03.13.14 The 2014 State Scholastic Chess Team Championships were held Saturday, March
8th, in the Memorial Union, at the University of Maine Orono. Two hundred seventy-seven players supported by coaches and parents gathered to contest team honors in the K-3, K-6, Junior High, and High School sections. Also at stake were individual achievements leading to invitation to the Individual Championships to be held at the same location on March 22. Each player competed in four games with team honors decided by total points scored for the four games or, in the case of the High School Championship section, by head-to-head match play.

Thanks to Ron Lewis, Kathy Richards, Phil Lowell, Barry Magda, Steve Wong, Tom Sandford and Eric Dinnerstein for contributing to this report.

USCF crosstable K-3 Teams

USCF crosstable K-6 Teams

USCF crosstable Junior High School Teams

USCF crosstable High School Teams

In the K-3 championship section, team honors were decided by the total of the team's top three scorers. The winning team was the Deer-Isle Stonington team (DIS - 9.5 points) over second place Piscataquis (7 points). Top scorers for DIS were Sean Morey with 3.5 points, and Macey Brown and Gavin L. Eaton with 3 points each. Top scorers for Piscataquis were Eion McCloskey with a perfect 4 points, Cole Herrick with 2 points, and Adam Taylor with one point (Gavin Richards also scored a win, but did not enter into the team total). The top scoring girl was Macey Brown, and the top players tied with 4 points each were William Xu of Fruit Street Elementary and Eion McCloskey of Piscataquis. Scoring 3 points or better for a free entry to the Individual Tournament on March 22 were William Xu, Eion McCloskey, Sean Morey, Macey Brown, and Gavin L. Eaton. The top unrated (first tournament) was Eion McCloskey.

In the K-6 championship section, with team scores being the total of each team's five top scorers, Blue Hill (15 points) edged past DIS (13.5 points) for the team title, with Brewer Community School a close third with 12.5 points. Top scorers for Blue Hill were Ross Stewart and Cameron Stewart with 3.5 points each, Sam Parrot and Cole Stewart with 3 points each, and Aiden Stearns with 2 points (Kai Diel also had two wins for the team),. Top team scorers for Deer Isle-Stonington included: Rylee Eaton and Kaylee Morey with 3 points each, and Tommy Hutchinson, Ben Penfold, and Andrew Pappianne with 2.5 points each. The Brewer Community School high scorers were Brent Roberts with 3.5 points, Aurora Geleny and Cody Ross with 2.5 points each, and Caitlyn Woodward and Swaroop Handral with 2 points each (Alex Fago also had two wins for the team). The top unrated players in this section were Tommy Hutchinson and Aurora Geleny with 2.5 points each, with the trophy going to Tommy on tiebreaks. Eleven players scored 3 points or better, earning them a free entry into the Individuals Tournament on March 22. These were: Rylee Eaton, and Kaylee Morey of DIS; Ross, Cameron and Cole Stewart, and Sam Parrot of Blue Hill; Brent Roberts of Brewer; Cyrus Grindal with a perfect 4-0 score and Cody Jones of the Airline School; Joshua Watson of Glenburn; and Charlotte Urquhart of All Saints.

In the Elementary Novice section, the winning K-3 team was Piscataquis over DIS by a score of 9.5 to 4.5. The top individual performer was Izabelle Pizzo of Piscataquis with four wins in four games. Other Piscataquis team members were Sarah Gray, Midnight Moffett, and Onyxia Williams. For the DIS team, members were Colton Harriman, Kierston Heroux, and Taytum Chase. Grace DiPhillipo won two games for Breakwater. In the K-6 Novice section, DIS edged out Bucksport with 9.5 points to 9. Top scorers for DIS were Thomas Thompson, McKenna Martin, and Liam Bishop. Top scorers for Bucksport were Hayden Jellison, Katelyn Cloutier, and Patrick Tyne. The top performers were Zoe Dinnerstein of Levey Day School and Thomas Thompson with 4 points each, with the trophy going to Zoe on tiebreaks.

In the Junior High Championship section, Orono Middle School finished first over second place DIS, 16 to 13.5. Top scorers for Orono Middle School were Ben Amar (4 points), Nathan Shemwell, Ben Amar, Saadh Ahmed, Joseph Astumian, and Aaron Wilson-Macfarland, all with 3 points each. Top scorers for Deer-Isle Stonington were Brendan Penfold (4 points), Soozin Cha (3 points), Orly Vaughn (2.5 ponts), and Tyson Rice and Ennis Marshall (2 points each). The top players were Brendan Penfold of DIS, Ben Amar of Orono, and Ian Youth of Breakwater, each with four points. Top unrated (not on a winning team) was Desmen Drinkwater of Caravel. The top female (not on a winning team) was Catherine Rudnicki of the All-Saints in Bangor. Fifteen players scored 3 points or better to be eligible to return to the Individuals with free entry: Soozin Cha, and Brendan Penfold of DIS; Nathan Shemwell, Ben Amar, Saadh Ahmed, Joseph Astumian, Aaron Wilson-Macfarland, Elijah Mcgill, and Elias Veilleux of Orono; Ian Youth of Breakwater; Noah Munn of Medomak; Catherine Rudnicki and Michael Hayden of All Saints; Desmen Drinkwater of Caravel; and Omar Khan of Brewer.

