Table tennis aces competition

Two years ago it was fourth best team in the country by virtue of its performance at nationals in Princeton. Last spring it moved up a notch to No. 3. Who knows what this year has in store for the Penn table tennis club? Team members say the squad is even better this season. So far, the club has continued its dominance of the collegiate table-tennis circuit. In its biggest test of the year, Penn thoroughly dispatched the competition in a five-team weekend tournament held at Hofstra University. In winning the championship, the whole team only lost one match to the likes of Cornell, Cooper Union, New York University and Hofstra -- all national powers. Contributing to the resounding victory were the top six members of Penn's club, who participated in both singles and doubles play. Club captain and nationally-ranked player David Rosenzweig led the way and received help from teammates Henry Gosebruch, Priyabroto Chatterjee, Ravi Ponamgi, Raymond Tong and Uma Duvvuli. "Our guys just were superior to the other teams in that tournament," Ponamgi said. More challenging tourneys await Penn in the spring, culminating in the nationals at Princeton. Even though Penn has fared well there recently, greater success may be possible this year. "I feel that all of the top players improved from last year and what is more amazing is that Dave has gotten even better. He was awesome to begin with so he had very little space to improve, but he did," Ponamgi said. "Although our fall recruiting of new players didn't yield any great players, it did give us better depth," club secretary James Ingraham said. "Unlike in the past years, we now have strength behind the top four players." That will help if the team advances to the 16-team national tournament in March, which it expects to do. Each school sends its top eight players, so an equally balanced squad is best prepared to achieve top results. Any success Penn might have there or anywhere else will hinge on its leader, Rosenzweig. He is a power not only in collegiate competition but in the national rankings as well, as demonstrated by his No. 72 ranking. He joined the club two years ago as a freshman and now runs its twice-weekly practices. At these times, he and Gosebruch, both United States Association of Table Tennis certified coaches, give 20-minute lessons to both novice and advanced members. When Ponamgi said he owes a lot to Rosenzweig, he echoed the sentiments of the whole team. In both his play and his leadership, Rosenzweig has been essential to the rise of Penn's club. But as to the question of the team rising enough to capture the national tournament -- only time will tell. Maybe a little too much time. "I'm very anxious to see what we can do at Princeton," Ponamgi said, "It could be very surprising."