Sunday, January 30, 2011

Strong start for Lubbock chess players, UIL competition in 2011


Strong start for Lubbock chess players, UIL competition in 2011
Posted: January 30, 2011 - 12:13am
http://lubbockonline.com

Approximately 75 players, from ages 6 to 60-plus, took part in the first chess tournament of 2011 in Lubbock, the seventh “Get Smart! Play Chess!,” this past Saturday at the Science Spectrum.

In addition, approximately 30 students took part in the first ever UIL Chess Puzzle Solving Invitational that took place between rounds two and three.

• Here are the final top 3 winners in each section:

Final standings (by tiebreaks order): K-12
1. Bernadette Perez (Frenship) 4.0 points / 4 games
2-3. Robert Mitchell (Estacado) 3.0
2-3. Kelvin Cassity (Estacado) 3.0

• Final standings: K-8
1. Felix Perez (Mackenzie) 3.5 points / 4 games
2. Ben Cheatham (Murfee) 3.0
3-4. Wolfgang Simmons (Evans) 2.5
3-4. Joaquin Munoz (Atkins) 2.5

• Final standings: K-5
1. Brian Mulligan (All-Saints) 4.0 points / 4 games
2-5. Leeam Polgar (Murfee) 3.0
2-5. Daniel McCarty (Ramirez) 3.0
2-5. Luca D’Amico-Wong (Murfee) 3.0
2-5. Sarah Cheatham (Murfee) 3.0

• Final standings: K-2
1-2. Andrew McClure (All-Saints) 3.5 points / 4 games
1-2. Alex Viner (Harwell) 3.5
3. Ezekiel Hernandez (Ramirez) 3.0

• Final standings: Novice Section
1. Quincy Walker (Dunbar) 4.0 points / games
2-4. Jason Henry (Dunbar) 3.0
2-4. Alex Wixon (Atkins) 3.0
2-4. Brendan Boss (OL Slaton) 3.0

Here are the final team standings in all sections:

• Team standings: K-12
1. Estacado; 2. Frenship; 3. Lubbock

• Team standings: K-8
1. Atkins; 2. Frenship; 3. Mackenzie

• Team standings: K-5
1. Murfee; 2. Ramirez; 3. All Saints

• Team standings: K-2
1. Harwell; 2. All Saint; 3. Murfee

• Team standings: Novice
1. Dunbar; 2. Atkins; 3. Bozeman

Photos from the event: http://picasaweb.google.com/SPICEChess/7thGetSmartPlayChess
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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

4th annual Lubbock Open


TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY, Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE), the Susan Polgar Foundation and the Knight Raiders present

4th Annual Lubbock Open Chess Championship
Saturday, February 19, 2011
A 4 Round Swiss System Tournament (Game/30)

Event Site: Science Spectrum 2579 S. Loop 289, Lubbock, TX

Contact Info: 806-742-7742 E-mail: Spice@ttu.edu

Description of Tournament: A USCF rated Individual Championship

Games are played in one section. There is a total of 30 minutes maximum per player per game.

On-site registration and check in 9am-10:00am. All players must check in by 10:15am.

Round schedule:

1 10:30 AM
2 11:45 AM
3 1:15 PM
4 2:30 PM

Entry Fees: $20 received by 1/24; $25 received by 2/14, or on site $30. TTU and K-12 students $5 off. A valid USCF membership required. It can be obtained at www.uschess.org or onsite on 2/19 until 10am.

Prizes: Cash prizes: $100 (plus trophy)-$75-$50, Top U-1600, Top U-1200, Top U1000/Unrated $40 each. All cash prizes are based on a minimum of 20 paid entries. Prize giving ceremony will be held shortly after the end of the last game which is around 4:00pm.

Chess boards and sets will be provided. Bring a chess clock if you have one.

