Welcome to the Northwest High School Chess Club!
("The first rule of Chess Club: you do not...talk...about...checkers!") |
The club is open to all Northwest High School students, faculty and staff, and all playing abilities. If you want to learn the game, COME: we love teaching beginners about this beautiful game that people have been playing for 1500 years! Conversely, if you want to throw a 3.b4 Wing Gambit at a Sicilian Defense against some 1400-1500 level competition, COME: we love getting beaten by strong players. (We call it "investing in loss;" It's a great way to improve quickly!)
WE MEET IN ROOM 119 during WIN every WEDNESDAY (or really, anytime I have WIN, since the boards & sets are in my room!) ATTENDANCE IS TOTALLY VOLUNTARY AND THERE ARE NO DUES: You want to play? Come. Got stuff to do? Don't. It's laid back. (And generally pretty reliable; If it's Wednesday and school is in session? We have chess club. Period. From late August to early June. I think I've had to cancel club MAYBE twice or thrice in ten years.)
The club's advisor is me, Mr Russillo (in case you missed my name up top.)
The URL for this page is http://russillo.weebly.com/bull-nwhs-chess.html
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The 2024 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 at Southwest High. 11 of the 54 players were Vikings which (and I need to check some data) MAY have made us the largest team competing. YET AGAIN we finished 2nd, but this time NOT behind Early College but behind Ragsdale!
[DETAILS FORTHCOMING!]
(And I know it seems like a million years from now, but yes, there is a Spring Tournament already scheduled for Sat., April 27, here at Northwest High, so mark your calendars!)
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WE MEET IN ROOM 119 during WIN every WEDNESDAY (or really, anytime I have WIN, since the boards & sets are in my room!) ATTENDANCE IS TOTALLY VOLUNTARY AND THERE ARE NO DUES: You want to play? Come. Got stuff to do? Don't. It's laid back. (And generally pretty reliable; If it's Wednesday and school is in session? We have chess club. Period. From late August to early June. I think I've had to cancel club MAYBE twice or thrice in ten years.)
The club's advisor is me, Mr Russillo (in case you missed my name up top.)
The URL for this page is http://russillo.weebly.com/bull-nwhs-chess.html
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -= - = - = - = - = - = -
The 2024 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 at Southwest High. 11 of the 54 players were Vikings which (and I need to check some data) MAY have made us the largest team competing. YET AGAIN we finished 2nd, but this time NOT behind Early College but behind Ragsdale!
[DETAILS FORTHCOMING!]
(And I know it seems like a million years from now, but yes, there is a Spring Tournament already scheduled for Sat., April 27, here at Northwest High, so mark your calendars!)
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Beautiful Sets! Gifted by (L-R) K. Connor • E. Sarkisian • M. Schultz
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Mr R's Tips:
- How To Get Better Quickly
- If You've Never Played In A Tournament Before
- A terrific page on opening concepts. (Exeter Chess Club, UK)
- = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - =
C H E S S L I N K S
Play chess online FOR FREE:
- Chess.com
- Pogo.com
- freechess.org FICS (Free Internet Chess Server)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- Greensboro Chess Club. Meets every Wednesday night from 6-9pm in the Lewis Rec Center (off Pisgah Church on Forest Lawn Dr.)
- NC Chess Association. http://www.ncchess.org. Upcoming tournaments, results, and other North Carolina chess information. Discounted membership of students!
- USCF - US Chess Federation. News, tournament information, publications, club listings, online store, ratings, top players, club rules, and links.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
GREAT GAMES - Paul Morphy's Opera Game (Morphy v. Duke Karl + Count Isouard, Paris 1858)
In 1858 American master Paul Morphy was visiting Paris and took in an Opera with two buddies -- a Duke and a Count --who challenged him to a match, right there in the opera box. The rest is glorious chess history. (Since it was written for a general audience, the above link has probably the best annotations (comments about each move) you'll find anywhere. Click the "Chessgames.com" link at the bottom and play through the game, move by move. For many people, Morphy's 16.Qb8+ -- a Queen sacrifice -- is the single most beautiful move in all of chess history!)
