I guess only three players actually had draws -- it seems like more than that. Anyway, the vastly improbable happened. Of all the ways that 68 points can be divided between eight players winning, losing, and drawing, with different numbers of points at stake for each player's board, there is almost always an asymmetry.
But the improbable sometimes happens.
It just did.
Tied with Evanston 34-34.
Northside finishes 5.5-1.5
Saturday, February 13, 2016
Mindren...
looked like he would win for a while. Then it got complicated. Somehow, he has a minute on his clock. A whole minute
Time is running out
Evanston scored 7 points, and no other games are done.
Less than 12 minutes remain out of the two hours time allotted to compete
Less than 12 minutes remain out of the two hours time allotted to compete
Round 7
Matthew's game looks lost. Alejandro is down a piece.
Isha actually has two pieces to her opponent's rook.
Mindren has lost his rook, while his opponent has two knights roaming the board against Mindren's one. Mindren captured his opponent's last pawn. Apparently, he sacrificed the rook in order to promote one of his two pawns, which sounds like it would certainly be worth it, but he does not have a clear path to promotion for either of his two pawns.
Isha actually has two pieces to her opponent's rook.
Mindren has lost his rook, while his opponent has two knights roaming the board against Mindren's one. Mindren captured his opponent's last pawn. Apparently, he sacrificed the rook in order to promote one of his two pawns, which sounds like it would certainly be worth it, but he does not have a clear path to promotion for either of his two pawns.
Round 7 - tension continues to ratchet up
With nearly 3/4 of the time allotted now passed, there are still no settled games.
Mindren's opponent seems to be milking what his position allows, adding a bit of an edge to what I thought Mindren almost had wrapped up. It looks like Isha was about to lose an exchange of her rook for opponent's knight. Matthew looks none too happy. The Evanston coach (who knows chess better than I do) accosts me and whispers "I hear you have an edge." I have to hope he's right. Hard for me to see.
Mindren's opponent seems to be milking what his position allows, adding a bit of an edge to what I thought Mindren almost had wrapped up. It looks like Isha was about to lose an exchange of her rook for opponent's knight. Matthew looks none too happy. The Evanston coach (who knows chess better than I do) accosts me and whispers "I hear you have an edge." I have to hope he's right. Hard for me to see.
Round 7 - developments, no decisions
All eight players are still working. Both Ryan and Mindren are up an exchange - Ryan has a rook where his opponent has a bishop, and Mindren is up a rook to a knight. Ryan's game is still dense, but Mindren's looks very close to the endgame, and he has chased his opponent's king out into the center of the board, looking highly vulnerable. Mindren ought to win -- fairly soon.
Alejandro, unfortunately, is down a piece, so it looks bad for him.
Alejandro, unfortunately, is down a piece, so it looks bad for him.
Championship Round
This is the brutal round. No more easy sweeps. Teams face their equals. The quality of play is high, games are long, the stakes are high, and the tension is immense.
I think we can take them
Northside can beat Evanston.
In case you were interested to know my opinion.
In case you were interested to know my opinion.
3 Chicago teams
Round 7 -- the Final showdown. Chance to make Chicago history.
Whitney Young is challenging #1 seed Stevenson (there's a lot of that going around) on Table 1. Lane Tech challenges 8th-seeded Highland Park on Table 4. Lincoln Park defends Table 5 against 14th-seeded Hinsdale Central. NCP defend Table 6 against Evanston, the 15th seed.
Four Chicago teams with 21 wins and only 3 losses among them, playing on 4 of the top 6 Tables.
Probably the strongest concentration of CPS teams in history* at this point in the tournament. Fighting to make that history stick, with wins in the final round.
*Unless, of course, you consider Northside playing Whitney Young in Round 7 of 2013 for the overall championship to be the greatest concentration of Chicago Public School chess talent in State history. A case can be made...
Four Chicago teams with 21 wins and only 3 losses among them, playing on 4 of the top 6 Tables.
Probably the strongest concentration of CPS teams in history* at this point in the tournament. Fighting to make that history stick, with wins in the final round.
