Autumn Classic Round 2 (part 2)

Following 5th seed Yi Zhou’s victory over the 13th seed Ivan Wan, we moved on to our 5th match of the evening featuring 6th seed Kevin “Cash” Lin against 8th seed Sang-Yoon Kim.  Here we had two completely different styles.  On one side was Lin and his slam-happy method of setting up the shot he wanted before shoving it down his opponent’s throat.  On the other was Kim, who would look cool and collected even if the world was ending, and his primarily defensive stance.  Kim’s major shot in the first set was the slice, and it worked long enough to keep Cash off balance, but couldn’t hold off the 6th seed in an 11-8 set 1 win.  The second set saw Kim become much more aggressive as he replaced many of his slices with topspin.  This new strategy saw several more winners, yet also caused many errors as he dropped set 2 as well 7-11.  Johnny Cool didn’t let it get to him and played hard in set 3, almost forcing deuce with a 10-9 score, but Johnny Cash wouldn’t let that happen as he finished off the set 11-9 and moved into the quarterfinals.

Next up was our 3rd seed Greg Cardi facing off against the 11th seed Mark Teplitsky.  Teplitsky, fresh off a victory against two time runner up Radu Paponiu looked to strike again.  This was a match of forehand vs forehand.  Both players have a devastating forehand, but a much more defensive backhand.  At times, rallies here looked stupendous, as slams were met with slams, firing back and forth across the table.  This was when they each hit to the other’s forehand.  Backhand rallies, on the other hand, looked completely different, as the ball ambled over the net each hit only to be bounced back over.  Either way, they were a good match up and this sportswriter can only comment that players looking to take it to the next level need to develop a quick topspin forehand.  The match itself?  As exciting as they come.  After winning the first two sets, Cardi looked to finish Teplitsky off, but our 11th seed wouldn’t say die.  He came out swinging and let set three 6-1.  Cardi made an impressive charge, taking 7 of the next 11, but keep up the momentum as Teplitsky took his first set 11-8.  Set 4 began exactly the opposite, as Cardi led 7-2, but somehow lost momentum as Teplitsky somehow fought and clawed his way back, finally tying the set at 9 apiece.  At a de facto deuce, Teplitsky stole the final two points to tie the match at 2 sets each.  Set 5 went back and forth as the players exchanged point after point until it was 6-6.  Digging deep, Teplitsky continued his run and took 5 of the next 6 to seal the deal 11-7.  With that, a great come-from-behind victory was produced and marked the second time in CTTA history a top-four seed fell before the quarterfinals (the first being, of course, the monumental match where 19th seed John Winstead took down 4th seed Radu Paponiu in the first round last semester).

Teplitsky did not rest long.  The next match was also his as he faced 6th seed Kevin “Cash” Lin in the quarterfinals.  Perhaps tired out from the previous match, Teplitsky fell behind 4 points early and could never make up the difference as Lin strolled to an easy 11-7 win.  As he didn’t before, he didn’t give up here as he bounced back and won by an almost as easy 11-8 margin.  Tied 1-1, the all-important set three would decide who would take the advantage going down the stretch.  This set was Teplitsky at his best, as he looked much more consistent, not only with his slams but also his common strokes which forced Lin to fight and scratch for every point.  His only weakness was post-slam, as he would swing so hard he would be a bit off balance if it were to be returned.  Luckily, few were, which helped him take set 3 and the 2-1 match lead.  If he could pull out one of the next two, he would do the impossible:  reaching the semifinals seeded outside the top 10, another feat which has never happened.  Lin, however, had a little to say about the subject.  Leading right away in set 4, he continued the charge and won 11-6, as Teplitsky looked tired and out-of-rhythm.  Tied 2-2, this sportswriter put down his pen, sat back, and enjoyed the final set, which featured some of the best rallies of the match.  In what was Teplitsky’s 10th straight set, he couldn’t keep up the intensity and allowed Lin’s solid game to rule the day.  Congrats to Lin, who achieves a semifinal berth in his first CTTA tourney.  But hats off to Teplitsky, who almost completed the most unlikely run in tournament history.  Unfortunately, Teplitsky’s Cinderella days are probably over, as he will undoubtedly be seeded much lower in tournaments to come.

How can we begin talking about match 8?  Enter The Steamroller.  Three time tournament champion, the number 2 seed Jeremy “The Steamroller” Berry was up next against our 5th seed Yi Zhou.  Oftentimes competitors enter a match against Berry with the mindset that they can’t win, and it’s hard to blame them.  In his CTTA career, Berry has still yet to drop a set in non-finals play.  That means that if we’re not in the Olive Rehearsal Hall after the final Performance Forum of the semester, under the lights, in front of the crowd, then Berry ain’t losing (not that he necessarily loses in the finals as he has a 3-3 match record on Championship Thursday).  Berry has never not gone all the way to the finals since he’s been here and you know those finals posters we put up?  Yep, Berry has been on them all:

So it’s hard not to get down on yourself as you’re about to play The Steamroller, but somehow, someway, Zhou didn’t.  In fact, he surprised everyone, especially Berry by jumping out to a 6-3 set 1 lead.  Unfortunately for Zhou, Berry found his rhythm and took 8 of the next 10 to win set 1.  Sets 2 and 3 were similar, as Zhou led both early 5-2 and 6-4 respectively, but as he has always done in the past, he found a way to win and took the match 3-0, remaining undefeated (in sets!) in non-finals play.

The stage is set for the final night of Championship Table Tennis at the Colburn School where 2 finalists will earn the right to do battle in the Championship.

Sunday.

November.

27th.

8PM.

5th Floor.

Olive Building.

Be there.

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