Open: 1. Jim Doney. 2. Mike Veillette. Women’s: 1. Connie Sweeris. 2. Debbie Moya. Open Doubles: 1. Dell/Todd Sweeris d. Veillette/Frank Sexton. U-2100’s: 1. C. Sweeris. 2. Cody Jones. U-1950’s: 1. David Cafone. 2. Dan Hayes. U-1800’s: 1. Russ Stebbins. 2. Hayes. U-1650’s: 1. Jeff Darwish. 2. Moya. U-1500’s: Janusz Gerzelenski. 2. Marvin Sommers. U1300’s: 1. Mikel Lefort. 2. Mark Rushford. Beginner’s (U-1100’s): 1. Jeff Yoshikawa. 2. Rushford. Novice (U-950’s): 1. Rushford. 2. Gerald Scharphorn. Beginner/Novice Consolation: 1. Hayden Adi. 2. Colleen Scharphorn. Wheelchair: 1. Ray Hill. 2. Lois Weishuhn. Over 50’s: 1. Chuck Burns. 2. Hayes. Over 40’s: 1. Burns. 2. Ward Wood. U-18’s: 1. T. Sweeris. 2. Michael Voigtlander. U-16’s: 1. David Vandekopple. 2. Bernie Pietrak. Although about this time last year Rick Hardy, who’d been writing a “Table Talk” column for Topics, in which he’d had occasion to indicate how proud he was of his Cleveland
Club’s stature in Ohio table tennis, and who’d be running a second straight pre-U.S. Open warmup tournament that’d draw over 100 players and have the Honorable Alan Rapoport, Mayor of Cleveland Heights, present the Open finalists with their trophies and checks, something not good has happened with Hardy and his Cleveland Club (see accompanying article—TTT, Mar., 1988, 25). No more “Table Talk.” No more Cleveland Open. Michael Wetzel gives us some coverage of the Alabama State Closed, played Mar. 19th in Huntsville with sponsorship from the local Parks and Recreation Department, as well as the Huntsville TTC: “Playing in his first Alabama State Closed, 2167 Keith LaFrance easily out-matched the rest of the field of 33 players to win the Open event. “LaFrance, who now resides in Montgomery after moving from Louisiana, defeated 2001 Don Gaither 21-14, 21-19 to claim the Singles crown. He then paired with 1830 Warren McNeil to take the Doubles title in straight games from Gaither and Tournament Director Bill Mobley. “McNeil took third place in Singles, defeating 1987 Champion Ralph Kissel. “University of Alabama-Huntsville graduate- student Michael Zhu, a native of mainland China, won the A Singles, downing in the final Birmingham’s Hoang Phamzam. It was the first sanctioned tournament for both players. Phamzam teamed with Nigerian native Ganiyu Bello to finish first in A Doubles. Greg Battles of Birmingham was the B Singles winner.” Last year I was criticizing new Topics Editor Steve Holland for not getting coverage of the major U.S. tournaments. This year I hope he got the discounts offered Louisiana Open tournament goers by Delta and Best Western, for I’m happy to say he himself covered (TTT, Apr.-May, 1988, 4-5) this $10,000 Open, held Mar. 26-27 at Southern University’s F.G. Clark Activity Center: “Down here on the Bayou, they serve up life with a real Southern flavor. The music is Cajun. The food is spicy. Even the religion is unique—the interest in it enhanced with the latest page-one headline news about hometown preacher Jimmy Swaggert whose name is on the Bible college here. “Over by the airport, at Southern University, Tournament Director Power Poon was serving up something special too—a slice of a great sport. It was hot, spicy, and international in flavor. It had its own rhythm. What it didn’t have were many spectators. The good people of Baton Rouge stayed away in droves and missed the best of a sport this country has to offer. They say these Baton Rougers know a good thing when they see it. But no Amen this time. When play in the Open event was over, Canada’s Joe Ng ($1,000) stood supreme, having downed, -16, 15, 18, 18, last year’s Open runner-up, the quick, smooth-stroking John Onifade ($700) who’d come to the U.S. from Nigeria. [Note in the accompanying article the current standings in the American All-Star series.] “If that wasn’t exciting enough, consider the International Men’s event. Onifade had them talking about his great 21-18, 21-19 upset—over China-trained Cheng (“Chen”) Yinghua,
