Recent Results and Happenings

Embler, Joseph And Laing Tie At N.C. Class Scholastic

Three players went 4-0 to share first place at the N.C. Class High School Scholastic May 10 in Newton. Matt Embler, Jordan Joseph and unrated Christian Laing posted 4-0 results for first place. In the overall team event, Newton-Conover HS grabbed first place over West Caldwell HS. A total of 43 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Hearty Crowd Shows Up For Immaculata Swiss

A total of 62 players participated in the Immaculata Swiss May 3 in Hendersonville. Players were group in eight player sections for three rounds of G/75. Winning their sections at a perfect 3-0 were: FM Miles Ardaman, Reid Motter, Christopher Tavernier and Robert Melville. Robert Womack and John Bayne won their sections outright at 2/5/3.0. Vlad Besirovic and Kenzie Moore shared their section at 2/5/3.0. Check out the crosstable.

Dejong, Graves And McNeill Tie In Asheboro

A total of 28 players competed at the Asheboro Open 36 May 3, with a total purse of $560. In the Championship Section, there was a logjam at the top with (pictured l-r) Andrew Dejong, Joseph Graves and Jonathon McNeill all going 2.5/3.0 to stake a claim to first place. Each took home $80. In the Candidates Section, Michael Clay reeled off a 3-0 mark to win $160 and first place. Check out the crosstable.

Master 7 Trek Draws A Crowd In Durham

A total of 42 players competed in the Durham Academy Master Trek 7 May 3. Participants were grouped in 8-player sections. Winning their sections outright with perfect scores were: Indira Puri, Jordan Baker, Akash Krishna and Chetan Somani. In the Top Section, Drew Clary and Benjamin McDonald shared the top spot at 2.5/3.0. Check out the crosstable.

Yimo Chen Claims K-12 Section In Winston-Salem

A total of 44 players competed at the Spring 6 tournament in Winston-Salem April 26. In the K-12 Section, Yimo Chen posted a 3.5/4.0 score to claim first place. In the K-8 Section, Alex Campbell also went 3.5/4.0 to grab first place. In the K-5 Section, Joshua Sailer went a perfect 4-0 to claim first place. Check out the crosstable.

FMs Simpson And Chumachenko Tie At N.C. Invitational

FM Ron Simpson of Raleigh and FM Andrey Chumachenko of Matthews ruled the field at the 2008 North Carolina Invitational April 26-27 at UNC Charlotte. Both players defeated the other four players in the field – and drew with each other – to post a 4.5/5.0 score. Since the two had the same results against the same players, the tiebreaks could not decide a winner. Both took home $225 for first place. Other players in the field were: NM Chris Mabe of Charlotte, NM Craig Jones of Chapel Hill, NM Maurice Dana of Morehead City and NM Neal Harris of Edneyville.

Each year, the N.C. Invitational brings together the highest-rated players – who have been active in weekend tournaments around the state – for a round robin event. Check out the crosstable.

Paul King Grabs Two Knights Swiss Crown

Paul King posted a 2.5/3.0 score in G/90 to take the top prize at the Two Knights Swiss April 26 in Fayetteville. Larry Williams and Emil Mayev were second at 2.0/3.0. Six players participated. Crosstable coming soon.

Wheeless Grabs Another All Girls Title; Will Be Polgar Rep

Amelia Wheeless reeled off four straight wins to capture the All Girls Open April 26 in Matthews. With the win, Wheeless earned  the right to represent North Carolina at the GM Susan Polgar National Invitational for Girls at Texas Tech in late July. This is the third time she has won or co-won the All Girls Open title. A record number of 32 girls participated. Check out the crosstable.

Ward Leads Durham Academy To Lofty Finish In Atlanta

Carl Ward of Durham Academy turned in a stellar performance at the High School Nationals, April 18-20, in Atlanta. Ward scored 6.0/7.0 in the K-12 Under 1600 section to place third in that field of 277 players. Ward was also able to lead his Durham Academy team to second place in the team competition. Almost 100 N.C. players competed in the overall event. Check out the results.

