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Out of an amazing field of sixty-six players from around the region, Rams Eric Owens,
Ludovic Gombos, and Carlos Chiu placed first, second, and fourth, respectively, at the
2nd Annual Texas Wesleyan University Fall Open, Sun. Oct. 16 in the Sid Richardson
Gymnasium. In an exciting final, senior Eric Owens defeated his new teammate, Romanian
born freshman Ludovic Gombos 4-1 (11-7, 11-9, 9-11, 11-4, 12-10). For third and fourth place,
Tuan-Anh Tran of Austin, TX recorded a win over freshman Carlos Chiu by default. According
to Chiu, he was unable to play the match due to leg cramps. The source of Chiu's cramps
may have been from his excruciating match against Owens, as Owens won a long-winded
4-1 (8-11, 12-10, 11-2, 11-8, 11-9). Gombos match over Tran was even longer, as he pulled
out the victory 4-3 (6-11, 11-7, 11-9, 9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-4). That duel consisted of 123 points
over seven games. But that was definitely not the longest match of the day. That award goes
to Rams junior Dinko Kranjac and Carlos Chiu in their opening round robin. Chiu squeezed out
the win 4-3 (11-4, 9-11, 12-10, 30-32, 10-12, 11-8, 14-12). According to Rams Peter Lindsay-van
der Puije, the match took nearly two hours to finish. An incredible 186 points were hotly
contested. Rams Table Tennis Program Assistant Michael Meier said he is in the process of
contacting USA Table Tennis (USATT) and the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) on
whether or not the Kranjac/Chiu match qualifies for any national or international records.
As for Abdul Khan, the only Rams varsity player not eligible for the championship class, he won
the Class A title 4-2 over Lifeng Liu of Austin, TX 4-2 (11-7, 9-11, 9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-9). Other
Rams who placed in the Top four of their respective classes were junior Sabrina Worrell (Class B),
Sadiq Khan (Class C), and Peter Lindsay-van der Puije (Class E).
Tournament Director, Head Table Tennis Coach Christian Lillieroos, said over 200 matches were
played in the tournament. Matches were 4 of 7, instead of 3 of 5, which increases the average
match length from 20-40 minutes to 30-90 minutes.
Rams Varsity, Junior Varsity Prevail Over Visiting Atlanta Team
The Rams easily defeated Ben Hill Sporting Club of Atlanta, GA in both junior varsity and varsity
matches, Saturday evening in the Sid Richardson Gymnasium. The junior varsity squad won 8-2,
while the varsity team triumphed 9-1. Rams Aldis Presley is the son of Ben Hill's head coach
Ralph Presley and older brother of Micah Presley.
During and following the varsity match, karaoke was hosted by Communications Coordinator
John Gonzalez. Head Coach Christian Lillieroos sang the first song of the night, "My Way" by
Frank Sinatra.
JV Team Match
Sabrina Worrell def. Petro Stirbu 3-2 (11-4, 11-13, 8-11, 11-7, 15-13)
Tim Aikey def. Bob Bowlander 3-1 (11-7, 10-12, 11-8, 11-7)
Bob Bowlander def. Worrell 3-0 (11-4, 11-4, 11-3)
Aikey def. Petro Stirbu 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 11-8)
Worrell/Aikey def. Stirbu/Bowlander 3-1 (11-6, 13-15, 11-4, 11-7)
Sadiq Khan def. Robert Combs 3-0 (11-9, 11-5, 11-5)
Andy Zhang def. Michael Meier 3-1 (11-9, 4-11, 11-8, 14-12)
Khan def. Micah Presley 3-0 (11-4, 12-10, 11-5)
Meier def. Eric Edmondson 3-1 (11-3, 5-11, 11-4, 11-2)
David Livings/Peter Lindsay v.d.P. def. Presley/Edmondson 3-0 (13-11, 11-4, 13-11)
Wesleyan JV def. Ben Hill JV 8-2
Varsity Team Match
Eric Owens def. Petro Stirbu 3-0 (11-6, 11-5, 11-8)
Courtney Roberts def. Bob Bowlander 3-0 (11-3, 11-9, 11-5)
Gombos/ Krajac def. Roberts/Roberts 3-2 (12-10, 11-13, 9-11, 11-5, 11-5)
Eric Owens def. Bob Bowlander 3-0 (11-4, 13-11, 11-6)
Courtney Roberts def. Petro Stirbu 3-1 (11-9, 11-4, 12-14, 11-8)
Abdul Rahman Khan def. Andy Zhang 3-0 (11-7, 11-6, 11-8)
Aldis Presley def. Robert Combs 3-0 (11-5, 11-3, 11-6)
Rahman Khan def. Joel Roberts 3-1 (11-8, 11-7, 6-11, 11-7)
Noel Roberts def. Aldis Presley 3-1 (11-8, 8-11, 13-11, 12-10)
Rahman Khan/Presley def. Zhang/Combs 3-0 (11-3, 11-8, 11-4)
Wesleyan Varsity def. Ben Hill Varsity 9-1
Several tournaments await the Wesleyan squad over the next two months. The next varsity
event is the Lafayette Open near Philadelphia, PA, Oct. 22-23. The junior varsity next
competes at the Austin Fall Round Robin in Austin, TX, Nov. 5.
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