BUSAN, South Korea — A metro Atlanta 15-year-old made her mark Tuesday at the World Team Table Tennis Championships in South Korea, winning a singles match as Team USA recorded their only collective victory in the tournament.
Amber Liu, a sophomore at Johns Creek High School, traveled with the team to Busan for the world championships.
She toppled 19-year-old Amina Kessaci 3-0 (11-9, 11-5, 11-4) as Team USA beat the Algerians 3-0 to finish fourth in their group. They had previously lost to Chile, Thailand and Chinese Taipei.
Liu was the youngest member of the U.S. team in South Korea. She had not competed in their first three matches as more senior members of the team led the charge, but with the U.S. eliminated after losing their first three group stage matches, Liu was able to show off her skills against Algeria.
Team table tennis matches are determined through a best-of-five singles matches format. In the match against Algeria, Jessica Reyes Lai and Kayla Goodwin also recorded victories to give the U.S. a 3-0 sweep.
Liu has been playing table tennis since she was only 7 years old and currently travels the world competing in elite competitions in between her training, piano lessons and school work.
Most recently, Liu competed in the U.S. trials for the Table Tennis World Championship in Texas. There, she placed in the top four of her age group, earning her a spot to compete in South Korea.
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