*Unless, of course, you consider Northside playing Whitney Young in Round 7 of 2013 for the overall championship to be the greatest concentration of Chicago Public School chess talent in State history. A case can be made...
After Round 6 - standings and other teams
Lincoln Park escaped a real scare. After starting the day with their first loss, at the hands of Stevenson, just like NCP, they played a lower-seeded team, but only survived by the skin of their teeth. Lane Tech, similarly, lost at the hands of Stevenson, one round before NCP did. In Round 6, to the contrary, Lane nearly wept their opponent, losing only on 6th board. Whitney Young was challenged, but won their sixth in a row.
CPS teams currently stand at 6-0, 5-1. 5-1, and 5-1.
CPS teams currently stand at 6-0, 5-1. 5-1, and 5-1.
Round 6 - solid victory
Matthew won, Isha drew, and Anna drew. In the end, Northside earned 56.5 points vs. 11.5
Solid.
Solid.
Round 6 - George the Defender, Mindren wins
Down an exchange on first board. Usually, this would be fatal at this level. But George held on and forced a draw.
Mindren won 5th board.
Meanwhile, Matthew, Isha, and Anna battle on.
Round 6 - 2, 3, 4 for NCP
Jonathan, Ryan, and Ronald have won their games, while everyone else continues to play.
George is in trouble, while everyone else's games are closer.
George is in trouble, while everyone else's games are closer.
Round 6 - Kaneland (Maple Park)
Facing Kaneland HS of Maple Park, a team Northside has seen in previous years*. Seeded #22, they are likely to provide a challenge, but NCP is decidedly favored. Let's root for our team to put a stamp of authority on this match.
* 1st round in 2013, then 1st round again in 2014
* 1st round in 2013, then 1st round again in 2014
Round 5 - win, if not easy
Jonathan, Ronald, Matthew, and Isha all won, while George, Ryan, and Anna wound up drawing boards 1, 3, and 8. Mindren suffered a tough loss on board 5. Final tally 46.5-21.5, which is a decisive win, though it came tougher than we would have hoped.
Round 5 early
Matthew won 6th board to begin the scoring.
All NCP players have a time advantage over their Heyworth counterparts.
Here is a good story:
Isha has taken all her opponents pieces, and he has no hope to win, but the other player has not resigned, providing an illustration of the literal interpretation of "never surrender". Sometimes this attitude is futile, but at early levels of chess play, one can always hope that the winning player will blunder into a stalemate, giving one a draw as a gift. A player of Isha's strength will not blunder into a stalemate.
But you gotta give the guy recognition for trying. Watch this:
Isha got a pawn to seventh rank and was in postion to promote. The other player helpfully picked up a queen and set it on the board before Isha waved it off. Had he gotten away with this "act of politeness", he would have been stalemated and he'd have stolen a draw out of the game. Isha did not fall for it, and let his king take that pawn for free. Meanwhile, she turned to her remaining fistful of pawns to promote to a useful queen and finish off the game summarily.
All NCP players have a time advantage over their Heyworth counterparts.
Here is a good story:
Isha has taken all her opponents pieces, and he has no hope to win, but the other player has not resigned, providing an illustration of the literal interpretation of "never surrender". Sometimes this attitude is futile, but at early levels of chess play, one can always hope that the winning player will blunder into a stalemate, giving one a draw as a gift. A player of Isha's strength will not blunder into a stalemate.
But you gotta give the guy recognition for trying. Watch this:
Isha got a pawn to seventh rank and was in postion to promote. The other player helpfully picked up a queen and set it on the board before Isha waved it off. Had he gotten away with this "act of politeness", he would have been stalemated and he'd have stolen a draw out of the game. Isha did not fall for it, and let his king take that pawn for free. Meanwhile, she turned to her remaining fistful of pawns to promote to a useful queen and finish off the game summarily.
Round 5 - Heyworth -begins with a handshake
Saturday Morning Round 5
After being sent up to Table 1 to take on Stevenson yesterday evening, Northside is sent back down to Table 7 to face a challenge from the lower-seeded Heyworth (#38).