Ellsworth took first place in the JHS Novice section with 8.5 points over one-person teams from Reed Brook and Bucksport with 2 points each. Members of the winning team were: Isaiah Albert with 4 points, Will Doty with 2.5 points and Nathan Nowicki with 2 points. With tie breaks, Joshua Duprey took the second place team trophy for Reed Brook over Richard Lugdan of Bucksport. The top performer was Isaiah Albert of Ellsworth.

Elementary and JHS players in the championship sections who scored 3 points or better are invited back to play in the Individual Championships on March 22 at with no entry fee. Any other individual may enter by paying the entry fee. Information and entry forms are available at www.ChessMaine.net.

In the High School Championship section, Cape Elizabeth emerged undefeated in match play with 4 match points to win the State HS Team title. The Cape Team consisted of Matthew Fishbein, Matthew Reale-Hatem, Wesley Parker, Colin Smith, and Carter Brock. The Cape team turned in an impressive performance of 17 wins, 2 draws and just one loss. Tied for second place were the Maine School for Science and Math (MSSM) and Cheverus with three match points each. The MSSM team included George Spahn, David Chen, Ivan Zembrusky, Brennan Lane, and Gordon McCulloh. Members of the Cheverus team were: Ben Peterson, Taylor Jackson, Frank Jin, Ricardo Romero, and David Cheng. Criteria for invitation to the Individuals for the High School Championship and Reserve sections were to score 3 points or better on Board 1, or 3.5 points or better on any other board. Invited back to Individuals on March 22 with no entry fee on this basis are: Matthew Fishbein, Matthew Reale-Hatem, Wesley Parker, and Colin Smith of Cape Elizabeth; George Spahn of MSSM; Bach Nguyen of John Bapst; Rick Perry of Caribou; David Cheng of Cheverus; and Nick Charalambous of Brewer. The top unrated player was David Chen of MSSM with 3 points. The top female performer was Haley DeLuca Lowell with 3 points on Board 2 for John Bapst, and she receives an invitation to the Individuals as well.

In the HS Reserve section, Medomak Valley edged out Cape Elizabeth for first, 8.5 points to 8. Members of the Medomak Valley HS Reserve Team were Joseph Powell, Greg Wadsworth, Grant Bodine, and Patrick White. Players for the Cape Team were Nicholas Shedd, Daniel Brett, Lily Jordan, and Roman Medina. Top scorers included Joseph Powell of Medomak Valley with 4 points, and Nicholas Shedd of Cape Elizabeth with 3.5 points. These two are invited back to Individuals with no entry fee. The top female competitor in this section was Bethany Humphrey with a 3-1 score; she is also invited back for the Individuals tournament.

In the High School Novice section, Deering High defeated Caribou 10 to 6.5. The high scorers for Deering were Shervin Sabeti with 4 points, and Mohamed Hassan and Tophe Thorne with 3 points each. The Bucksport top scorers for the team included Nerissa Larrabee (3 points), Cindy Ketch (2 points), and Tyler Strid with 1.5 points (Sarah Draper and Robin Larrabee also scored 1.5s). Top performer in this section with 4 points was Shervin Sabeti.

Tournament Leaders were Kathy Richards for the Elementary and Junior High Sections, and Ron Lewis for the High School. Tournament Directors were Dan DeLuca for the K-3 Championship and Novice sections, Steve Wong for K-6, Barry Magda for the JHS, Philip Lowell for High School Championship and Reserve sections, and Tom Sandford for all other Novice sections. Trophy awards were coordinated by Andy Bryan. These were supported by a number of other volunteers, parents and coaches.

The next event on the State scholastic chess schedule is on March 22 when the State chess Individual championships will be contested, with the Maine State representative to the USCF National Denker High School Invitational and a representative to the Barber JHS Invitational will be decided. A side event, the Sidekick Quads, will also be held on March 22 for adults. The proceeds of the Sidekick Quads will benefit Maine scholastic chess. All events will be held at the Memorial Union, University of Maine, Orono.

2014 High School Champions: Cape Elizabeth High School

The Cape Elizabeth Championship team: Board 1 Matthew Fishbein

Board 2: Matthew Reale-Hatem

Board 3: Wesley Parker

Board 4: Colin Smith

Board 5: Carter Brock

Cape Elizabeth (left) battles Deer Isle-Stonington

Cheverus High School (left) plays Caribou in round 4.

MSSM (left) takes on George Stevens Academy.