Russian School Breaks Out The Quad Squads

A total of 27 players participated in the Raleigh Russian School Scholastic Quads April 19. Quads winners included: Eric Noden, Daniel Su, Brian Wu, Connor Perry and Chandan Somani. In other quads, Iyan Battle, Martin Riedel, and Aditya  Puttigampali all went 2-1 to tie in one quad. Dani Chertock and Arkady Bilenkin were knotted in their quad. Check out the crosstable.

Masters Mabe and Noble Share Reverse Angle 7 Top Spot

NM Chris Mabe and NM Matt Noble posted two wins and a draw to claim first place in the Open Section at the Reverse Angle 7 April 19 at UNC Charlotte. The pair split the top pot of $135. In the Middle Section, Chad Eller and David Stamper went 2.5/3.0 in G/90 to take first place. In the Lower Section, Emil Mayev went a perfect 3-0 to claim first place. A total of 34 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Lovelace Shows No Love For Opponents In Asheboro

A total purse of $765 was awarded at the Asheboro Open 35 April 12. In the Top Section, Taylorsville’s Randy Lovelace stormed to a perfect 3-0 mark and grabbed $150 for his efforts. In the Candidates Section, William Campbell posted a 2.5/3.0 mark to claim first place and $150. In the Club section, Campbell’s sister, Grace Campbell, was a clean 3-0 to claim first place and also take home $150. A total of 34 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Novak Grabs Top Section At Durham Academy Master Trek 7

A total of 51 players competed in the Durham Academy Master Trek 7 April 5. Participants were grouped in 8-player sections. In the Top Section, James Matthew Novak went 2.5/3.0 for first place. Winning their sections outright with perfect scores were: Spencer Hallyburton, Ian Concannon and Claire Elizabeth Burdick. Fred Ward and Aaron Balleisen tied in their section at 2.5/3.0. Kevin Wu and Calvin Deng also shared their section. Check out the crosstable.

FM Simpson Goes Undefeated For TACO Crown

FM Ronald Simpson demolished the competition going 4-0 to take the Open Section at TACO 38 in Raleigh April 5. He won $150 for his efforts. Zachary High gained a number of rating points by posted two wins and two draws to take second place and $75. In the Advanced Section, Emil Mayev finished with a 3.5/4.0 to take home first place and $120. Check out the crosstable.

McNeill Takes Border Battle Scholastic Match

North Carolina scholastic champion Jonathon McNeill edged South Carolina scholastic champion Michael Lauria, 1.5 to 0.5, in a two-game match April 5 in Charlotte. The event was part of the Border Battle Match between N.C. Champion Chris Mabe and S.C. Champ Timur Aliyev. That match stands 1-1 after two rounds.

Sara Walsh Washes Away The Competition In Morehead City

Sara Walsh turned in a perfect 3-0 mark to grab first place at the Blackbeard Open 9 March 29 in Morehead City. Walsh took home $150 for her efforts. NM Maurice Dana was clear second at 2.5/3.0 and won $75. A total of 14 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Samuel Xin Goes 3-0 To Grab Fake Copper Blanket Crown

More than 100 players locked horns at Charlotte’s Fake Copper Blanket March 29 at East Mecklenburg High School. In the Top Section, Samuel Xin busted through the 2000 rating barrier with a clean 3-0 mark to take first place. In the Under 1800 Section, Vladimir Besirovic went 2.5/3.0 in G/75 to grab first place. In the Under 1400 Section, Thomas Spencer and Seth Taylor-Brill both went 3-0 to share first place.

In the Ender 1200 Section, Ean Kitchen went a perfect 3-0 to claim first place. In the Under 1000 Section, Milo Pan and Brandon Lim both went 4-0 in G/45 to share the top spot. Check out the crosstable.

Borders Chess Club Tops SAS Corporate Team In Match Play

Borders Chess Club topped SAS Institute, 16-10, in a Match Play event held March 28. Check out the results.

Jay Goss Claims Top Section In Durham

Jay Goss scored two wins and a draw to claim the top section of the Durham Academy Master Trek event March 23 in Durham. Players were placed in 8-player sections for the event. Winning their sections outright were: Kenny Xie, Jeffrey Zhou, Zachary William Hunter, Christy Shin and Elias Tymas. A total of 59 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Baldwin, Eller Share Top Spot At Mayberry Chess

Scott Baldwin and Chad Eller posted two wins and a draw to claim a share of the top prize at the Mayberry Chess event March 23 in Mount Airy. Ten players participated. Check out the crosstable.

