Young Players take the 2021 Spring Chess Tournament by Storm

On Thursday, March 11th, NISCE had its first chess tournament of 2021! Since COVID-19 hit last year many schools have dropped sporting competitions; therefore, NISCE chess club hasn’t competed in a while. To spice some things up we chose to have a local competition just between NISCE students. Even some parents participated for fun against students who had a bye round.

First was the senior (Junior High) division which had four participants. This consisted of two champions from former years (Aaron Doyle and Justin Miller) and a humble third-grader, Isaiah Walters, whose advancing skill landed him a spot with the big boys. This year’s champion was Aaron Doyle who faced Alex Rax in the championship game.

The junior (elementary) division was slightly bigger with five participants. Several of these students have just learned the game this year. Although Dorothy Steele was the first contestant out of the double-round elimination tournament, she showed exceptional growth for a beginner. Michael Janko went undefeated until the semi-final round where he showed great sportsmanship and Christian character by giving up his chance at the finals to allow his opponent to proceed. The championship round was between Nevaeh Ventura and Wyatt Sheppard. Wyatt is the newest member of the chess club, who just learned the game and joining in January. Surprisingly, he became a fan favorite and went undefeated for a majority of the first half of the tournament. In the championship, each contestant won one game. That third and final game revealed Nevaeh Ventura as junior division champion!

NISCE hopes to hold another chess tournament before the end of the school year. Thank you to all participants, parents, grandparents, and spectators who attended! 

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