Please register send Entry Blank and Fees to Susan Polgar Foundation send to: 6923 Indiana Avenue #154 Lubbock, TX 79413. Additional information on www.SPICE.ttu.edu

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Entry Form: Please PRINT all information and make check/money order to Susan Polgar Foundation
Name: _____________________ Phone: (___) ________School________­­­­­­­­­­­______
Address: ___________________________ City/State: _________ Zip:________
Email: ____________________________ DOB: __________Section__________
USCF Rating (if any) ___USCF ID#:______ Amount Enclosed (No cash, please) $____
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4th annual Lubbock Scholastic Open


TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY, Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE), the Susan Polgar Foundation and the Knight Raiders present

4th Annual Lubbock Open Scholastic Chess Championship
Saturday, February 19, 2011
A 4 Round Swiss System Tournament (Game/30)

Event Site: Science Spectrum, 2579 S. Loop 289 Lubbock, TX

Contact Info: 806-742-7742 E-mail: Spice@ttu.edu

Description of Tournament: A USCF rated Individual and Team Scholastic Championship

Games are played in five sections: Primary (K-2), Elementary (K-5), Middle School (K-8), High School (K-12) and Novice section K-12 (no USCF membership required). There is a total of 30 minutes maximum per player per game.

On-site registration and check in 8:30am-9:30am. All players must check in by 9:45am. Later arrival will receive a ½ point bye for the first round.

Round schedule: 10:00am -11:15am-1:00pm and 2:15pm

UIL Invitational Puzzle-Solving at 12:15pm.

Entry Fees: $10 received by 1/24; $15 received by 2/14, or on site $20. A valid USCF membership required in all sections, except Novice K-12. It can be obtained at www.uschess.org or onsite on 2/19 until 10am. The entry for the UIL Puzzle Solving is $5.

Prizes: Trophies for top 5 finishers in each section. Trophies to top 3 school teams in each section.

Special valuable chess prizes to the top overall finisher in each section sponsored by the Susan Polgar Foundation! Team prizes are based on the top 3 individual scores from the same school within the same section. Also special trophy for top Sibling, top Parent/Child and top Coach/Student teams. Prize giving ceremony will be held shortly after the end of the last game which is around 3:45pm.

Chess boards and sets will be provided. Bring a chess clock if you have one.

Please register send Entry Blank and Fees to TTU-SPICE send to: SPICE Box 45080 Lubbock, TX 79409-5080 Additional information on www.SPICE.ttu.edu

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Entry Form: Please PRINT all information and make check/money order to TTU-SPICE.
Name: ____________________ Phone: (_____) ________School________­­­­­­­____
Address: __________________________ City/State: ___________ Zip:______
Email: _________________________________ DOB: _______Section_______
USCF Rating (if any) ___ USCF ID#:______ Amount Enclosed (No cash, please) $___
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Saturday, January 22, 2011

A+ Chess Puzzle (Pilot)


A+ Chess Puzzle (Pilot)

A+ Chess Puzzle (Pilot) is for Pilot Event -->

The UIL Legislative Council has authorized a pilot event in Chess Puzzle solving for the A+ Academic program.

What is a pilot event?

Pilot status allows a new event to be adopted essentially on a trial basis. Contest rules for pilot events are NOT included in the Constitution & Contest Rules, so they may be adjusted on an ongoing basis during the pilot period. The current A+ Social Studies event spent three years in pilot status before the Council voted to adopt it as an official UIL event. Pilot events may or may not ultimately become official events.

What is Chess Puzzle solving?

The benefits of chess are well documented for players of all ages, and especially for young people. Chess teaches problem solving, hones concentration and encourages analytical and strategic thinking. Chess can be a lifelong pursuit.

Chess puzzle competition is very different from tournament chess play. Contestants in a chess puzzle contest receive a paper-and-pencil test that includes a series of chess boards with pieces in particular positions. The contestant must then determine the fewest moves to checkmate given that particular board layout. Time is also a factor - contestants are scored based on the most puzzles solved in the least amount of time. See below for a sample test.

A chess puzzle event provides an avenue for chess participation that does not require the time and resources of actual tournament play. The fixed time limit makes it practical to include in a district meet schedule, and the availability of free resources allows any school (including those that do not currently have chess programs) to include chess puzzle in their slate of A+ events at minimal cost.

Download a sample chess puzzle test with answer sheet and key.

Where did this idea come from?