NM Maurice Dana Claims Top Spot At TACO 37

NM Maurice Dana took the top spot at the TACO 37 in Raleigh March 15. Dana finished with 3.5 out of 4 points and took home $130 for his performance.  Adam Murtadza finished with a perfect 4-0 score and takes home $115 for his performance in the Under 1800 Section.  Benjamin McDonald continued his winning ways in the Under 1400 Section and won $80 for his perfect 4-0 performance. Check out the crosstable.

Trower, McCartney Share Quaker Steak 6 Title

Todd Trower and Patrick McCartney each posted two wins and a draw to share first place at the  Quaker Steak 6 March 15 in Charlotte. Both players won $75 for their efforts. In the Lower Section, Seth Taylor-Brill reeled off three straight wins to claim first place and $60. A total of 16 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Three-Way Logjam At Top in Asheboro Open 34

A total of 27 players competed in the Asheboro Open 34 March 8. In the Top Section, there was a logjam for first with Matt Noble, Mark Gragg and Alexei Gorbounov all finishing at 2.5/3.0 to share first place. In the Lower Section, Andrew Dejong went a perfect 3-0 to grab the top spot. Check out the crosstable.

Jonathon McNeill Claims K-12 State Championship

Almost 500 players competed at the N.C. State Scholastic Championship, Feb. 22-24, at the Blake Hotel in Charlotte. In the K-12 Section, homeschooler Jonathon McNeill from Asheboro claimed first place with a 4.5/5.0 score in G/90. As the winner, McNeill earned a $1,500 college scholarship from the N.C. Chess Association. He also earned the right to represent the state at the GM Arnold Denker Tournament of High School Champions in August in Dallas.

In the K-8 Section, Eric Noden claimed clear first at 4.5/5.0. In the K-12 Under 1300 Section, Charlotte’s Kevin Blackwell went a perfect 5-0 to claim first place. In the K-8 Under 1000 Section, Kenny Xie took clear first with a perfect 7-0.

In the K-5 Section, Kevin Chen posted a 6.5/7.0 score in G/60 to claim sole first place. In the K-3 Section, Chad Moody and Justin Gonzales shared first place at 6.5/7.0. In the K-1 Section, Sam Ferguson posted a 6.5/7.0 score to take the top spot. Check out the crosstables.

In the Friday night State Scholastic Blitz Tournament, Charlotte's Joshua Mu took sole first with a 9.0/10 score.

Team winners were:
K-12 – Durham Academy
K-8 – Phillips Middle School, Chapel Hill
K-12 Under 1300 – Myers Park, Charlotte
K-8 Under 1000 – Phillips Middle School, Chapel Hill
K-5 – Rashkis Elementary, Chapel Hill
K-3 – Durham Academy
K-1 – Metrolina Regional, Charlotte

Paul King Takes First Place In Fayetteville

A total of 4 players competed at the Two Knights Swiss Feb. 23 in Fayetteville. Paul King grabbed first place at 2.5/3.0. Gary Morris was second at 2.0/3.0. Check out the crosstable.

Pohl, Christianson Tie For First At UNC Charlotte Tournament

A total of 63 players turned out at UNC Charlotte to compete in the Greater Charlotte Championship Feb. 16. In the Top Section, South Carolina’s Klaus Pohl and Wayne Christianson went a perfect 3-0 to share the top spot. Christianson defeated Pohl in a blitz playoff for the Queen City title. In the Middle Section, a three-way tie erupted between Gilbert Holmes, Colette Wheeless and Derek Smith at 2.5/3.0. In The Lower Section, Tim Champion and Andrew Turner went a perfect 3-0 to share first place. Check the crosstable.

In the Scholastic Section, the was a first-place logjam of four players at 3.0/4.0: John Custer, Shuvethan Sivagurunathan, Rajiv Kanumilli and Sujay Vallapalli. Check out the crosstable.

Goss, Benge Share Top Section In Durham

A total of 49 players competed at the Durham Academy Master Trek Feb. 16. In the Top Section, Chapel Hill’s Jay Goss and Fayetteville’s Carter Benge shared the top spot at 2.0/3.0. In other sections: Tian-Shun Allan Jiang grabbed his section at 2.5/3.0; Jeffrey Zhou went 3-0 to claim his section; Anish Kottu went 4-0 to claim his section; and Daniel Finkelstein went 4-0 to take his section. Check out the crosstable.