the 1985 U.S. Open Champion. That put him in the final of this International event too—though this time he was the loser to Japan’s collegiate star Koji Matsushita. “Cheng, based at the USTTA’s Colorado Springs Training Center, where he’s to be primarily, but not exclusively, a hitting partner for our Olympians, wasn’t a happy man. He said he wasn’t ready for his match with Onifade, said he’d been promised by officials he wouldn’t have to play another match on this warm Saturday. He was hungry, tired. But when he was asked to play, he did…and lost. “Canada’s Ng also lost in the International event—to Matsushita in the semi’s, 16, 16. But in the Open he looked super. In the quarter’s he blitzed fellow Canadian Alain Bourbonnais ($400), then stopped last year’s Champion Danny Seemiller ($500), 11, 8, -17, 17. “Onifade gained the Open finals by defeating 1986 U.S. Closed Champion Chartchai Teekaveerakit ($400) in the quarter’s, 19, 25 (wow), -19, 17, 15 [sic—too many wins], and Horatio Pintea ($500) in the semi’s, 17, 17, 17. “Falling in the quarter’s were two of our best home-grown players—1985/1987 U.S. Closed Champion Sean O’Neill ($400), beaten -17, 10, 17, 15 by Danny Seemiller; and 1983 U.S. Open and 1978/1984 U.S. Closed Champion Eric Boggan ($400), beaten by Pintea, -15, 12, -15, 19, 17. “The Pintea-Boggan match was an entertaining psychological battle of nerves. Pintea, Mr. Cool, proved the better this day over Boggan, Mr. Scream. Pintea, for the most part, kept the same expression on his face, whether he won or lost a point. Boggan, though, generally let those around him know how the match was going as he loudly encouraged himself to play better. [Pintea, aware that strategies were needed to bring spectators to our major tournaments, said, “Maybe it’d help if we paid people to come in and watch, or our players screamed more or broke more rackets. We do have some John McEnroes in the world, and they are crowd favorites.” In the Women’s divisions, Insook Bhushan won both the Open ($250) title and the International event. In the Open she easily defeated Canada’s Lynn Desjardins ($50), then met a familiar foe—Diana Gee. Diana ($150) must have been pleased to eliminate Canada’s manytime National Champion Mariann Domonkos ($50), 19 in the 3rd in the semi’s. But Gee’s goal is to beat her Olympic doubles partner at least once in her career. The career capper didn’t come this time, though—Bhushan winning 12, -13, 8. Insook, after having a very easy time with Japan’s Hiroko Yamaya, also downed Domonkos, another Olympian, in the International event, 9, -13, 19. In Men’s Doubles, O’Neill turned hitting partner Cheng into a doubles partner and the two, after a straight-game win over Japan’s Matsushito/Sato, held off the Seemiller brothers, Danny and Ricky, 19 and 19. The Seemillers are to be congratulated, though, for their -18, 18, 20 semi’s win over Canada’s Olympic pair, Ng and Pintea. Ng, however, paired with Domonkos to take the Mixed from Danny/Insook, then from Sean/Diana, 18, 19, after the U.S. pair had just escaped Cheng/Li Ai, -16, 21, 17. Other Results: Open Doubles: Quarter’s (all excitingly contested): Cheng/O’Neill d. Japan’s Iwasaki/Okamoto, 18, 20; Seemiller/Seemiller d. Onifade/Scott Butler, 18, -15, 20; Matsushito/Sato d. Jim Butler/Brandon Olson, 20, 19; Ng/Pintea d. Muritala Ajala/Dexter St.
Louis, -18, 16, 24. U-2450’s: Final: Zvonko Basaric and Ricky Seemiller (declared themselves co-Champions). Semi’s: Basaric d. Dhiren Narotam, 19, 16; Seemiller d. S. Butler, -18, 16, 18. U-2350: Final: Lim Ming Chui d. Narotam, 19, 14. Semi’s: Chui d. Domonkos; Narotam d. Gene Lonnon. U-2250: Final: Lonnon d. Horace White, 13, 13. Semi’s: Lonnon d. Chi-Sun Chui, 9, 17; White d. Ernie Byles, 20, 11. U-2150: Final: Ty Hoff d. Francis Trudel, -15, 18, 10. Semi’s: Hoff d. Byles, -15, 18, 20; Trudel d. Henry Chan, 17, 18. U-2050: Final: Rene Tywang d. Ed Poon, 11, -17, 11. Semi’s: Tywang d. Ariel Montalvo, 15, 15; Poon d. Werner Kraus, 17, 9. A Doubles: Final: Roberto Byles/Billy Carlisle d. Bortner/ Robert Chamoun, 19, 19. Semi’s: Byles/Carlisle d. Power/Alex Poon, -18, 16, 17; Bortner/Chamoun d. Kenny Owens/Peggy Rosen, 19, 8. U-1950: Lynn Desjardins d. Roland Schilhab, 18, -10, 16. Semi’s: Desjardins d. Brian Pace, 12, 19; Schilhab d. A. Poon, 15, -15, 16. U-1800: Final: Rich Martin d. A.Z. Afzal, 15, -19, 21. Semi’s: Martin d. Samuel Smith, 17, 14; Afzal d. Ahmed Yilla, n.s. B Doubles: Final: Schilhab/Hung Ho d. Chris Miller/Jack Haynes. Semi’s: Schilhab/Ho d. Walt Rosen/F. Waugh, -18, 19, 20; Miller/Haynes d. Meredith Elston/Tsai Ping Wei, 17, 15. U-1650: Final: Elston d. Kenneth Tan, 14, 21. Semi’s: Elston d. Miller, -16, 18, 18; Tan d. Song Kim, -18, 19, 11. U-1250: Final: Kim d. Won-Jong Goag, 18, 12. Semi’s: Kim d. Antron Dunn, 6, 8; Goag d. Richie Owens, 19, 17. U-1050: Final: Richard Sanders