(by Steve Hopkins)
The 2025 rendition of the Rhode Island High School Team Table Tennis Championships was played this weekend, and Bishop Hendricken High School has repeated as Rhode Island Champion. The result is not a surprise, as Hendricken finished the regular season 11-0 and won the end of season tournament 5-0. The final day involved eight teams with Hendricken topping Toll Gate High School 3-0 in the Final.
For clubs looking to expand youth programs (or add some grassroots outreach in their area), the model used in Rhode Island may be worth exploring. Rhode Island Table Tennis has hosted a High School team for many years. Initially, this had been an event held in combination with inexpensive, unsanctioned singles events for kids. Over a number of years, however, the 3-person team format has caught on. The club offers youth clinics in the Fall and uses those events as a marketing opportunity. Players (and parents) are encouraged to go back to their schools and invite others to join a team. At the same time, invitations are sent out to schools (and for the last two years, a general invitation was approved by two school systems – with a note from the central office going out to all Principles).
This year, three events were offered. The first two were open to any 3-person team from any school in the region. Due to our location and the small size of our State, that is an invitation to neighboring States of Massachusetts and Connecticut. The third event is for Rhode Island schools only. This year, we had 9 teams in the first open event, 11 teams in the second open event, and 8 entrants into the Rhode Island High School Team Table Tennis Championships.
The semifinals of the Rhode Island event were between top seeded Hendricken and Cumberland, and between second seeded Toll Gate and Lincoln. Toll Gate topped Lincoln 2-1 to reach the Final. Hendricken defeated Cumberland 3-0 to reach the Final. And in the Final it was Hendricken’s Alex Hopkins with a 2-0 (11-5, 11-4) win over Toll Gate’s Luke Goodine, Hendricken’s Braiden Sawyer with a tight 2-1 (11-3, 10-12, 11-9) win over Will Goodine, and Hendricken’s Alex Roberts with a nailbiter 2-1 (13-15, 11-8, 11-6) win over Parker Weldy.
Forty different students participated over the three event days. It was a mixture of seasoned and novice players. Accompanying the student participants were parents and siblings and sometimes teachers from the schools. There’s an added benefit to using local schools – it is much easier to encourage media coverage of the events. This year’s table tennis season was a lot of fun for everyone. The events were also a nice change from the typical club look and feel – as the club was filled with young players (and many new faces).
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