The proposal for a UIL chess puzzle competition came from the Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (SPICE), a division of Texas Tech University. Ms. Polgar is one of the world's leading chess players. She is currently the top-ranked woman player in the United States, and she was the first woman ever to earn the title of chess Grandmaster. Coming soon - read more about Susan Polgar and the chess puzzle pilot in the Leaguer.

How do we participate?

Districts with upcoming meets will be contacted about possible participation in the pilot this spring. All A+ districts will have the option to participate in 2011-12 by indicating their choice on the District Meet form.

Are there invitational meets?

Yes. SPICE and school district partners are sponsoring multiple invitational meets around the state, including the following:

January 22 - Alice
January 22 - Lubbock
January 29 - Brownsville
February 19 - Lubbock

Additional meet information will be added when available.

What study and practice resources are available?

There are thousands of chess web sites available online, many that include chess puzzles, and many that are designed for kids. Below are links for some of these sites; more will be added.

Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence (includes a daily chess puzzle and downloadable training guide for teachers and parents)
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Thursday, January 20, 2011

Texas Tech - SPICE Chess Summer Camp


Learn chess from world champion Susan Polgar and her team. Beginners to advanced K-12 players welcome. Campers will practice writing and computer skills. Sports and other activities offered.

• Commuter Plan: $295/week
Check-in Monday 8am-9am. Camp hours are 9am-5:00pm daily Monday - Thursday. Camp ends at 3pm on Friday. Lunch and snacks included.

• Residential Plan: $595/week
Arrive Sunday 7/10 between 6pm-9pm. Dorm lodging and all meals are included, including dinner on Sunday through lunch on Friday. Camp ends at 3pm on Friday. Residential plan is based on double occupancy. 5-12 Grades only.

Early bird discount: 10% off by April 15, 2011.
Residential plan registration closes June 6, 2011.

See http://www.SPICE.ttu.edu, email SPICE@ttu.edu, or call (806) 742-7742.
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Tuesday, January 18, 2011

TTU Knight Raiders Accomplishments


2008 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (Fort Worth, TX)
IM Gergely Antal – Top board 1


2009 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (South Padre Island, TX)

IM Davorin Kuljasevic – Top board 1

IM Gergely Antal – Top board 3

Division IV team champion (Osbourn, Haskin, James, Parkhomenko, Shah)

Texas Tech A qualified for College Chess Final Four (Kuljasevic, Papp, Antal, Watters)


2009 Tournament of College Champions

IM Gergely Antal – National Champion


2010 PanAm Intercollegiate Chess Championships (Milwaukee, WI)

Division II team champion (Watters, Flores, Lelko, Cassidy, Osbourn)

Division IV team champion (Haskin, Kamphorst, James, Roy)

GM Andre Diamant – Top board 2

GM Anatoly Bykhovsky – Top board 3

Texas Tech qualified for College Chess Final Four (Kuljasevic, Diamant, Bykhovsky, Sipos)


2009 Texas State Collegiate Championships (Houston, TX)

IM Gergely Antal – State individual champion

Texas Tech – State team champion


2009 Southwest Open – Regional
(Fort Worth, TX)
IM Gergely Antal – 1st place individual

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Monday, January 17, 2011

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

College Chess Eligibility Requirements


Information about the USCF College Chess Committee and College Chess events.

The U.S. Chess Federation College Team Chess has, since its inception in 1945, welcomed non-traditionally aged players, particularly graduate students. For the time being, this custom will continue, with the following exceptions:

Rule 1

  • For college and university teams, titled players (International Masters, International Grandmasters, International Woman Masters and International Woman Grandmasters) are eligible to participate if they satisfy at least one of the following stipulations: #1 or all three conditions listed in #2.
    1. 1. Are less than 26 years old as undergraduate students, or under 30 years old as graduate students, as of September 1 of the academic year in which the tournament takes place.
    2. 2. Satisfy all of the following three conditions:
      • a) Are full-time, degree-seeking students (e.g., at least 12 semester credit hours for undergraduate students and 9 semester credit hours for graduate students)
      • b) Have a grade-point average of at least B (e.g., at least 3.0 on a 4-point scale)
      • c) Have satisfied conditions 1 and 2 for at least one full semester at their team’s college or university prior to the event.
  • Rule 1 applies to all college events — individual or team. There are no age restrictions on players not having the four above-mentioned international titles.