GREAT GAMES - Rubinstein's Polish Brilliancy (Rotlewi v. Rubinstein, Lodz, 1907)
Very difficult to find a better example of coordination and harmony among so many pieces: Look at Black's Rook battery and Bishop battery after 19...Bb6+. And White's fate is sealed one move later after 20...Ng4, but it's doubtful White knew what was hitting him as he devoured Black's Queen and Rook. Click the following link to watch a terrific video analysis of this beautiful game.
http://www.chesstape.com/index.php/openings/rubinsteins-immortal-game (OK that link—in fact the chesstape domain itself—is dead, but if you google Rubinstein Rotlewi Polish Brilliancy, SEVERAL video analyses will come right up!
GREAT GAMES - The Immortal Game (Anderssen v. Kieseritzky, London, 1851)
How do you cough up both Rooks, a Bishop, then your Queen...and still win? Adolph Anderssen showed the world with one of the most famous chess games in history, in 1851. (Seriously, I never get tired of playing through this sucker. Of all the amazing things about it--and there are dozens--White's quiet little 19. e5 never fails to astonish me. It sacrifices a second Rook (what the...!) but also quietly seals the black Queen off from any possible defense.)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Chessic Silliness!
- How To Play Chess PROPERLY :-) (Hilarious, but definitely kind of rude; fair warning!)
Knights to Unicorns for "the long game," of course, but be ever-vigilant for the MegaChessaTron!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- 1-D Chess. Surprisingly interesting! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBoQnTRCU18
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
NWHS Tournament History Since 2011
Since 2006 the Guilford County High School Tournament has been held at Southwest High in late Jan/early Feb. I've been keeping records since 2011, and recently tracked down tournament dates back to 2008. Have a look! (In 2014 NWHS players accounted for over HALF the entire tournament!)
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
The 2024 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 at Southwest High. 11 of the 54 players were Vikings which (I need to check some data) MAY have made us the largest team competing. YET AGAIN we finished 2nd, but this time NOT behind Early College but behind Ragsdale!
[DETAILS FORTHCOMING!]
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
The 2023 Guilford County Spring High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Apr. 22, 2023 right here at Northwest High. Of the 29 players, ten are Vikings which means Northwest fielded over 1/3 of the entire tournament!
The Vikings once again placed 2nd behind Early College, and today were represented by the aforementioned ten:
- Seniors Paul Stennett*, Chibuikem Ukaegbe*, Adrian Alfred
- Juniors Sam Ennis, Max Lynch*, Connor Poole*, and Matt Williams**
- Sophomores Pradyumna Piwalatkar*, Gabriel Ogg & Evan Pozzo
* If you play Swiss Format long enough, this sort of thing will happen: We had an eight-way tie for 3rd place; FIVE OF THE EIGHT ARE VIKINGS! CRAZY!
** As he did in February, Matt Williams won 4 games which once again earned him a Second Place trophy!
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2023, WINTER (yep! That means there's a SPRING tourney coming...April 22!)
The 2023 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 4, 2023, at Southwest High.
The Vikings placed 2nd behind perennial power Early College, and today were represented by:
- Senior Paul Stennett
- Juniors Leon Aaron*, Sam Ennis, Max Lynch, Connor Poole, and Matt Williams*
- Sophomores Evan Pozzo, Pradyumna Piwalatkar and David Wong
*Leon Aaron and Matt Williams won 4 games each which on this day was good enough for a Second Place trophy!
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2022.
The 2022 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 5, at Southwest High.
As a team the Vikings placed third behind Southwest & Grimsley. I am THRILLED by this result because this year, you've heard of the graduation bug? We were bitten by, call it the weather bug! The tournament was initially scheduled for Jan 29 but was postponed to Feb 5 because there was snow and ice in the overnight forecast. Unfortunately Feb 5 was the day of the Science Olympiad competition and our chess delegation lost a couple-three players to this conflict. But of course that is life: our team has benefitted in the past from fate's fickle finger, so we can't fuss if once in awhile the chips don't fall in our favor!