d. Robin Forrest, 6, 11. Semi’s: Sanders d. Brian Zoppe, 19, 7; Forrest d. Leo Brassett, -19, 16, 18. Handicap: Final: Owens d. Louis Lederman, 15, -16, 17. Semi’s: Owens d. Chuck Keller, 12, 11; Lederman d. Jerry Buttress, 12, 13. Senior’s: Final: L. M. Chui d. David Harville, 15, 10. Semi’s: Chui d. Festus Mead, 13, 14; Harville d. Bill Mobley, n.s. Over 30: Final: R. Seemiller d. L.M. Chui, 11, 12. Semi’s: Seemiller d. Scott Preiss, 15, 16; Chui d. Larry Thoman, 12, 18. U-22: Final: Matsushita d. Teekaveerakit, 16, 13. Semi’s: Matsushita d. Olson, 13, 14; Teekaveerakit d. O’Neill, 13, 10. U-18: Final: Trudel d. Ariel Montalvo, 17, 24. Semi’s: Trudel d. Jean-Francois Thuot, 13, -24, 16; Montalvo d. E. Owens, -21, 17, 14. U-14: Final: Randy Cohen d. E. Owens, 13, -18, 19. Semi’s: Cohen d. John Whitehead, 13, 14; Owens, bye. While Steve Holland was at the Louisiana Open he met Don Dyer, an unheralded player competing there, and decided to interview him (TTT, Apr.-May, 1988, 17). Because I, too, think Dyer, being representative of so many USTTA members, ought to get some attention, I include Steve’s coverage of him here: “When you meet Don Dyer, don’t ask him his rating. For the record, as of March, it was 1847. He slipped a little in April, falling to 1804. But then, he says, people sometimes make too much of ratings. “‘It seems like when you meet another player, one of the first questions he asks is, “What’s your rating?” Sure, the ratings serve a purpose—we want the playing level to be fair. But the ratings aren’t always accurate. In some situations, you could be way higher than you should be. And some people sandbag to get into lower events than they should be in.’
“Dyer is a computer programmer from Chicago, who practices two to three hours four nights a week at the Net and Paddle Club on the North side of Chicago, about a mile from Wrigley Field. “Dyer started playing table tennis while enrolled as a student at Saint Ambrose College in Iowa. He got away from the game for a few years and played basketball for recreation. A broken finger on his left hand in a basketball game sent him back to the table tennis fold. “‘Basically, in Chicago there’s no place to run,’ he said about his decision to chase the smaller table tennis ball. ‘You’re rather limited as to what you can do for recreation. I started playing table tennis and got fairly good and fairly competitive. So I said to myself, “Well, we’ll try this again.”’ “He calls himself a recreation player, although admitting that recreation means different things to different people. Anyway, it’s not a chance to increase his rating points that attracts a player like Don Dyer to a major tournament such as the Louisiana Open. “It’s not even winning. Face it, Dyer figured he’d be watching from the stands very early into the tournament. Here he did lose very early, and indeed he was sitting on the sideline after losing every match he played. “He was down, but not out. “‘Playing here shows me what I have to work on,’ he says. It’s good competition, a chance to play against quality players, some of whom are going to the Olympics. It all makes for a good time.’ Turning philosophical, he says a person has to deal with the underdog role in life, and he does that here in his matches. “‘You have to deal with not always coming out on top, not always living up to expectations, whether they are your own or someone else’s. You can’t get caught up in winning.’ “Mostly, you find Dyer playing in tournaments in Illinois, or in other parts of the Midwest. He will probably enter the U.S. Open, looking for a big match against a Danny Seemiller, a Joe Ng, a Horatio Pintea, a Sean O’Neill, or other champions. He says he likes it when he can catch such a player and engage with him. “And, being honest, he would also like to raise his own rating. “‘I would like to be around 2000, somewhere in there,’ he said. ‘If I don’t make it, it won’t be the end of the world.’ “If he does make 2000, that probably won’t be the end of his desire to climb in the ratings, he admits. “‘If I make it to that, I might want to be 2200.’ “He can see the improvement in his game. “‘I’m playing a lot. I am improving. There are some people that I couldn’t beat two or three years ago. Now I’m playing closer to them and occasionally beating them. There are a lot of styles to be ready for, and it’s a lot of work.’ “Even to get ‘blown away’ by a top player is a challenge for Dyer.