Rule 2

  • College and University players shall be enrolled at least half-time (e.g. 6 semester credit hours) during the semester of eligibility. For the Pan American Intercollegiate Team Championship, traditionally held between Christmas and New Year’s each year, players must be enrolled in the fall semester preceding the event.

Rule 3

  • College and university players shall be eligible to play for a total of six years, where a year is defined as being either a traditional academic year of a fall and spring term or a fall term or a spring term, e.g., a player enrolled in spring of 1998, spring of 1999 and fall of 1999 is considered enrolled for three years under this rule.

Rule 4

  • College and university players shall be enrolled in a degree-seeking program with a cumulative grade point average of at least a C.

Rule 5

  • College and university players shall be resident at their campuses either in on-campus housing or in housing within reasonable commuting distance from campus, e.g., a player taking distance learning courses from another country shall not be eligible to play.

Rule 6

  • Colleges and universities offering chess-related scholarships shall maintain records about the individuals awarded such scholarships, their time of attendance, the degrees received if any, and the grade point average attained.

Rule 7

  • Faculty, staff and alumni are not eligible to compete in the National Collegiate Chess League Team Championship conducted over the internet each spring.

The following are suggestions offered for guidance:

  • Faculty conflicts. A faculty member serving as a consultant or director to a university or college chess program should adhere to the following guidelines:
    1. 1. To admit no player to their program who does not, in their judgment, demonstrate a serious likelihood of achieving a degree.
    2. 2. To not offer independent study courses to members of the chess team.
    3. 3. To not recruit players from other chess programs.
    4. 4. To scrutinize carefully undergraduate students applying for a second baccalaureate.
  • Non-compliance:
    1. 1. Winning teams should file a report to document compliance with these regulations with the USCF.
    2. 2. Any team’s standing may be challenged for non-compliance by a competing team through a written complaint sent within 30 days to the Executive Director or the Scholastic Director of the U.S. Chess Federation. That official shall gather the relevant documentation of the complaint, make a recommendation as to disposition, and send it to the USCF Executive Board for resolution.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Chess and Brain


Chess and Brain - The lasting connection

Chess, an indoor activity, is one of the most intellectual and competitive games played between two individuals. The game is played on a square chessboard of 64 squares arranged in a fashion of eight by eight grids. It is the fun game as well as brain food, not only for kids but for all age groups.

Some studies show that chess-playing students show marvelous improvement in their overall academic performance. Students’ exposure to chess actually improves the memory, concentration, vocabulary, logical thinking, problem-solving skills, forethought, self-discipline, capacity to take decisions more analytically and logically, and much more. In many countries, chess has been added as the main part of curriculum.

Chess and Brain (My Brilliant Brain Video)

Chess and Brain (right brain and left brain)

Chess is the brain booster. It is the only game which activates both parts of our brain. Many studies reveal that chess-playing best helps scientists to better understand how brain works. Understanding of the coordinated work of our brain is very complex. Our brain is made up of two halves, left brain and right brain. Each half is responsible for different characteristics of our personality. A person may be right-dominant or left-dominant. Imagination, fantasy, creativity, colors, sense of touch, hearing, feeling and intuition are the few traits of right brain. Right-brain dominant personalities are future thinkers. Since animals are purely right-brained, many considered right brain as animal brain. On contrary, left brain is associated with logical and analytical thinking, reasoning part. Left brain is more complex. Left-brain thinkers are led by logic, not by emotions.