- Freshmen Pradumna Piwalatkar and Evan Pozzo each won two games, earning each two points.
- Luke Brackett won two games and drew one, earning 2.5 points.
- Leon Aaron won three and lost two, good for 3 points, and (in this tournament on this day) a third place trophy!
- Owen Fuentes won four games and a 2nd place trophy!
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2021. Nope. COVID.
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2020.
The 2020 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 1, at Southwest High. For the first time in eight years Northwest had nether a team win nor an individual trophy winner. (This was to be expected in a very off year for Chess Club. I'd received a verbal commitment from one player, so on Saturday when FIVE showed up I was thrilled!)
- Sophomore Luc Stankewich, (who had just learned the game three days prior!) played and earned himself a half-point by forcing a draw on his fifth and final game!
- Junior Ethan Warner won a game and drew two, earning two points.
- Sophomore Sean Jessop and Senior Nathan Vescio each won two and drew one, earning 2.5 points.
- Sophomore Ethan Hartman won three games and three points; In years past three points has often been good enough for a 3rd place trophy, but it was not this year.
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2019, SPRING
High Point Central hosted a Blitz and Bughouse tournament on March 30. If I can ever find my notes, I'll post our performance here! 11FEB23. It took forever but I finally found my notes! Northwest placed THIRD with 10 points behind champs High Point Central (14 points! Home-field advantage! It's a thing!) and runners-up Early College at Guilford, 12 pts. (Southwest finished 4th & Northern was 5th.)
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: junior NATHAN VESCIO, sophomore JASON HUANG
- TWO WINS & ONE DRAW: sophomore MARQUIS REED
- THREE WINS & ONE DRAW and a THIRD PLACE TROPHY: senior MICHAEL REED
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2019, WINTER
The 2019 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 2, at Southwest High.
The Vikings took FIRST PLACE!
For the fifth straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and this year five of our seven players won at least three.
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: MICHAEL REED, SEAN JESSOP
- THREE WINS: Seniors DYLAN ALDERFER and SETH ADAMS
- THREE WINS & ONE DRAW which today was good enough for a THIRD PLACE TROPHY: Senior DANIEL LEE and junior NATHAN VESCIO & ETHAN HARTMAN
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2018, SPRING
The 2018 Guilford County Spring High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Apr. 21, right here at Northwest High.
The Vikings won first place in the tournament and with 8 players fielded by far the largest delegation.
Individual scores are as follows:
- Senior JACOB LEONARD notched a win and a draw.
- Seniors CODY CREED and NOAH LOHR each notched two wins.
- Seniors NOLAN KESSEL and TYLER HEBERT each won three games and a third place trophy.
- Three Vikings won four games each and, along with a player from another school, had a four-way tie for first place trophies: Sophomore NATHAN VESCIO, Junior DYLAN ALDERFER, and Senior HARRISON BURNS.
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2018, WINTER
The 2018 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 3, at Southwest High.
The Vikings finished 3rd in a very strong field (The strongest I've seen in my nine years doing this) and only missed second place by a half point. For the fourth straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and this year half the team won at least three.
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Senior ALEX HOOIJSCHUUR
- TWO WINS, ONE DRAW: Seniors CODY CREED, NOLAN KESSEL and JACOB LEONARD
- THREE WINS: Senior HARRISON BURNS and sophomore NATHAN VESCIO
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior CONNOR SHATTUCK and junior DYLAN ALDERFER
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2017.
The 2017 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 28, at Southwest High.
For the third straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and THIS year all four Vikings players -- our entire team -- won at least THREE.
Individual scores are as follows:
- THREE WINS: Freshman Nathan Vescio, Junior Eileen Schaller and Senior Frank Liu
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Nick Brewer.
With one point per win, Northwest's total was 13. This tally earned the Vikings a tie for 2nd place, missing a tie for the championship by a mere half point!
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2016, SPRING
The 2016 Guilford County High Spring School Chess Tournament was held Sat. April 23, at Northwest High.
