{"id":70858,"date":"2023-01-31T09:24:49","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T15:24:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=70858"},"modified":"2023-01-31T09:24:51","modified_gmt":"2023-01-31T15:24:51","slug":"ksca-hosts-chess-tournament-in-hays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=70858","title":{"rendered":"KSCA hosts chess tournament in Hays"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

STORY BY CAITLIN LEIKER
PHOTOS BY NOAH PARKER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kansas Scholastic Chess Association (KSCA) hosted a tournament on Saturday in the old Kennedy Middle School building. Six different teams entered the competition, as well as individual players. A total of 28 students from across Western Kansas participated in the event. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This event was Saul Carrillo\u2019s first time playing tournament-style chess. Carrillo, who is a student at O\u2019Loughlin Elementary, first started learning this past Christmas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe go to the [Hays Public] Library quite often,\u201d Carrillo\u2019s mother Valerie said. \u201cHe wanted a chess set for Christmas, so I\u2019m like, \u2018Okay, I\u2019ll get this for you, but there\u2019s this club that meets every Friday at the library\u2026so if you get this, you have to go.\u2019 He was really excited about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saul was inspired by wanting to try something new. His favorite part of the game is how challenging it is. A proud moment was when he first reached checkmate while playing against his dad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen he really sets his mind to something, he wants to do everything he can to excel in it,\u201d Valerie said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Homeschooled 8th grader Kamden McBride has been playing chess for about four years, and strategy games are his forte. He regularly enters tournaments with the Hays High School Chess Club. The group\u2019s comradery is always uplifting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery time someone places on the Hays chess team, everybody goes wild about it,\u201d McBride said. \u201cHonestly, that\u2019s my favorite thing\u2013 to see everybody happy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TMP-Marian teacher and event organizer Kevin Nyberg has played chess for almost 60 years. He first learned when he was 10 years old, began studying the game more seriously at 15, and he started directing players by the time he was 20 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the KSCA ran their tournaments through Chess.com, even holding their State Championship online\u2013 \u201cWe didn\u2019t really miss a beat,\u201d Nyberg said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, he did observe a difference in online gameplay that can affect players in person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve noticed that the kids tend to play rather hastily online,\u201d Nyberg said. \u201cThey\u2019ve played a lot, and their online games are usually only five minutes long.\u201d \u2013 a contrast to the full hour that\u2019s allotted for each game at the in-person tournaments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The KSCA now schedules online tournaments alongside in-person events. While online chess requires some adaptation, Nyberg stands by the mental benefits of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a great way to develop analytical thinking,\u201d he said. \u201cIt teaches resourcefulness in the face of adversity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nyberg turned around in his chair, pointing out a quote on the back of his TMP-Marian Chess Team shirt: \u201cChess is everything \u2013 art, science, and a sport,\u201d spoken by Anatoly Karpov, former Soviet chess grandmaster and World Chess Champion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fellow tournament facilitator and TMP chess coach Randy Brull agreed that chess fills those three categories. He has played the game for 70 years. He said that most kids are ready to start playing chess in elementary school, and that parents play a crucial role in supporting them through that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnce you start working with kids, you see the creative aspect and the personality coming through in a chess game,\u201d Brull said. \u201cYou see some of these kids and think, \u2018Wow\u2026how did they ever think of that?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brull, who has helped start other chess programs in Western Kansas, said that chess opportunities can be created wherever the interest exists. All that\u2019s needed is somebody who knows a little bit about chess, two or three people who want to learn, and some parent and teacher support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brull noted that one of the biggest takeaways from chess is sportsmanship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you are a strong player and you understand the rules, you will get respect from your opponents,\u201d Brull said. \u201cOnce that builds in a group of kids, it\u2019s worth a lot. It\u2019s being able to recognize that your opponent\u2019s got skills too, and that you\u2019re not going to win every game. Those are life lessons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results are as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

High School Division (grades 9-12)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1st place: Blaise Staab – TMP-Marian
2nd place: Aiden Burton – Hays High School
3rd place: Staton Clark – Hays High School
4th place: Sergio Lara – Bishop Carroll Catholic High School
5th place: Eli Jackson – Sterling High School
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

**HS Team Leaderboard
1st place: TMP-Marian (17.5 points)\\
2nd place: Hays High School (15.0 pts.)
3rd place: Ellinwood High School (9 pts.)
4th place: Bishop Carroll High School (7 pts.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Middle School Division (grades 6-8)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1st place: Carson Pinkney – TMP-Marian
2nd place: Kamden McBride – Homeschool
3rd place: Evan Staab – TMP-Marian
4th place: Zack Billinger – TMP-Marian
5th place (tie): Cedric Durr – Hays Middle School, Luke Walker – Ell Saline Jr\/Sr High School<\/p>\n\n\n\n

**Entering team: TMP-Marian Jr. High (15 pts.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elementary School Division (grades K-5)<\/strong>
1st place: Jason Whitmer – Holy Family Catholic Elementary School
2nd place: Jackson Berges – Roosevelt Elementary
3rd place: Elizabeth North – O’Loughlin Elementary
4th place: Saul Carrillo – O\u2019Loughlin Elementary<\/p>\n\n\n\n

**Entering team: O\u2019Loughlin Elementary (5 pts.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Taylor Poteet from Ellinwood (Left) faces Cade Schlautman from TMP (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Marcus Stahl from TMP (Left) begins an intense match against Nathan Hammeke from Elliinwood (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
A close-up of the black king piece before the game starts.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Ethan Gibson from TMP (Left) faces Cedric Durr from HMS (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Two contestants at the chess tournament begin the match.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The gymnasium is filled with tables of chess as the first round begins.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Elizabeth North from O\u2019loughlin (Left) moves her bishop in response to Aiden Burton from Hays (Right)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Luke Walker from Ell-Saline (Left) faces Jonathon Mason from Ellinwood (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Colby Schmeidler from TMP (Left) waits for Lara Sergio from Bishop Carroll (Right) to make their move.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Jackson Berges from Roosevelt (Left) prepares to move a piece against Brysen Pfingsten from Bishop Carroll (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Brysen Pfingsten from Bishop Carroll (Right) intently studies the board before making their move against Jackson Berges from Roosevelt (Left)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Luke Walker from Ell-Saline (Left) faces Jonathon Mason from Ellinwood (Right)\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
A leftover game from round one where both contestants agreed to a draw.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Randy Brull, one of the organizers for the event, took the opportunity of a draw game to teach one of the players how they were in a better position and provided an example as to how they could have potentially won.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

STORY BY CAITLIN LEIKERPHOTOS BY NOAH PARKER The Kansas Scholastic Chess Association (KSCA) hosted a tournament on Saturday in the old Kennedy Middle School building.… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":142,"featured_media":70871,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3397,11],"tags":[14747,2912,15014,15012,15011,15013],"class_list":["post-70858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-area-news","category-news","tag-caitlin-leiker","tag-chess","tag-chess-tournament","tag-kansas-scholastic-chess-association","tag-ksca","tag-noah-parker"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tigermedianet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Chess-Tournament-2-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=70858"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70858\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70873,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70858\/revisions\/70873"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/70871"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=70858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=70858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=70858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}