Chess is the game where we fully use two halves of the brain, a complete package for brain. While playing chess, first we have to separate the color-coded chess pieces, white and black ones (characteristics of right brain). Even for a single move of chess, we have to retrieve all the rules of the game. On the same time we must learn about the unique manner in which a particular chess piece can move and relative value of each chess piece. And then we have to analyze the whole position logically and think analytically keeping in mind what may be the countermoves of your opponent. Chess is the test of your patience and foresightedness. While playing chess, we have to separate and use all the steps in a single time: separate color-coded pieces in your mind, analyze your each move and countermove of your opponent. We can say chess-playing is the game of whole brain. Checkmate judgment activates the right brain with full coordination of left brain. And you know, when a well-developed right brain is fully integrated with left brain, we get a genius.

Source: http://hubpages.com
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Sunday, January 9, 2011

This is Texas Tech chess


Four more national titles for the Texas Tech Knight Raiders
Posted: January 8, 2011 - 12:12am

The biggest college chess tournament — the annual Pan American Intercollegiate Chess Championships — just concluded in Milwaukee, Wis. This is the second year that Texas Tech has sent a Division I team to compete in the national championship. Around 30 top teams across the United States and the Americas entered in the prestigious event this year. The top four finishers qualify for the Final Four.

Our Knight Raiders A team (Grandmaster Davorin Kuljasevic, Grandmaster Andre Diamant, Grandmaster Anatoly Bykhovsky, International Master Istvan Sipos) once again qualified for the prestigious College Chess Final Four. They will face the University of Maryland at Baltimore County, the University of Texas at Brownsville, and the University of Texas at Dallas in April in Washington, D.C., for the President’s Cup, which is the college chess Division I National Championship.

Our B team (Chase Watters, John Flores, Rebecca Lelko (w), Brian Cassidy and Josh Osbourn) tied for first with Miami-Dade for the National Division II title.

Our C team (Zach Haskin, Maraani Kamphorst Diamant (w), Brett James, Ananya Roy (w) tied for first with Yale for the National Division IV title.

Grandmaster Andre Diamant tied for first with Grandmaster Sergey Erenburg (UMBC) for the best board two individual national title.

Grandmaster Anatoly Bykhovsky won the best board three individual national title.

In a little more than two years, the Texas Tech Knight Raiders chess teams have won an unprecedented nine national titles, two states titles, and one regional title. This further lends credibility to Texas Tech as one of the world premier universities with a chess program.

But this does not tell the entire story of the accomplishments of our students/chess players. Let me first give a few examples of courage and determination in sports that served as inspiration to our group and then I will share with you the remarkable fighting spirits of our own Knight Raiders.

In December, Holland Reynolds, one of San Francisco University High School’s top runners, inspired countless people with her action. The 16-year-old junior collapsed about five feet from the finish line at her cross-country meet. Her body gave out. She had nothing left in her tank. But instead of giving up, she crawled past the line to help her team win the state championships. “I just kept on telling myself, ‘I need to finish and I need to cross the line’,” Reynolds told ABC News. Here is the inspiring video on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzQkOz1wRcM).

Another story that stuck out in my mind is the dramatic movie ending of the Jamaican Bobsled team’s last race at a Winter Olympics (based on the movie “Cool Runnings”). After crashing badly, instead of giving up, they carried their sled to the finish line. Even though it is only a movie ending based on a real life story, it was nevertheless inspiring. Here is that clip on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31M_MdSVxV8).

Our three Knight Raiders chess teams were also the underdogs. They faced countless challenges and adversities during their roads to the National Championships. Our chess program is one of the newest and least experienced in the country among major schools (this is only our second full year of recruiting), including ones in the state of Texas. Even though we have achieved unprecedented success on and off the chess board, we are still undermanned.

Other Texas universities with major chess programs get substantial institutional support for scholarships for their chess team members. Our Knight Raiders rely mostly on private generous donations. It is David versus Goliath! Without additional donations or institutional scholarships, the world class Knight Raiders Chess Teams may cease to exist in the near future, in spite of their incredible success on and off the field.

How does the scholarship dollars affect our chess teams? A chess game can last up to six or seven hours. Because of limited funding, we cannot have reserve players at the top level. Our players have to play two games a day, which is up to 12-14 hours of chess while another top-ranked team like the University of Texas at Dallas can rest their top players by substituting them with highly capable reserve players. In another word, if you compare chess to college basketball or football, it is the same as asking our players to play 40 minutes of basketball or 60 minutes of football without substitution or rest.