Individual scores are as follows:
- ONE WIN: Senior Tyler Roux
- TWO WINS: Senior Camden Smith
- TWO WINS, ONE (PHENOMENAL!) DRAW: Junior Jackson Hales. (Jackson didn't have a great game, and in fact was down to his lone King vs. his opponent's Queen and Rook. In other words: it's over, and many players in Jackson's shoes would resign. Jackson did not, and when his King was cornered and he had only one pawn to move, his opponent hastily took that pawn leaving Jackson not in check, but with no move at all on the board = STALEMATE. And that's how you get a half-point for a draw when you have only your King and are dead in the water with no hope in sight! One of the beauties of the game of chess is that no matter how badly you're losing, it's NEVER OVER!)
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Jared Braiman.
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2016, WINTER
The 2016 Guilford County High Winter* School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 30, at Southwest High. For the second straight year all Northwest players won at least two games!
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Caillian Griggs
- THREE WINS: Seniors Tyler Roux and Jared Braiman.
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Junior Jackson Hales.
*(in 2016 we also had a Spring tournament, but at the time of the January tournament we didn't know the Spring one would actually happen, so though we did not call the January tournament the Winter Tournament, we now must.)
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2015.
The 2015 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 31, at Southwest High School. The eight Vikings made up a full quarter of the 32 player field. In an unprecedented result, ALL Northwest players won at least two games, two won three and Senior Jake Mayer took home a 2nd place trophy with four wins.
Northwest was unable to three-peat as county champions, but did earn 2nd place honors. WELL DONE VIKINGS!!
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Seniors Dylan Dang, Zachary Hurley, Richard Jimbo, Wade Scovern, and Junior Tyler Roux.
- THREE WINS: Seniors Alex Watts and David Klein.
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Jake Mayer.
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2014.
The 2014 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 1, at Southwest High School. Like last year, Northwest had by FAR the largest contingent, as no fewer than 18 Vikings comprised over half of the 35 total competitors! ALL Northwest players won at least one game, three took home 3rd place trophies with 4 wins out of a possible 5, AND our top four finishers tallied 15.5 points which was enough to claim the 1st Place team trophy as well! WELL DONE VIKINGS!!
Individual scores are as follows:
- ONE WIN: Freshman Seth Davis.
- TWO WINS: Senior Tyler Donelson and Juniors Dylan Dang, Zachary Hurley, David Klein, Hunter Powell, Shayan Rohani, and Christian Sizer.
- TWO WINS, ONE DRAW: Junior Adam Lindsay.
- TWO WINS, TWO DRAWS: Freshman Darrell Holmes.
- THREE WINS: Seniors Christian Bryant, Christian Dix and A. J. Weeks, and Junior Nick Capurso.
- THREE WINS, ONE DRAW: Sophomore Tyler Roux.
- FOUR WINS AND A THIRD PLACE TROPHY: Senior Austin Hall and Juniors Jake Mayer and Alex Watts.
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2013.
The 2013 GCS High School Chess Tournament took place Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013 at Southwest High. Northwest had by far the largest contingent, amounting to one fourth of the entire tournament, and all ten Vikings notched at least one victory!
- Senior Max Nolta won a game and drew a game.
- Sophomores Dylan Dang and Adam Lindsay each won two games.
- Senior Garrett Bird, sophomores Liz Amos and David Klein, and freshmen Cailian Griggs and Tyler Roux, each won three games.
- Senior Joseph Choi took home a third place trophy with three wins and a draw.
- And senior Edward Jiang took home a second place trophy with four wins. (Edward's only loss was a loss on time to the tournament's eventual champion in a nail-biting third-round game that for many was the highlight of the tournament.)
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2012.
The 2012 tournament was held Feb. 4, 2012, at Southwest High School. Max Nolta (junior) led the six Viking players by scoring three wins, one loss and one draw, for 3.5 points. (Last year 3.5 points was good enough for 3rd place but not this year.) Juniors Joseph Choi and Garrett Bird each finished with three wins, freshmen Dylan Dang and Elizabeth Amos won two games each and senior Andrew Harris won a game.