“‘It wouldn’t be any fun if you were beating people all the time. It’s a challenge to get four or five points from the quality people. You have to fight for everything you get.’ “For Dyer, the bottom line is recreation. But remember that recreation means different things to different people. “‘I’m trying to keep it where it’s recreation,’ he says. ‘I’m trying to keep it where I’m not letting it control everything I do.’” Winners at the March Tidewater Open in Norfolk, VA: Open Singles: 1. Bowie Martin, Jr. 2. Rick Mundy. A’s: Wolfe Anifowoshe. 2. Jack Carr. B’s: 1. Bill Jackson. 2. Ray Snead. Handicap (51 points): 1. Charles Williams. 2. Mundy. Results of the Butterfly March 12th Open played at the Wilson, NC Club: Open Singles: 1. Dexter St. Louis. 2. Scott Butler. 3. Derek May. U-2200’s: Final: Richard McAfee d. Joe Griffis, 17, -14, 15. Semi’s: McAfee d. Rene Tywang, 19, -8, 5; Griffis d. Bowie Martin, Jr., 22, 7. U-2000’s: Final: Tywang d. Martin, Jr., n.s. Semi’s: Tywang d. Chris Burner, n.s.; Martin d. Rick Mundy, n.s. U-1800’s: Final: Bowie Martin, Sr. d. Tracy Taylor, 11, -18, 25. Semi’s: Martin d. Shawn Hancock, 14, -14, 11; Taylor d. Antonio Atkinson, 2-1, n.s. U1600’s: Final: Taylor d. Dana Hanson, 11, 20. Semi’s: Taylor d. Robin Dandanell, 11, 5; Hanson d. Scott Kasson, 16, 17. U-3200 Doubles: Jim Brown/Mike Webb. 2. Kasson/Burner. U-1300: Final: Billy Lucas d. Dandanell, 18, 19. Semi’s: Lucas d. Antron Dunn, ns.; Dandanell d. John Whitehead, n.s. U-1000’s: Final: Butch Alston d. Jammaal Griggs, n.s. Semi’s: Alston d. Don Cappo, 7, 9; Griggs d. Mike Wilson, 15, 18. U-700’s: Final: Cappo d. Chance Cox, 15, 8. Semi’s: Cappo d. Billy Bunn, 18, 13; Cox d. Milton Bouner, 0-2, n.s. Novice: Final: Chris Gill d. Bowie Gray, 17, 16. Handicap: 1. Griffis, 3-0. 2. Hanson, 2-1. 3. Burner, 1-2. Senior’s: Griffis, 2-0. 2. Jim McQueen, 1-1. 3. Bouner, 0-2. Steve Kong (TTT, Feb., 1988, 30) and Tom Loop (TTT, June-July, 1988, 69) fill us in on the Eastern Intercollegiate Team Championship held Mar. 26-27 at Princeton University’s Dillon Gym. Kong gives us pre-tournament information: “For the third year in a row, Princeton hosts this Eastern Intercollegiate Team Championship. Although it’s named Eastern by tradition, teams from other regions in the U.S. and Canada are welcome to participate. There is no restriction on how many teams a college can enter. The sole requirement is that any particular team must be made up of players from the same college. Eligibility is not limited only to undergraduate students. Graduate students and faculty members are also allowed in the competition. The event is sanctioned by the USTTA. Therefore all participants must be members of the Association or join the USTTA at the tournament. “To open play, all teams will be divided into preliminary divisions based on ratings and other information provided to the tournament committee. Every team will then play ties against teams from other divisions and the results will be used for a final top division grouping. Afterwards, each division will play to produce its own team champion. The winner of the top division will be the overall champion.