This is putting tremendous physical and mental pressure on all of our players. But you will not hear any of them complain. They gave everything they had to make Texas Tech and Lubbock proud. At midnight on the last night before the sixth and final match early next morning, while players from other teams rest or relax before the big day, every one of our players was strategizing and preparing.

Our three teams could have come home empty handed and they would have had more than enough legitimate excuses. But they refused to give up or give in to their mental and physical exhaustion.

On the next morning when our players arrived at the tournament hall, I could clearly see the exhaustion on their faces. It is disheartening for any coach to see the incredible personal sacrifices all of our players made. Win, lose, or draw, I could not be more proud of this group.

But in spite of the severe handicap, they pulled it off. They dug deep down to win four more national titles. But is it like football or basketball where they can turn pros and sign multi-million dollar contracts? No. In fact, many of our students have to subsidize a part of their trips to Milwaukee with their own personal funds.

These young men and women succeeded as a team with big smiles. They brought pride to our school and our city without asking for anything in return. Even a parade would not be too lavish for what they have accomplished. They gave up five days of their winter breaks to represent Texas Tech and Lubbock, coming from all over the country and around the world. And as a group, not only that they accomplished great things on the chess board, they also have a grade point average of about 3.3 while volunteering countless hours in the community.

This is what Texas Tech is all about. This is our Knight Raiders’ pride. This is Texas Tech chess.

Source: Avalanche Journal

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Knight Raiders earn more national titles


Chess Team Earns Four National Titles at Pan-Am Intercollegiate Championships
Written by Karin Slyker
January 6, 2011

Texas Tech has made it into the Final Four, in what some call the World Series of College Chess.

Texas Tech has made it into the Final Four, in what some call the World Series of College Chess. The Knight Raiders are among 30 of the best teams from across the United States and the Americas who traveled in December to Milwaukee, Wis., for the 2010 Pan American Intercollegiate Chess Championships. Other teams include Yale, Stanford and the University of Chicago.

This is the second year that Texas Tech has sent a Division I team to compete, and the Knight Raiders made it to the Final Four both times. The A team is now qualified for one of four slots to play in the President’s Cup. Grand Master (GM) Davorin Kuljasevic, GM Andre Diamant, GM Anatoly Bykhovsky and International Master Istvan Sipos will face the University of Texas at Dallas, the University of Texas at Brownsville and the University of Maryland at Baltimore County.

Diamant also tied with GM Erenburg (UMBC) for best individual performance title on board 2. Bykhovsky received the best individual performance title on board 3.

The Knight Raiders B team tied for first place with Miami-Dade College in the Division II Championship. Its accomplishment is especially remarkable considering Chase Watters, Josh Osbourn, Brian Cassidy, Rebecca Lelko and John Flores entered the competition as a Division III team.

Maraani Kamphorst Diamant, Ananya Roy, Zach Haskin and Brett James also earned first place honors. Their C Team tied with Yale in the Division IV Championship.

In the past two years, Texas Tech has won nine national titles, two state titles and one regional title.

The President’s Cup is scheduled to take place April 2-3 in Washington, D.C.

Source: http://today.ttu.edu
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Saturday, January 1, 2011

4 national titles for Texas Tech at 2010 PanAm


Texas Tech B team (L to R: Chase Watters, Josh Osbourn, Brian Cassidy, Rebecca Lelko, John Flores) tied for 1st at the 2010 PanAm Intercollegiate Division II Championship with Miami Dade!

Texas Tech C team (L to R: Mara Diamant, Ananya Roy, Zach Haskin, Brett James) tied for 1st at the 2010 PanAm Intercollegiate Division IV Championship with Yale.

Texas Tech A team (GM Davorin Kuljasevic, GM Andre Diamant, GM Anatoly Bykhovsky, IM Istvan Sipos) qualified for the Final Four again. They will face UTD, UTB, and UMBC in April for the President's Cup.

GM Andre Diamant tied with GM Erenburg for best individual performance on board 2. GM Anatoly Bykhovsky got the best individual performance on board 3.
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