Lovelace, Cibotarica Share To Spot In Hickory

Taylorsville’s Randy Lovelace and Boone’s Alex Cibotarica each posted two wins and a draw to claim a share of the top section at the Chess for Fun event in Hickory Feb. 16. Players were grouped into eight-player sections. In the Middle Section, Statesville’s William Campbell went a perfect 3-0 for first. In the Lower Section, unrated Ricardo Rupitt and Evan Daily posted 3.5/4.0 scores to claim the top spot. A total of 24 players participated. Check out the crosstable.

Estey Leads U.S., Women Against Germany

Black Mountain’s Roselie Estey is the No. 2 female correspondence player in the U.S. She is leading a team of U.S. women into a match against Germany, which started a short time ago. The match is sanctioned by the International Correspondence Chess Federation.

Amelia Wheeless Wins K-12 Section in Kernersville Event

A total of 39 players competed in the WSSCA Winter 6 event Feb. 9 at East Forsyth Middle School in Kernersville. In the K-12 Section, Amelia Wheeless reeled off four wins in G/45 to claim first place. In the K-8 Section, Tennessee's Andrew Simonsen posted a 4-0 mark to finish first. In the combined K-3/K-5 Section, brother David Simonsen posted a 3.5/4.0 score to claim the top fifth grader title. Edwin Lin posted the same score to take home the top K-3 player. Check out the crosstable.

NM Chris Mabe Ties For First in Charleston, S.C., Event

NM Chris Mabe carried the North Carolina banner at the Snowstorm Special in Charleston, S.C., Feb. 8-10. Mabe tied for first with four wins and a draw. N.C.’s Stephen Welt took clear third with a 4.0/5.0 mark. A total of 32 players participated in the action. Check out the crosstable.

Jay Goss, Tanner Hogue Share Top Spot In Durham

A total of 150 players turned at for the Durham Academy Winter Scholastic Feb. 9. In the Championship Section, Jay Goss and Tanner Hogue posted two wins and a draw to share the top spot. In the K-12 Under 1400 Section, Carl Ward reeled off four wins to claim first place. In the K-12 Under 1000 Section, Brendan Kearney went 4-0 to take the top spot. In the K-5 Section, Daniel Su was able to post a 4-0 mark for first place. In the K-3 Section, Colin Zhu and Sam Ferguson both went 4-0 to share first place. In the K-1 Section, Aaron Dejong went 4-0 to come out on top. Check out the crosstable.

Simpson Takes A Bite Out Of The TACO Field In Raleigh

FM Ron Simpson kept us his winning ways as he reeled off four straight wins to claim the Triangle Area Chess Open (TACO) 36 Feb. 9 in Raleigh. Lev Zilberter was clear second at 3.0/4.0. In the Under 1800 Section, Victor Beaman and Matt Embler tied at 3.0/4.0 for first place.  In the Under 1425 Section, Gordon Ray was clear first at 4-0. Twenty-four players participated. Check out the crosstable.

FM Ron Simpson Grabs Top Spot In Asheboro

A total of 26 players competed in the Asheboro Open 33 Feb. 2. In the Championship Section, FM Ron Simpson of Raleigh reeled off three wins to grab first place and $160. Paul King of Fayetteville was clear second at 2.5/3.0 In the Candidates Section, Luis Guzman, Ben Blach and Stephen Styers all tied for first at 2.5/3.0. Each picked up $79 for their efforts. Check out the crosstable.

GM Ivanov Grabs Sole First At Land Of The Sky

Almost 220 players competed in the Land of the Sky Jan. 25-27 in Asheville. In the Open Section,  GM Alexander Ivanov of Massachusetts posted a 4.5/5.0 score to grab sole first place. FM Ron Simpson of Raleigh tied for second place at 4.0/5.0. In the Under 2000 Section, there was a four-way tie at 4.5/5.0 with North Carolina players Thomas Paradis and Mark Gragg joined by Brian Polka of Pennsylvania and Praveen Sanjay of Georgia.