Portland's Deering High School (left) plays Bangor's John Bapst Memorial High School

Co-Runners Up in the High School Championship section: Maine School of Science and Mathematics

Co-Runners Up in the High School Championship section: Chererus High School

You can add 2014 to that list!

High School Reserve section winners: Medomak Valley High School

The MSSM High School Reserve team with coach Clinton Givens

Action in the High School Reserve section

High school brain power at work!

The last board to finish in the High School Reserve section between Joseph Powell of Medomak and Bethany Humphrey of MSSM drew a small crowd that broke into applause when the last move was made.

This room served as a massive skittles room for the high school players, their coaches and families.

Updating the pairing sheets: Phil Lowell served as tournament director of the championship and reserve high school sections.

Haley DeLuca Lowell of John Bapst High School and Matthew Fishbein of Cape Elizabeth High School now...and then (2006). See next two images!

Matthew Fishbein, Pond Cove School, Cape Elizabeth 2006 K-3 State Individual Champion.

Haley DeLuca Lowell, member of 2006 K-3 State Team Champion Airline Community School.

Winners in the Junior High School Championship section: Orono High School:

Deer Isle-Stonington: second place in the Junior High School championship section

Top boards in the Junior High School Championship section.

Ian Youth

Joseph Astumian

Michael Hayden

Nathan Shemwell

Catherine Rudnicki

Ben Amar

Brendan Penfold

Saadh Ahmed

SooZin Cha

Desman Drinkwater

Adam McFarland

Omar Khan

Orly Vaughn

Eric Youth

Cody Randall

Max DeLuca Lowell

Ben Fratoni

Osage Crie

Alec Cole

Noah Munn

Tyson Rice

Travis Terra

Andrew Bubar

Matthew Griffith

Kaleb Pendleton

Isaiah Sprague

Bill Hartt

Jacob Cote

Elias Veilleux

Ian Kelly

Hannah Sha'afi

Ennis Marshall

Kell Fremio

Jay Spaulding

Colby Tuffley

Jack Decker

Dax Penney

Noah Umel

Cordelia Perry

Matt Billings

Top female in the Junior High School Championship section: Catherine Rudnicki

Junior High School Championship section tournament director Barry Magda.

Blue Hill Consolodated School: K-6 State Champions

Second place in the K-6 Championship section: Deer Isle-Stonington

First place in the K-6 Novice section: Deer Isle-Stonington

Runners Up in the K-6 Novice section: Bucksport

The Levey Day School in Portland competed in both the Championship and Novice K-6 sections. The teams consisted of Zoe and Isaac Dinnerstein, Milo and Hannelore Sanokklis, Jacob Lucier, Deven Abrams and Maddik Weisberg.

Zoe Dinnerstein scored 4.0 points in the K-6 Novice section along with...

Thomas Thompson

The large K-6 Novice section

The Junior High Novice section...

...and the High School Novice section

Tom Sandford directed the K-6 Novice, Junior High School Novice and High School Novice sections.

Steve Wong handled the K-6 Championship section.

Ben McIntire

Ben Penfold

Rylee Eaton

Sam Parrot

Cyrus Grindal

Andrew Pappianne

Ross Stewart

Brent Roberts

Cody Ross

Ariel Larrabee

Wyatt Eaton

Cole Stewart

Isaac Dinnerstein

Caitlyn Woodward

Myles Brown

Henry Penfold

Ryan Baker

Joshua Watson

Kaylee Morey

Tommy Hutchinson

Cameron Stewart

Ian Pomroy

Milo Sanokklis

Sean Neal

Parker Allen

Evan Chapman

Alex Fago

Ian Howell

Cody Jones

Swaroop Handral

Jacob Lucier

Aurora Geleny

Ruby DeLuca Lowell

Logan Farr

Grayson Eaton

Nathan Dichard

Skyler Riley

Aiden Stearns

Nathan Thompson

Natalie Sheehan

Jacob Gell

Duncan Howell

Dakota Emerick

Kai Diel

The K-6 section tournament room

K-3 State Champions: Deer Isle-Stonington

Second place in the K-3 Championship section: Piscataquis

Piscataquis also took first place in the K-3 Novice section

Second in the K-3 Novice section: Deer Isle-Stonington

Brayden Martin

William Xu

Trace Brophy

Eion McCloskey

Jamison Cohen

Gavin L. Eaton

Cole Herrick

Macey Brown

Sean Morey

Chase Walker

Gavin C. Eaton

Cole Thibodeau

Owen Staples

Gavin Richards

Maya Brown

Adam Taylor

Colton Harriman

Sarah Gray

Grace Di Phillipo

Midnight Moffett

Taytum Chase

Izabelle Pizzo

Kierston Heroux

Onyxia Williams

The K-3 tournament room

A little Pokemon between rounds.

It's like chess...kind of.

Various fuels propelled players in their games.

Thanks to all players, parent, coaches and volunteers for supporting this event!