“Since 1986, over 150 college players have joined the USTTA through activities directed by the Princeton Club. We believe that table tennis can become a part of the college athletic program through a coordinated effort by all college players. For more information, contact Tom Loop, 192 Hempstead Dr., Somerset, NJ 08873. (Phone: 201-937-9693.)” Loop reports on the two-day tournament: “Twenty teams were featured from all over the East, representing 11 colleges: Princeton, Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia, Brown, Anderson, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Rutgers, SUNY-Stony Brook, RPI, and Cooper Union. The Ivy Championship, with the five Ivy League teams playing each other, was also held concurrently. (See accompanying page for Northeast college club info.) “Anderson College, led by Christian Lillieroos, bulldozed their way to an easy win. However, competition was keen for the other places. “In a showdown for the Ivy crown, Columbia’s Ziqiang Wang defeated Steve Kong of Princeton, 18 in the third, in a key match that gave Columbia a hard-fought 5-4 victory. “The intensity of this struggle might have taken a toll on the two squads. Two Princeton players were injured in the Columbia tie. Bhuvnesh Jain sprained his ankle and had to withdraw from the tournament, and Andre Liu hurt his elbow while diving for the ball and didn’t return to competition until the next day. Hence, only one remaining Princeton player competed in the next round against Rutgers, with the host losing 1-5. Meanwhile, Columbia was upset by NJIT. “On the second day of the tournament, Anderson College and Rutgers were victorious against their respective opponents, setting up a final tie between the two colleges for the Eastern Championship—which Anderson won 5-0. “In other action, Barry Sharpe of NJIT surprised Princeton’s Liu, rated 250 points higher, to give his college a third place finish. Columbia was fourth and Princeton fifth. “In other division play, the spotlight belonged to the revitalized University of Pennsylvania program. The Penn #1 team took the Division II title with a victory over SUNYStony Brook. In Division III, Penn #2 came out on top with a 6-0 record, while the hotlycontested runner-up position ended in a three-way tie among Harvard, RPI, and Harvard #2. After Tournament Director Tom Loop totaled up the three teams’ win-loss ratio, Harvard #1 emerged as the runner-up and RPI had to settle for third. “Representatives from every college convened at a league meeting on Saturday to discuss bylaws and league structure. It’s the goal of the league to establish a precedent in intercollegiate table tennis and act as a model for future leagues. As a result, several colleges have opted for affiliation with the USTTA and plan to host regional collegiate meets. Players eligible for next year’s tournament, which is tentatively scheduled for March 25-26, 1989, will include any undergraduate or graduate student who is taking at least two courses or six credit hours per semester and is working towards a degree.” The visiting Japanese Collegiate Team we’ve been introduced to in this chapter came to the U.S. after a conversation USTTA President Sol Schiff had several months ago with ITTF President Ichiro Ogimura. Besides playing at the Orange Coast College, Southern University,
and Wake Forest University (however, no coverage there), the visitors also showed their skill in matches at Princeton Apr. 2-5 which Steve Kong (TTT, Aug., 1988, 32) will tell us about: “The opening exhibition was well-attended in spite of strong competition from the NCAA basketball final and campus activities honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. whose assassination was being remembered. “Play began with a friendly match between the Japanese team and the Princeton team. Representing Princeton were Andre Liu, Steve Kong, Howie Katz, and Scott Stoller. “As expected, the Princeton team did not fare well against their much superior opponents, losing eight matches without winning a single game. “Immediately following the gift exchange came the best show of the evening, a 15minute demonstration by Koji Matsushita and Kiyonobu Iwasaki. These two provided a classic match-up between a chopper and a looper, and their performance delighted every spectator in the stands, including some who had little familiarity with table tennis. “The last part of the exhibition was a match between the visitors and a local team from the New Jersey/New