In the Under 1600 Section, North Carolina scholastic players Ben Blach and Robin Yopp were joined by Tennessee’s Benjamin Blair at 4.5/5.0 for first place. In the Under 1200 section, Charlotte’s Ean Kitchens went 4.5/5.0 to take sole first place. Check out the crosstable.

Scholastic Players Invade Mountain Island

Almost 50 players competed at the Mountain  Island Elementary School Tournament in Charlotte Jan. 26. Players were divided by rating into quads. Winning their quads outright were: Thomas McLean, Jared Kastelic,  Seth Thompson, Zachary Quek, Michael Gray, Zachary Rollins, Michael Little and Sadhana Suryadevara. Tying for their sections were:  Dean Tran and William Scott Farmer; Charlie Yang and Nicholas Ryan Robinson; and James Loftin and Seungmin Park. Check out the crosstable.

Players Go For First At Durham Academy Master Trek

Almost 60 players competed in eight-player sections at the Durham Academy Master Trek Tournament Jan. 19. Winning sections at a perfect 3-0 were: Nishanth Shah and Raghav Bansal. Winning sections at a perfect 4-0 were: Zachary Hunter and Victor Zhao. Sharing first place in their sections at 2.5/3.0 were: Tanner Hogue and Jay Goss; and Kevin Wu and Kenny Xie. Check out the crosstable.

FM Andrey Chumachenko Claims Reverse Angle 5 Crown

A total of 29 players ignored the snow to play in the Reverse Angle 5 Jan. 19 at the UNC Charlotte campus. In the Top Section, FM Andrey Chumachenko went a perfect 3-0 to claim first place. He won $100 for this efforts. In the Middle Section, Colette Wheeless and Dave Eadie each went 2.5/3.0 to share first place. In the Lower Section, Will Campbell and David Stamper both went 2.5/3.0 to share the top spot. Check out the crosstable.

Large Crowd Of Players Compete At CMSCA Grade Championship

More than 200 players competed in the CMSCA Grade Championship Jan. 12 in Charlotte. Players competed by grade in four rounds of G/45. Check out the crosstable. The winners and co-winners were:

Paul King and Greg Schessler both scored 2.5/3.0 in three rounds of G/90 to take first place at the Two Knights Swiss Jan. 12 in Fayetteville. Both players took home $82.50 for their efforts. Eight players participated in the action. Check out the crosstable.

Timmel, Gorbounov. Tie For First At TACO 35

John Timmel and Alexei Gorbounov each finished with a 3.5/4 score to take first place in the Open Section at the Triangle Area Chess Open 35 Jan. 12 in Raleigh. Both players won $90 for their efforts. In the Under 1400 Section, Tian-Shun Allan Jiang took first place with a 3.5/4.0  score. He took home $100. Check out the crosstable.

TACO Scholastic Quads Draw 16 Players

A total of 16 players participated in the Triangle Area Chess Open Scholastic Quad Jan. 12 in Raleigh. Players were divided into four quads. Quad winners at 3-0 were: Karen Riedel, Daniel Su and Anish Kottu. Martin Riedel and Jineet Patel tied at 2-1 in the other quad. Check out the crosstable.

Taylor-Brill, Moore Tie For K-12 Crown At Pawndemonium

A total of 120 players raised the roof at the 19^th Pawndemonium Jan. 5 in Asheville. In the K-12 Section, Seth Taylor-Brill and Kenzie Moore tied for first at 4.0/5.0 Taylor-Brill got the nod on tiebreaks. In the K-8 Under 1000 Section, Eddie Wahler went a perfect 5-0 in G/45 to claim first place.  

In the K-5 Under 900 Section, David Simonsen went a perfect 6-0 in G/20 to take first place. In the K-3 Under 800 Section, Hunter March posted a 5.5/6.0 score to claim first place. Check out the crosstable.

Chris Mabe, John Sailer Post 3-0 Marks In Asheboro

NM Chris Mabe of Charlotte reeled off three straight wins to capture the Championship Section of the Asheboro Open 32 Jan. 5 in Asheboro. Mabe won $125 for his efforts. Tracy Callis finished clear second at 2.5/3.0. In the Candidates Section, John Sailer posted three wins to go a perfect 3-0 and grab the top spot. He took home $125, too.  Check out the crosstable.  

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