Ping pong tournament produces excitement at CVHS

On Dec. 7, the annual ping pong tournament took place in the Castro Valley auxiliary gym. As students crowded around the wooden tables, fierce competitors smashed the light hollow ball over the 15.25 centimeter net.

Brian Tognolini, a senior, was competing in this competition for the second consecutive year.  Regarding what he did to prepare for this week’s match, Tognolini said, “I honestly didn’t even prepare this year.  I totally forgot it was this week, and so I went in on day one pretty rusty.” Tognolini does not play ping pong on a regular basis.  He considers ping pong a distant hobby.  Last year he was eliminated in the semifinals.

This year, he competed in numerous rounds against formidable opponents. “The toughest competitor I faced was Justin Tat. He put a lot of spin on the ball and had a dangerous forehand.” remarked Tognolini. “The most memorable moment was the final point when my opponent, Justin Tat, miss-hit the ball and it went flying up in the air.”

As a result, Tognolini won the championship and Tat finished as runner up.

Tognolini said, “I definitely think ping pong should be a competitive high school sport. Every school has tons of kids with talent. It would be awesome to see different schools match up against one another.”