Other Chicago schools: Lincoln Park, 4-0, being undefeated, now goes up to Table 1 against Stevenson. Whitney Young, 4-0, tries to defend Table 2 from a challenge by Hinsdale Central, who upset Naperville North yesterday to enter round 5 undefeated. Lane Tech, 3-1, is in a position similar to NCP, defending Table 10 -- playing a Chicago Catholic school, St. Patrick's.
Other Chicago schools: Lincoln Park, 4-0, being undefeated, now goes up to Table 1 against Stevenson. Whitney Young, 4-0, tries to defend Table 2 from a challenge by Hinsdale Central, who upset Naperville North yesterday to enter round 5 undefeated. Lane Tech, 3-1, is in a position similar to NCP, defending Table 10 -- playing a Chicago Catholic school, St. Patrick's.
MIndren undefeated so far - tops Board 5 rankings after round 4
Click on the table and you can actually read it!
Friday, February 12, 2016
Chicago Public Chess has a very good day
Northside's 3-1, losing only to the top seed, is a good showing.
Lane Tech also went 3-1 today.
Whitney Young was undefeated, and.. Lincoln Park went 4-0 for the first time!
Among the four teams representing CPS schools, we complied a combined record of 14-2, with the only two losses coming against the first seed and third seed of the tournament.
That is the way to represent!!
Lane Tech also went 3-1 today.
Whitney Young was undefeated, and.. Lincoln Park went 4-0 for the first time!
Among the four teams representing CPS schools, we complied a combined record of 14-2, with the only two losses coming against the first seed and third seed of the tournament.
That is the way to represent!!
Mindren adds a grueling win
.. but that is it for NCP this round. We suffer our first loss of the day.
Stevenson lived up to their billing, and gave us a difficult round. Final score 54-14.
Stevenson lived up to their billing, and gave us a difficult round. Final score 54-14.
Isha gets a win!
She put the first points up for Northside.
Four more games. No-one has more than 7 minutes left
Four more games. No-one has more than 7 minutes left
Round 4 first decision, and tension
Ryan has lost third board. Ryan had a tremendous run at State over the past two years - undefeated two years running!
Meanwhile, Jonathan has a strong position, but it is double-edged, and he is short on time, so he will need to capitalize on his assets relatively soon.
All other players are in the thick of things -- very challenging.
Meanwhile, Jonathan has a strong position, but it is double-edged, and he is short on time, so he will need to capitalize on his assets relatively soon.
All other players are in the thick of things -- very challenging.
Round 4 wrestling the heavyweight, Stevenson
45 minutes into NCP's match with #1 seed Stevenson, and every game is tight. Not a single clock is outside the 31-37 minute range -- some we're up, some they are, George and Alex Bian have exactly 35 minutes each. Tough matches always take longer -- whether you win or you lose, quality chess takes a long time to play.
Round 4. Oh, boy.
Competition we expected-- competition we got. Heading up to Table One to face the top-seeded Stevenson.
The team says, "HOO!!"
Wish us luck!!
The team says, "HOO!!"
Wish us luck!!
After 3 rounds, Northside is one of 10 undefeated teams
Standings mean something now, and, with only ten undefeated teams, Northside is ready for some serious competition now!
So does Ryan, so does Jonathan, so does George -- Sweep.
The three top boards continued playing longest - one of them was a close game. All won. Northside secures a second sweep in three rounds.
Northside has handled the three lower seeds they have faced so far.
Next round, we expect to play a higher seed, so the team need to be prepared for a serious challenge.
Anna plays, Anna wins, Anna clinches match
In her first State appearance, Anna won on eighth board, scoring 5 points for the team. With the 30 already on the record, this raised Northside's team score to 35, and clinched the match.
Way to go!
Way to go!
4 boards win to start 3rd round -- Downers Grove South
Ronald, Mindren, Matthew, and Isha all win. 30 points.
3rd Round -- Anna plays 8th board
Anna has substituted in for Alejandro this round, so she is now playing in her first State Championship tournament.
Everybody cheer for her -- Go Anna!
The team faces Downers Grove South.