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2011. The 2011 tournament was held January 29, 2011, at Southwest High. Daniel Reed led the Viking delegation with 3 wins, one loss and one draw, earning a 3rd place trophy. Joseph Choi and Philip Osborne each finished 3-2, giving each member of the delegation a winning record. (NOTE: Had Daniel won the game he drew he would have joined the other two 2nd place finishers, but had he lost that draw, all three Vikings would have finished 3-2 and all three would have brought home 3rd place trophies!)
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2010. The 2010 GCS high school chess tournament was scheduled for Feb. 13, but since we got 2" of snow the day before was postponed and didn't happen at SW High until the following Saturday, Feb 20! (The only reason I even know this date is I'd written it on my family's calendar! I have a *memory* of a student, a senior? Named Jen Pak playing and possibly placing, but do not hold me to that.)
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2009. The 2009 GCS high school chess tournament was held at SW High Sat Feb 7. (As with the 2010 result, do NOT ask me who placed or who even went! It's amazing I can even tell you this date!)
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2008... If there was a tournament in 2008—or earlier, for that matter—I have no way of knowing since I didn't start teaching high school until Aug. 2008.
Mr R's Tips:
- How To Get Better Quickly
- If You've Never Played In A Tournament Before
- A terrific page on opening concepts. (Exeter Chess Club, UK)
- = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - =
C H E S S L I N K S
Play chess online FOR FREE:
- Chess.com
- Pogo.com
- freechess.org FICS (Free Internet Chess Server)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- Greensboro Chess Club. Meets every Wednesday night from 6-9pm in the Lewis Rec Center (off Pisgah Church on Forest Lawn Dr.)
- NC Chess Association. http://www.ncchess.org. Upcoming tournaments, results, and other North Carolina chess information. Discounted membership of students!
- USCF - US Chess Federation. News, tournament information, publications, club listings, online store, ratings, top players, club rules, and links.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
GREAT GAMES - Paul Morphy's Opera Game (Morphy v. Duke Karl + Count Isouard, Paris 1858)
In 1858 American master Paul Morphy was visiting Paris and took in an Opera with two buddies -- a Duke and a Count --who challenged him to a match, right there in the opera box. The rest is glorious chess history. (Since it was written for a general audience, the above link has probably the best annotations (comments about each move) you'll find anywhere. Click the "Chessgames.com" link at the bottom and play through the game, move by move. For many people, Morphy's 16.Qb8+ -- a Queen sacrifice -- is the single most beautiful move in all of chess history!)
GREAT GAMES - Rubinstein's Polish Brilliancy (Rotlewi v. Rubinstein, Lodz, 1907)
Very difficult to find a better example of coordination and harmony among so many pieces: Look at Black's Rook battery and Bishop battery after 19...Bb6+. And White's fate is sealed one move later after 20...Ng4, but it's doubtful White knew what was hitting him as he devoured Black's Queen and Rook. Click the following link to watch a terrific video analysis of this beautiful game.
http://www.chesstape.com/index.php/openings/rubinsteins-immortal-game (OK that link—in fact the chesstape domain itself—is dead, but if you google Rubinstein Rotlewi Polish Brilliancy, SEVERAL video analyses will come right up!
GREAT GAMES - The Immortal Game (Anderssen v. Kieseritzky, London, 1851)
How do you cough up both Rooks, a Bishop, then your Queen...and still win? Adolph Anderssen showed the world with one of the most famous chess games in history, in 1851. (Seriously, I never get tired of playing through this sucker. Of all the amazing things about it--and there are dozens--White's quiet little 19. e5 never fails to astonish me. It sacrifices a second Rook (what the...!) but also quietly seals the black Queen off from any possible defense.)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Chessic Silliness!
- How To Play Chess PROPERLY :-) (Hilarious, but definitely kind of rude; fair warning!)