York area put together by Joan Fu. This team was made up of: Rey Domingo, Eyal Adini, Barry Dattel, John Shareshian, Joan Fu, and Vicki Wong. Again, the Japanese dominated the competition. However, this time Domingo managed to salvage some pride for local players by beating two of his three opponents, Okamoto and Sato. “Altogether during their Princeton stay, the Japanese players won 22 out of 24 matches.” Winners at the Mar. 19-20 Westfield, NJ Open: Open Singles: Final: John Onifade d. Wayne Estwick, 14, 20, 16. Semi’s: Onifade d. Barry Dattel, 16, 18, 18; Estwick d. Rey Domingo,-16, 13, 19, 20. Open Doubles: Final: Onifade/Dattel d. Domingo/Estwick, 18, -23, 18. Semi’s: Onifade/Dattel d. Boris Rabinovich/John Andrade, 18, 17; Domingo/Estwick d. Bill Sharpe/George Cameron, 17, 13. U-2300’s: Final: Sharpe d. Cameron, 26, 16. Semi’s: Sharpe d. Sanjeev Khurana, 13, 15; Cameron d. Dattel, -14, 17, 21. U-2075’s: Final: George Dendrinos d. Larry Bavly, 11, 14. Semi’s: Dendrinos d. Michael Henry, -18, 12, 7; Bavly d. Doon Wong, 15, -17, 12. U-2075 Doubles: Final: Dendrinos/Vicki Wong d. Joannie Fu/Bavly, 9, 11. Semi’s: Dendrinos/Wong d. Anthony Bryan/Roy Alter, 12, 18; Fu/Bavly d. Lloyd Nesfield/Henry, 19, 13. U-1950: Final: D. Wong d. Luis Minier, 13, 11. Semi’s: Wong d. Dendrinos, -10, 14, 18; Minier d. Khine Wong, 13, 8. U-1800’s (Cash): Final: Al Matlosz d. Howard Lee, 18, -9, 22. Semi’s Matlosz d. Catharine Tjook, 13, 11; Lee d. Michael Coke, 20, -20, 13. U-1800’s (Trophy): Final: Sam Huang d. Wayne Stugar, 19, 20. Semi’s: Huang d. Leon Belenky, 15, 15; Stugar d. Craig Sental, 11, 18. U-1800 Doubles: Final: Sental/Belenky d. Anthony Gegelys/Huang, 18, 6. Semi’s: Sental/Belenky d. Jin-Cherng Hong/John Alyegbo, 16, 19; Gegelys/Huang d. William Hampton/David Henderson, 15, 20. U-1600’s: Final: Belenky d. Abraham Chen, 17, -18, 15. Semi’s: Belenky d. Greg Adamowski, 16, 17; Chen d. Stugar, 15, 14. U-1600 Doubles: Final: Belenky/Mark Mishtein d. Alyegbo/Gegelys, 20, -19, 15. Semi’s: Belinky/Mishtein d. Leroy King/Mark Ramjeet, 14, 13; Alyegbo/Gergelys d. David Jones/Norman Haase, 21, 16. U-1475’s: Final: Fritz Peter d. Hampton, 19, 9. Semi’s: Peter d. Andrew Novick, 8, 18; Hampton d. Jones, -19, 15, 20. U-
1350’s: Final: Curry Singleton d. Kent Tillinghast, 19, 13. Semi’s: Singleton d. Dieter McCalla, -18, 17, 19; Tillinghast d. Allen Fink, 19, 10. U-1225’s: Final: Mishtein d. Lloyd Thomas, 6, 18. Semi’s: Mishtein d. Brian Ertel, 11, 12; Thomas d. Ann Alvarez, 10, 17. U-1000’s: Final: Anthony Ostuni d. Calvin Lau, 18, 9. Semi’s: Ostuni d. Baiju Aurora, 7, 17; C. Lau d. Edwin Lau, 14, 17. Unrated: Final: Jerry Chan d. John Lewis, 18, 16. Semi’s: Chan d. Benjamin Chu, 18, 15; Lewis won by default. Esquire’s: Thomas McPherson d. Don Franks, -12, 14, 15. Semi’s: McPherson d. Bob Barns, 14, 14; Franks d. Marcy Monasterial, 18, 14. Senior’s (Cash): Domingo d. Sharpe, -20, 12, 16. Semi’s: Domingo d. Marv Plevinsky, 14, 10; Sharpe d. Leroy Smith, 15, 15. Senior’s (Trophy): Final: Hong d. McPherson, 18, 16. Semi’s: Hong d. Frederick Smith, 15, -16, 13; McPherson d. Alyegbo, 19, -9, 17. U-18’s: Final: Ramjeet d. McCalla, 18, -17, 15. Semi’s: Ramjeet d. Duane Thomas, 6, 16; McCalla d. Ertel, -21, 13, 11. U-14’s: Final: E. Lau d. Melvin Lau, 9, 14. Semi’s: E. Lau d. Aurora, 19, 15; M. Lau d. C. Lau, 23, -10, 23. We’ve seen Norman Chouinard repeatedly cover the Pearl Street tournaments—note the adjacent Letter to the Editor he wrote (TTT, Apr.-May, 1988, 48) seeking applicants for the Club’s Resident Training Program. Here he reports on the well-advertised Butterfly East Coast Open (TTT, June-July, 1988, 65-66): “A field of 142 players, including 12 rated above 2400 entered the $5,000 Butterfly East Coast Open, held over two weekends on 15 tables at the Crosby High School in Waterbury, CT. “This year the organizers changed the format to double elimination in all the singles events which tested the stamina of many players. One of the more extreme cases of a player facing multiple challenges was that of William Yeh, highly underrated at 1924. He played 17 matches in three events, all on Sunday, Apr. 3rd, and was rewarded with a second place finish in the U-2000’s and a third in the U-2150’s. “All in all, this was the largest and strongest tournament anyone could remember ever being run in Connecticut. “OPEN SINGLES: In the Winner’s quarterfinals, top-seed John Onifade blasted last year’s East Coast Open winner, Rey Domingo, three straight (21-5 in the