Everybody cheer for her -- Go Anna!
The team faces Downers Grove South.
2nd round 48-20 (5 1/2 wins out of 8)
Northside won on five boards and drew on one.
Jonathan, Ryan, Ronald, and Mindren followed Matthew with wins on their boards. George and Alejandro lost. Isha's game was going against her, but she managed to find a draw.
Have you been wondering how the points work?
How the points work: Teams score more for top boards,
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5
All the points together total 68, so a perfect score is 68-0. Half of 68 is 34, so it takes 34.5 points minimum to win the match. Even though first board scores more than twice as many points as eighth board, a team cannot win with the top three alone: 12+11+10=33. Alternatively, you could say that players winning on any five boards will win the match.
Can you build up an insurmountable lead, or seize momentum by winning games early?
No. Once you have scored 34.5 points or more, your team will win the match. Nonetheless, going up 33-0 early does not mean your team is winning. Although odds are in your favor that someone on the team will score, and then you will win, at least one player must win or draw his or her game for this actually to happen.
Jonathan, Ryan, Ronald, and Mindren followed Matthew with wins on their boards. George and Alejandro lost. Isha's game was going against her, but she managed to find a draw.
Have you been wondering how the points work?
How the points work: Teams score more for top boards,
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5
All the points together total 68, so a perfect score is 68-0. Half of 68 is 34, so it takes 34.5 points minimum to win the match. Even though first board scores more than twice as many points as eighth board, a team cannot win with the top three alone: 12+11+10=33. Alternatively, you could say that players winning on any five boards will win the match.
Can you build up an insurmountable lead, or seize momentum by winning games early?
No. Once you have scored 34.5 points or more, your team will win the match. Nonetheless, going up 33-0 early does not mean your team is winning. Although odds are in your favor that someone on the team will score, and then you will win, at least one player must win or draw his or her game for this actually to happen.
Two more wins, while the match may still be tight
Jonathan and Ronald have won, bringing the team to 27 points scored-- it takes over 34 points to win the match.
George looks like he is in trouble.
George looks like he is in trouble.
Cheap thrill
If you like to see things that make your team look great, without looking deeply at whether it really means anything, check out the standings after round one. Northside is listed in third, after IMSA and Lane Tech. --Ahead of Whitney Young. -- And way ahead of the number one seed, Stevenson!
But if you look at the points that rank the teams, all are below 1.0 -- by the end of the tournament, top teams will be over 100, and most teams will be separated from their nearest competitors by a greater margin than the span of scores for the entire field now.
By the way, look quick, because as soon as this round is over, they will recalculate, and you can expect everything to be different.
But if you look at the points that rank the teams, all are below 1.0 -- by the end of the tournament, top teams will be over 100, and most teams will be separated from their nearest competitors by a greater margin than the span of scores for the entire field now.
By the way, look quick, because as soon as this round is over, they will recalculate, and you can expect everything to be different.
Matthew wins first
Matthew has won and given Northside the first points in this match.
Alejandro just lost a bishop, which I don't see any compensation for, so I am afraid he has dropped it.
the remaining 6 games are close.
Alejandro just lost a bishop, which I don't see any compensation for, so I am afraid he has dropped it.
the remaining 6 games are close.
2nd Round - vs. Wheaton-Warrenville South
Another example of change - Wheaton-Warrenville South has been a top-ten or top-fifteen team for many years. Now we face them early in the tournament with them seeded #30.
Looks like they are substantially stronger than Lincoln-Way North was, though -- after 25 minutes, many of our players are behind on time, and boards all look complex and balanced. Doesn't look like Northside will get a cakewalk this time.
Looks like they are substantially stronger than Lincoln-Way North was, though -- after 25 minutes, many of our players are behind on time, and boards all look complex and balanced. Doesn't look like Northside will get a cakewalk this time.
1,200 competitors
In case you didn't know, the State chess championship is a remarkable, and possibly unique, competitive event. There are 146 teams competing. Every team has 8 players competing every round - no elimination. So, after they shake hands to start a round, there are 1,168 players "on the field" simultaneously. --and you can hear a pin drop.