Knights to Unicorns for "the long game," of course, but be ever-vigilant for the MegaChessaTron!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- 1-D Chess. Surprisingly interesting! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBoQnTRCU18
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
NWHS Tournament History Since 2011
Since 2006 the Guilford County High School Tournament has been held at Southwest High in late Jan/early Feb. I've been keeping records since 2011, and recently tracked down tournament dates back to 2008. Have a look! (In 2014 NWHS players accounted for over HALF the entire tournament!)
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
The 2024 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 at Southwest High. 11 of the 54 players were Vikings which (I need to check some data) MAY have made us the largest team competing. YET AGAIN we finished 2nd, but this time NOT behind Early College but behind Ragsdale!
[DETAILS FORTHCOMING!]
= - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = - = -
The 2023 Guilford County Spring High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Apr. 22, 2023 right here at Northwest High. Of the 29 players, ten are Vikings which means Northwest fielded over 1/3 of the entire tournament!
The Vikings once again placed 2nd behind Early College, and today were represented by the aforementioned ten:
- Seniors Paul Stennett*, Chibuikem Ukaegbe*, Adrian Alfred
- Juniors Sam Ennis, Max Lynch*, Connor Poole*, and Matt Williams**
- Sophomores Pradyumna Piwalatkar*, Gabriel Ogg & Evan Pozzo
* If you play Swiss Format long enough, this sort of thing will happen: We had an eight-way tie for 3rd place; FIVE OF THE EIGHT ARE VIKINGS! CRAZY!
** As he did in February, Matt Williams won 4 games which once again earned him a Second Place trophy!
______________________________________________________________
2023, WINTER (yep! That means there's a SPRING tourney coming...April 22!)
The 2023 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament took place Sat. Feb. 4, 2023, at Southwest High.
The Vikings placed 2nd behind perennial power Early College, and today were represented by:
- Senior Paul Stennett
- Juniors Leon Aaron*, Sam Ennis, Max Lynch, Connor Poole, and Matt Williams*
- Sophomores Evan Pozzo, Pradyumna Piwalatkar and David Wong
*Leon Aaron and Matt Williams won 4 games each which on this day was good enough for a Second Place trophy!
______________________________________________________________
2022.
The 2022 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 5, at Southwest High.
As a team the Vikings placed third behind Southwest & Grimsley. I am THRILLED by this result because this year, you've heard of the graduation bug? We were bitten by, call it the weather bug! The tournament was initially scheduled for Jan 29 but was postponed to Feb 5 because there was snow and ice in the overnight forecast. Unfortunately Feb 5 was the day of the Science Olympiad competition and our chess delegation lost a couple-three players to this conflict. But of course that is life: our team has benefitted in the past from fate's fickle finger, so we can't fuss if once in awhile the chips don't fall in our favor!
- Freshmen Pradumna Piwalatkar and Evan Pozzo each won two games, earning each two points.
- Luke Brackett won two games and drew one, earning 2.5 points.
- Leon Aaron won three and lost two, good for 3 points, and (in this tournament on this day) a third place trophy!
- Owen Fuentes won four games and a 2nd place trophy!
______________________________________________________________
2021. Nope. COVID.
______________________________________________________________
2020.
The 2020 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 1, at Southwest High. For the first time in eight years Northwest had nether a team win nor an individual trophy winner. (This was to be expected in a very off year for Chess Club. I'd received a verbal commitment from one player, so on Saturday when FIVE showed up I was thrilled!)
- Sophomore Luc Stankewich, (who had just learned the game three days prior!) played and earned himself a half-point by forcing a draw on his fifth and final game!
- Junior Ethan Warner won a game and drew two, earning two points.
- Sophomore Sean Jessop and Senior Nathan Vescio each won two and drew one, earning 2.5 points.
- Sophomore Ethan Hartman won three games and three points; In years past three points has often been good enough for a 3rd place trophy, but it was not this year.
______________________________________________________________
2019, SPRING
High Point Central hosted a Blitz and Bughouse tournament on March 30. If I can ever find my notes, I'll post our performance here! 11FEB23. It took forever but I finally found my notes! Northwest placed THIRD with 10 points behind champs High Point Central (14 points! Home-field advantage! It's a thing!) and runners-up Early College at Guilford, 12 pts. (Southwest finished 4th & Northern was 5th.)