third!). The #2 seed Eric Boggan was too steady for Murry Ajala and won 14 in the fourth. Eric seemed to be pretty close to his top form and was playing better than he had in Louisiana the week before. Thirdseed Danny Seemiller was brilliant in defeating the strong Youth division champ, Daniel Ubiomo, in straight games. In the fourth quarter’s match, Dexter St. Louis, the #4 seed, downed Ricky Seemiller in a close four-games. Thus all the top seeds were undefeated into the semi’s. “The first semi saw Onifade destroy St. Louis. John’s loop-kill and anti-kill were smoking to the ‘ohs’ and ahs’ of the crowd. Right now his attacking shots are the most devastating in North America. He was playing with great power, winning short points. “The other semi’s saw both Boggan and Seemiller on their game, and their play left the Connecticut fans breathless. Lead changes were the norm in every game. “In the first, Seemiller caught Boggan and won at deuce. But then Boggan retaliated, took the second at 17. No lead seemed safe and every point was played with purpose and intensity. Eric stunned Danny with some counters late in the third to go ahead 2-1. The fourth game stayed
close during most of the play, but Boggan gradually inched away to take a 20-17 lead. Three match-points down, Danny showed his mettle by playing his best points of the match. He managed to knock down Boggan’s backboard in four straight long rallies to come within a point of rallying for the game. But then, when Seemiller missed on his third-ball attack, Boggan immediately capitalized on that miss and 23-21 ran out the game to advance to the final. “ONIFADE-BOGGAN I: The Winner’s bracket final was a classic confrontation between the irresistible force, Onifade, and the immovable object, Boggan. “In this match, John took the lead, two games to one. But it was obvious he was working much harder now (he hadn’t lost a game to this point) than he had in his earlier rounds. Boggan gathered himself to win a tense fourth game at 18, and in the fifth it seemed that his steady table game did wear out the slugging Onifade who pressed just a little and missed on some important points. Eric took the game and match, 21-18, to send Onifade to the Loser’s bracket final. “LOSER’S BRACKET: This Bracket was marked by very close matches and desperate players fighting elimination. In the round of eight, Ricky Seemiller survived being match-point down in the second to defeat Senior division champ Domingo, 21-9 in the third. Ajala eliminated Ubiomo, 11-9 in the third. “Next round, Ricky shocked brother Danny in three, as perhaps Danny had still not recovered from his tough loss to Boggan. As we heard it, this was Ricky’s first match-win over Danny in about 10 years. Ajala continued his strong tournament with a three-game triumph over St. Louis. Murry seems to have regained the form that vaulted him to a #5 U.S. ranking last year. He had a solid 8-2 record here against players with a 2400 and up rating, including a win in the U-2450’s over Domingo.” Tim Yagle, in an Apr. 11, 1988 article in the Waterbury, CT Republican-American, gives us some up-to-date background on Ajala: “Murry Ajala, ranked 11th nationally, has joined the Pearl Street Table Tennis Club’s staff to teach with fellow player and friend Wayne Estwick, the resident pro. Estwick is the top player in New England and is ranked in the top 15 nationally. “Ajala, 27, wanted to leave his current home of Wilson, N.C., a not-so-small town of about 34,000 just east of Raleigh, because he said there was nothing to do there and he couldn’t play with someone of equal caliber. “The Lagos, Nigeria native became interested in Pearl Street when he accompanied representatives of Butterfly, sponsors of the U.S. East Coast Open, from its North Carolina headquarters to Waterbury to deliver 19 tables for the tournament. Butterfly sponsors Ajala and a half-dozen other players nationwide. Estwick showed Ajala around the facilities at 106 Columbia Blvd. “‘Everything here is o.k. for table tennis players,’ he said in his best Nigerian-American accent. ‘Pearl Street has everything—the best hall, good organization [headed by Pearl Street Executive Director Hubie Williamson], practicing, training, tournaments.’ “Estwick said he did little to persuade Ajala to join the staff. ‘We’re good friends,’ Estwick said. ‘It’s boring down there in Wilson. He just can’t live there. I’ve been to Wilson. No way I could live there. I didn’t really convince him to move here.’