First round - sweep - sweet
George closed out the endgame, and it's a clean sweep to start the tournament
First round - possible sweep
Alejandro described his position as "double-edged". But after his opponent dropped a bishop, followed by a pawn, the edge was his alone.
Isha took her game.
George is up a pawn in king and pawns endgame.
Isha took her game.
George is up a pawn in king and pawns endgame.
First round - wrapping it up
Isha is up two pieces now, finishing off her opponent. Alejandro took opponent's queen, though he gave up a room and a piece in exchange. Down on time, his game is still interesting. George still looks good to me - material is equal
First round - after 85 minutes
Matthew finished off his opponent.
George is dramatically ahead on time. I looked at his board and saw one more piece for his opponent -- as George contemplates which of two options he will choose to complete a trade.
Isha is way ahead on time, with many pieces still out on the board.
Alejandro is well behind on time, but his opponent's queen may not be in a comfortable position herself. Perhaps Alejandro will find a way to get her in trouble.
George is dramatically ahead on time. I looked at his board and saw one more piece for his opponent -- as George contemplates which of two options he will choose to complete a trade.
Isha is way ahead on time, with many pieces still out on the board.
Alejandro is well behind on time, but his opponent's queen may not be in a comfortable position herself. Perhaps Alejandro will find a way to get her in trouble.
First round after 70 minutes of play
Jonathan won, Ryan won, Ronald won and Mindren won. This means Northside is already the winner of this round.
Four games are still under way. George looks to be in a commanding position. Even on material, way up on time, looking confident and relaxed. Matthew is up a piece and two pawns in the endgame - his game looks to be in the bag. Isha is in a tight position, her board crowded with pieces still. Alejandro is down on time, looking at a board with the opponent's queen wedged in among his pieces -- an uncomfortable position, it appears.
Four games are still under way. George looks to be in a commanding position. Even on material, way up on time, looking confident and relaxed. Matthew is up a piece and two pawns in the endgame - his game looks to be in the bag. Isha is in a tight position, her board crowded with pieces still. Alejandro is down on time, looking at a board with the opponent's queen wedged in among his pieces -- an uncomfortable position, it appears.
Preview - Seedings and History
Northside is seeded 10th this year. While not the highest seeding in the last few years, Northside is showing consistency over time. Seeded below us are a number of previous powerhouse schools and even the perennial champions from 2000-2005, Niles North at 27. Hinsdale Central is at 14, Evanston at 15, and #2 finisher two years ago, Benet Academy all the way down at 62. Chess programs can fluctuate a lot. It is a tribute to Northside students and coach Florin that Northside continues to be one of the power players in Illinois.
First Round match-up -- Lincoln-Way North
Northside is seeded 10th of 146 teams. Teams sit at tables arranged hierarchically by seeding, so we are in the position of defending Table 10 against challengers to start. Later, if we win, we may move up to challenge one of the top nine seeded teams and try to take their table.
We face Lincoln-Way North first round.
We face Lincoln-Way North first round.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
Correction - Alejandro was playing original compositions
...mind blown.
I was already flabbergasted when I just thought that the chess team featured three virtuosos playing the piano. I thought Alejandro was playing pieces that I was unfamiliar with, composed by, say, Chopin's nephew. I stand corrected -- and in awe -- Alejandro was performing his own original work.
I was already flabbergasted when I just thought that the chess team featured three virtuosos playing the piano. I thought Alejandro was playing pieces that I was unfamiliar with, composed by, say, Chopin's nephew. I stand corrected -- and in awe -- Alejandro was performing his own original work.
2016 IHSA State Chess Championship
Our team line-up this year:
George McCoy
Jonathan Lee
Ryan Toepfer
Ronald Rodriguez
Mindren Lu
Matthew Kosova
Isha Gani
Alejandro Linan
Alternate Anna Alvarez
Ready to rock!
George McCoy
Jonathan Lee
Ryan Toepfer
Ronald Rodriguez
Mindren Lu
Matthew Kosova
Isha Gani
Alejandro Linan
Alternate Anna Alvarez
Ready to rock!
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