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: junior NATHAN VESCIO, sophomore JASON HUANG
- TWO WINS & ONE DRAW: sophomore MARQUIS REED
- THREE WINS & ONE DRAW and a THIRD PLACE TROPHY: senior MICHAEL REED
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2019, WINTER
The 2019 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 2, at Southwest High.
The Vikings took FIRST PLACE!
For the fifth straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and this year five of our seven players won at least three.
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: MICHAEL REED, SEAN JESSOP
- THREE WINS: Seniors DYLAN ALDERFER and SETH ADAMS
- THREE WINS & ONE DRAW which today was good enough for a THIRD PLACE TROPHY: Senior DANIEL LEE and junior NATHAN VESCIO & ETHAN HARTMAN
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2018, SPRING
The 2018 Guilford County Spring High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Apr. 21, right here at Northwest High.
The Vikings won first place in the tournament and with 8 players fielded by far the largest delegation.
Individual scores are as follows:
- Senior JACOB LEONARD notched a win and a draw.
- Seniors CODY CREED and NOAH LOHR each notched two wins.
- Seniors NOLAN KESSEL and TYLER HEBERT each won three games and a third place trophy.
- Three Vikings won four games each and, along with a player from another school, had a four-way tie for first place trophies: Sophomore NATHAN VESCIO, Junior DYLAN ALDERFER, and Senior HARRISON BURNS.
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2018, WINTER
The 2018 Guilford County Winter High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 3, at Southwest High.
The Vikings finished 3rd in a very strong field (The strongest I've seen in my nine years doing this) and only missed second place by a half point. For the fourth straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and this year half the team won at least three.
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Senior ALEX HOOIJSCHUUR
- TWO WINS, ONE DRAW: Seniors CODY CREED, NOLAN KESSEL and JACOB LEONARD
- THREE WINS: Senior HARRISON BURNS and sophomore NATHAN VESCIO
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior CONNOR SHATTUCK and junior DYLAN ALDERFER
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2017.
The 2017 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 28, at Southwest High.
For the third straight winter all Northwest players won at least two games, and THIS year all four Vikings players -- our entire team -- won at least THREE.
Individual scores are as follows:
- THREE WINS: Freshman Nathan Vescio, Junior Eileen Schaller and Senior Frank Liu
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Nick Brewer.
With one point per win, Northwest's total was 13. This tally earned the Vikings a tie for 2nd place, missing a tie for the championship by a mere half point!
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2016, SPRING
The 2016 Guilford County High Spring School Chess Tournament was held Sat. April 23, at Northwest High.
Individual scores are as follows:
- ONE WIN: Senior Tyler Roux
- TWO WINS: Senior Camden Smith
- TWO WINS, ONE (PHENOMENAL!) DRAW: Junior Jackson Hales. (Jackson didn't have a great game, and in fact was down to his lone King vs. his opponent's Queen and Rook. In other words: it's over, and many players in Jackson's shoes would resign. Jackson did not, and when his King was cornered and he had only one pawn to move, his opponent hastily took that pawn leaving Jackson not in check, but with no move at all on the board = STALEMATE. And that's how you get a half-point for a draw when you have only your King and are dead in the water with no hope in sight! One of the beauties of the game of chess is that no matter how badly you're losing, it's NEVER OVER!)
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Jared Braiman.
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2016, WINTER
The 2016 Guilford County High Winter* School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 30, at Southwest High. For the second straight year all Northwest players won at least two games!
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Caillian Griggs
- THREE WINS: Seniors Tyler Roux and Jared Braiman.
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Junior Jackson Hales.
*(in 2016 we also had a Spring tournament, but at the time of the January tournament we didn't know the Spring one would actually happen, so though we did not call the January tournament the Winter Tournament, we now must.)
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2015.
The 2015 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Jan. 31, at Southwest High School. The eight Vikings made up a full quarter of the 32 player field. In an unprecedented result, ALL Northwest players won at least two games, two won three and Senior Jake Mayer took home a 2nd place trophy with four wins.