“Ajala certainly left his mark on Wilson and its 18-member table tennis club. During his 16-month tenure there, he raised the ratings of 12 players; two of them from zero to 1600 and 1700, respectively, and another from 1200 to 2000.” Director Williamson said that the Center’s tennis and basketball leagues remain seasonal, but that the table tennis program will be pursued year round. Williamson could not be happier with Ajala’s desire to join Estwick, giving the Brass City two top players on its teaching staff. ‘We were looking for somebody to play with Wayne on a regular basis,’ he said. ‘Wayne needed somebody to push him.’ “Ajala will move into the Pearl Street complex soon. Both players will be salaried employees of Pearl Street, maintaining the building, teaching at the table tennis school, and putting on clinics and exhibitions at area high schools and colleges.” Chouinard now moves climactically to end his write-up of the tournament. “Since both Ricky and Murry had one loss, whoever won between them would advance, or so it had seemed. But though Murry defeated Ricky at 14 in the fourth, he injured his hip late in that match which forced him to default to Onifade. So third-place ($250) to Ajala, fourth ($200) to Ricky. “ONIFADE-BOGGAN II. This was from start to finish a showcase for Onifade. He was hot, firing on all cylinders, and never let Boggan into the match with his warp-speed attack. While Boggan made a fight of it in the third game, Onifade-Boggan II was all Onifade, 14, 10, 20. “ONIFADE-BOGGAN III. The Deciding Match. Onifade carried his momentum from his last match to win game one at 13 and led game two early until Boggan regrouped with a good short game mixed with harder shots wide to his opponent’s forehand. Boggan grabbed the second game at 18, and won the third almost comfortably at 17. After the two-minute break, Onifade started the fourth game, possibly his last, with a mixed sense of desperation and purpose. He raced to an early 6-1 lead and never looked back, winning at 16. “ONIFADE-BOGGAN III--GAME FIVE. Game five, third match. Best players. Great crowd. It occurred to almost everyone that this is what it’s all about. Boggan was ahead early, but then Onifade led precariously 10-8 at the changeover. While Boggan tried to control the tempo of the points, Onifade just wouldn’t miss any of Boggan’s clever placements, and took seven of the next ten points for a decisive lead. Boggan ($500) played valiantly to the end, but his block of Onifade’s last loop-kill floated just long and the Nigerian took home the money ($1,000), 16 in the fifth. “In retrospect, neither finalist had lost to another player in the tournament. Statistically, Onifade was the better player on that day but just barely. In three Championship matches, he defeated Boggan two matches to one. Also, in 13 games, it was Onifade 8 and Boggan 5. And in 482 points played, Onifade won 256 or 53% to Boggan’s 226 or 47%. They both really earned their money. “WOMEN’S SINGLES. Three guesses who won. While Insook Bhushan didn’t fare as well in the Open Singles (9th place) or the 2450’s (4th place), she decimated the Eastern women who dared to show up. The big disappointment was that only eight entered the event. For the record, though, Marta Zurowski ($50) defeated Joannie Fu for third place, Vicky Wong ($100)
defeated Zurowski for second place, and Bhushan ($200) defeated Wong and all the rest while never yielding 12 points in any game. Other Results: Open Doubles: Final: Seemillers d. Lim Ming Chui/Ubiomo, 9, 14. Semi’s: Seemillers d. St. Louis/Ajala, 13, 19; Chui/Ubiomo d. Onifade/Wayne Estwick, 20, -11, 17. Mixed Doubles: D. Seemiller/Bhushan d. Domingo/Wong, 8, 17. Semi’s: Seemiller/Bhushan d. Ubiomo/Zurowski, 10, 19; Domingo/Wong d. Onifade/Fu, 13, 10. U-2450’s: 1. Ajala. 2. Domingo. 3. Estwick. 4. Bhushan. U-2300’s: 1. George Cameron. 2. John Allen. 3. Michael Henry. 4. Sanjee Khurana. U-2150’s: Ralph Bockoven. 2. Cameron. 3. Yeh. 4. Chi-Ming Chui. U-2000’s: Marcy Monasterial. 2. Yeh. 3. C-M Chui. 4. Chester Ryan. U-1850’s: 1. Ravi Ravaswamy. 2. Michael Coke. 3. Roy Alter. 4. Kenny Chan. U-1750’s: 1. Michael Inger. 2. Malcolm Baker. 3. Dennis Walker. 4. Jon Totton. U-1650’s: 1. Eugene Akins. 2. Manny Tzamanis. 3. Aston Brissett. 4. Arvo Hytinnen. U1550: Tzamanis. 2. Ed Voice. 3. Atkins. 4. Dick Majewski. U-1450’s: 1. Gary Ehrhardt. 2. Majewski. 3. Harish Sharma. 4. Joe Hertz. U-1350’s: 1. Tom Ruscigno. 2. Denise Shapiro. 3. Craig Tillinghast. 4. Kent Tillinghast. U-1250’s: 1. Mikel Lefort. 2. Steve Henderson. 3. C. Tillinghast. 4. David Wong. U-1150’s: 1. Phillip Chen. 2. C. Tillinghast. 3. Leonard James. 4. Marc Nelson. U-1050’s: 1. Dean Surkin. 2. Anthony Ostuni. 3. George Chen. 4. James. U-950’s: 1. Chen. 2. Eddie Garcia. 3. Steve Sabatino. 4. James. Unrated: 1. Mark Szerenos. 2. Rami Irshaidat. 3. Khongvahn Sengvahndheng. 4. Doug Voice. Senior’s: 1. Domingo. 2. Chui. 3. George Brathwaite. 4. Walker. Youth: 1. Ubiomo. 2. St. Louis. 3. Estwick. 4. Damir Kadija. Junior’s: 1. Nelson. 2. Thomas. 3. Garcia. 4. L. David.