In the quest for the golden paddle, there are no backhanded dealings only backhanded strokes.

This season one student on the Old Rochester Regional Junior High ping pong team will walk away with that coveted paddle and hopefully have a little fun in the process.

Seventh grade English teacher Nathan Orie coaches the team, which meets for two hours on Tuesdays first and second semester. A new season and new seventh grade players means a new feel for the team.

For starters, there are more than twice the number of players – around 14 compared to last year's average of six. And then there are the boys of the Mattapoisett Table Tennis League, or as Liam Downey prefers to call it “The League.”

The unofficial group from Mattapoisett is comprised of a handful of now seventh grade students who play tournament style at their homes. The backyard tournaments, like the junior high team, have a mix of competitive players and those just there to have fun.

Downey and Reese Vandal say they’re not exactly in it to win it in The League or the school team. For them, it's more camaraderie than cutthroat.

“We didn’t have to do anything that day, and we thought it would be fun because it was competitive and fun. We thought it would be another opportunity to match up again,” said Downey.

Some of his fellow League members, primarily Hayden Duke and Andrew Eilersten, tend to be more intense on the floor.

“There’s blood in the water,” joked Orie, who can get pretty competitive himself. “My family has a tournament every Easter and Christmas. My grandmother plays. It’s pretty intense.”

Even with his experience, Orie admits he was bested a few times by last year’s undefeated champion and golden paddle winner Jack Le Brun.

Le Brun may not capture another golden paddle so easily this year, however. The eighth grade student has some competition from Duke and Eilersten, who so far have shown themselves to be formidable opponents.

Many of the seventh grade students have brought with them a more competitive edge, and part of Orie’s goal is to teach the kids how to handle winning and losing gracefully.

“There have been some heated arguments for sure, but we try to keep it real and keep it fun,” he said.

Disputes are handled civilly, and when necessary, with rock, paper, scissors.

While some students lob, drive and smash the ball across the net, there’s always a place on the team for the more relaxed players, says Orie.

“We’re still here to have a blast, but if you’re competitive and you want to win, we’re OK with that too.”