Photo of 3 time Coed Champs NYU. Photo Credit: Yukong Zhang

Shaquila Sarapao, Guest writer
NCTTA Media

Saturday, April 15, concluded the National Coed Teams event. Top seed Texas Wesleyan cruised their way into the finals, beating Harvard (#7) 3-1 then California (#5) 3-1. UCLA (#2), on the other hand, was struggling in the semifinals against defending champs NYU (#3). A 5th matchup in doubles was the deciding factor to see if second seeded UCLA would be playing against Texas Wesleyan in the finals.

It was a battle of the sexes in the decider: Wang/Sung (UCLA) vs. Hazin/Dani (NYU). UCLA started off strong, winning the first game. With a change of pace, NYU won the next two games. Tension rose as NYU was catching up in the 4th set after being down 4 points.

Consecutive points ensued, favoring the northeastern school. The gap between the schools grew bigger until it was match point for NYU.

Doubles partners Hazin/Dani of NYU won the game 3-1, bringing their team to the Coed finals to defend their title.

The Coed finals consisted of defending champions NYU vs. Texas Wesleyan. The first matchup was a Japanese penholder (J-pen) style of play against a lefty. Even with Eduardo Tomoike’s (Texas Wesleyan) J-pen and fast footwork, he was no match for Jeremy Hazin (NYU), falling to him in the 4th set.

The next matchup also favored NYU. Lucas Eto’s (Texas Wesleyan) fighting spirit kept him strong against Mudit Dani (NYU) but ultimately lost to him in the 4th set. However, Texas Wesleyan quickly caught up with two wins from Zhen Deng and Santiago Montes Solarte.

Tied 2-2 for a doubles decider, the dynamic duo of Hazin and Dani, who also won Men’s Doubles, proved too much for the Texas Wesleyan pair of Tomoike and Deng.

On Saturday, April 15, 2023, NYU became three time Coed National Champions, all wins in Round Rock, Texas.

About 2023 NCTTA College Table Tennis Championships

The championships are hosted by the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association and the Round Rock CVB. Men’s and Women’s Singles and Doubles, and Men’s/Coed Teams, Women’s Teams. The event is sponsored by Double Happiness, PongSpace, Major League Table Tennis.
Watch the event on live stream starting Friday April 14th on champs.nctta.org

About NCTTA

The National Collegiate Table Tennis Association (NCTTA) is a non-profit organization established exclusively for promoting the sport of table tennis at the college level. As the national governing body for college table tennis in the United States and Canada, NCTTA organizes elite intercollegiate competition throughout North America. www.nctta.org