Northwest was unable to three-peat as county champions, but did earn 2nd place honors. WELL DONE VIKINGS!!
Individual scores are as follows:
- TWO WINS: Seniors Dylan Dang, Zachary Hurley, Richard Jimbo, Wade Scovern, and Junior Tyler Roux.
- THREE WINS: Seniors Alex Watts and David Klein.
- FOUR WINS AND A SECOND PLACE TROPHY: Senior Jake Mayer.
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2014.
The 2014 Guilford County High School Chess Tournament was held Sat. Feb. 1, at Southwest High School. Like last year, Northwest had by FAR the largest contingent, as no fewer than 18 Vikings comprised over half of the 35 total competitors! ALL Northwest players won at least one game, three took home 3rd place trophies with 4 wins out of a possible 5, AND our top four finishers tallied 15.5 points which was enough to claim the 1st Place team trophy as well! WELL DONE VIKINGS!!
Individual scores are as follows:
- ONE WIN: Freshman Seth Davis.
- TWO WINS: Senior Tyler Donelson and Juniors Dylan Dang, Zachary Hurley, David Klein, Hunter Powell, Shayan Rohani, and Christian Sizer.
- TWO WINS, ONE DRAW: Junior Adam Lindsay.
- TWO WINS, TWO DRAWS: Freshman Darrell Holmes.
- THREE WINS: Seniors Christian Bryant, Christian Dix and A. J. Weeks, and Junior Nick Capurso.
- THREE WINS, ONE DRAW: Sophomore Tyler Roux.
- FOUR WINS AND A THIRD PLACE TROPHY: Senior Austin Hall and Juniors Jake Mayer and Alex Watts.
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2013.
The 2013 GCS High School Chess Tournament took place Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013 at Southwest High. Northwest had by far the largest contingent, amounting to one fourth of the entire tournament, and all ten Vikings notched at least one victory!
- Senior Max Nolta won a game and drew a game.
- Sophomores Dylan Dang and Adam Lindsay each won two games.
- Senior Garrett Bird, sophomores Liz Amos and David Klein, and freshmen Cailian Griggs and Tyler Roux, each won three games.
- Senior Joseph Choi took home a third place trophy with three wins and a draw.
- And senior Edward Jiang took home a second place trophy with four wins. (Edward's only loss was a loss on time to the tournament's eventual champion in a nail-biting third-round game that for many was the highlight of the tournament.)
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2012.
The 2012 tournament was held Feb. 4, 2012, at Southwest High School. Max Nolta (junior) led the six Viking players by scoring three wins, one loss and one draw, for 3.5 points. (Last year 3.5 points was good enough for 3rd place but not this year.) Juniors Joseph Choi and Garrett Bird each finished with three wins, freshmen Dylan Dang and Elizabeth Amos won two games each and senior Andrew Harris won a game.
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2011. The 2011 tournament was held January 29, 2011, at Southwest High. Daniel Reed led the Viking delegation with 3 wins, one loss and one draw, earning a 3rd place trophy. Joseph Choi and Philip Osborne each finished 3-2, giving each member of the delegation a winning record. (NOTE: Had Daniel won the game he drew he would have joined the other two 2nd place finishers, but had he lost that draw, all three Vikings would have finished 3-2 and all three would have brought home 3rd place trophies!)
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2010. The 2010 GCS high school chess tournament was scheduled for Feb. 13, but since we got 2" of snow the day before was postponed and didn't happen at SW High until the following Saturday, Feb 20! (The only reason I even know this date is I'd written it on my family's calendar! I have a *memory* of a student, a senior? Named Jen Pak playing and possibly placing, but do not hold me to that.)
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2009. The 2009 GCS high school chess tournament was held at SW High Sat Feb 7. (As with the 2010 result, do NOT ask me who placed or who even went! It's amazing I can even tell you this date!)
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2008... If there was a tournament in 2008—or earlier, for that matter—I have no way of knowing since I didn't start teaching high school until Aug. 2008.