2013 WRESCC Hailey Elementary Wins!

For the last two years Bellevue Elementary school has dominated the chess scene, but thankfully to the efforts of Kathy Baker and the Hailey Elementary PTA, Bellevue finally had a challenge ahead of them.  The Wood River Elementary School Championship was a WRHS senior project that Nick Bruck conceived of three years ago and the WRHS Chess Club has continued the tradition of offering it.  President Desmond Porth and Vice President Anna Murphy were on hand to teach, play, and dish out awards to the eager elementary students.

After 5 rounds, Hailey Elementary School clearly emerged victorious with 16.0 points versus Bellevue Elementary School earning 13.5 points.  Trophies were awarded to the top two teams.  Woodside Elementary earned third place with 11.0 points.  We used the top four individuals to calculate the winners.  I like using the top four boards because it encourages teams to bring as many players as possible.  And more kids playing chess is better. Hailey had twelve players, Bellevue had five players, and Woodside Elementary had five players.  This weekend also began the Sawtooth soccer season for developmental players and I am sure that kids were torn between the different activities.

Desmond and Anna give out the trophies

Desmond Porth, Dylan Porth, and Anna Murphy from the WRHS Chess Club team were also on hand to play the kids and provide pointers.   We set up an instruction area for players and it was occupied almost the whole day.  Desmond also put together a hand-out which he went over, sharing the French Defense and the Colle-Zuckertort System.  This was impressive.  As I watched games, especially the endgames, I provided information to the "instructors" to help players with king-rook mates, king-2xrook, king-queen endings.  We also taught some endgame strategies for promoting pawns and how to avoid the classic four-move checkmate, Scholar's Mate.  Dylan entertained kids on the giant chess board which is always a hit with kids.

I included some quick pointers and rules each round, as well.  I was happy that some of the kids remembered some of the concepts I taught them earlier in the year.  What are the point values of the pieces?  Should a rook "eat" a bishop?  Should you give up a knight for a pawn? Touch move, clock useage, and other ideas that experienced players take for granted were shared and appreciated.  After round 3 and round 4, we had our usual drawings for a chess board signed by GM Alex Yermolinsky and FIDE Master Nick Raptis, and a drawstring backpack with a chess logo on it.  I always have the person with the closest birthday draw the names and to everyone's surprise, Leam Van Law drew his own name for the chess set and Sarah Hattula won the backpack ("Knight Moves").

Darwin provides a confident smile

I was very happy to monitor the first graders and kindergartners and view their progress each round.  Eric Baker (Kindergarten) was the most patient and usually played the longest and also would have won the most improved player if we had that award.  He applied our lessons, moving his king to the center, and worked at shuffling the enemy king to the side  of the board.  Another boy used his rook to shrink the box of the enemy king.  Checkmate is sometimes difficult for new players.  All of the players got better by the last round.  With more experience and practice, I look forward to having a strong team when they get to high school.  I hope that someone will work in the middle school and elementary levels with the enthusiasm that I bring to the high schoolers and develop competitive teams.

I brought Desmond and Dylan to Super Nationals last week in Nashville.  This allowed me to get literature on camps, online play, stickers, and other information that I could put on an information table.  I also have chess sets with colored pieces for sale for those that are enthusiastic for chess after the tournament.  Educational literature on openings, tie-breakers, etiquette, rules, and tips are also scattered around the room with practice boards.  The idea is to also hook the parents and share the value of chess so they continue to support and encourage their kids to play. In the end, I hope to provide a pleasant experience for the players and their families.  In a sense, it's like putting on a party . . . a chess party!

Zane Barckholtz and Sarah Hattula are staunch chess enthusiasts now

Education was the primary purpose but competition was the also emphasized with good sportsmanship.     The trophy table had a checkered table cloth to add to the festiveness and colorful trophies (1st - 3rd place) for each grade, Kindergarten thru 5th grade.  Kids that did not trophy were provided medals so they all left with hardware and  a smile.  Mason's Trophy House in Twin Falls provided excellent trophies and cost $152.  Medals ordered online cost only $2/each.

I took many photos and tried to capture "thinking" pictures of each player.  These are made available to parents and the community at our facebook page.  I write this article to provide others with some ideas to run their own tournaments.

Quentin considers his move.

Owen's knight is in a precarious position.

Josephine wonders what's up with the free queen.

Bellevue and Hailey were tied in the fourth round with 11.0 points each, but Quentin Van Law was entered on the wrong team.  When this was corrected, no matter what the outcomes in the last round, Hailey Elementary would secure the sought after trophy.

Owen Stouffer and Zane Barckholtz both scored a perfect 5.0 and really enjoyed playing, K-2 section and 3-5 section, respectively.  I combined K-2nd grade in one section and 3rd - 5th grade in another.  3rd grader Quentin Van Law (4.0) earned 2nd place overall in the 3rd-5th grade section and in other highlights, Kindergartner Erik Baker drew four games.

K-2nd grade Section

Place	Name/Team	Score	MMed	Solk	Cum	Prize
1	Stouffer, Owen (10)	5.0	11.5	13.0	15.0	1st place  2nd grade
2	Baker, Luke (4)	4.0	13.5	15.0	11.0	2nd place  2nd grade
3	Porth, Darwin (8)	3.0	14.5	17.0	11.0	3rd place 2nd grade
4	Loomis, Levi (6)	3.0	11.0	12.5	10.0
5	Archie, Holden (1)	2.5	7.5	14.0	7.0
6	Stouffer, Emmett (9)	2.5	6.5	12.0	8.5	1st place  1st grade
7	Thompson, Porter (11)	2.0	8.5	13.5	7.0
8	Baker, Erik (3)	2.0	7.0	10.0	5.0	1st place  Kindergarten
9	Baeza, Osvaldo (2)	2.0	6.5	11.5	4.0
10	Organist, Christopher (7)	2.0	6.5	10.5	3.0
11	Young, Mathew (13)	2.0	6.0	9.0	3.5	2nd place Kindergarten
12	Gilman, Josephine (5)	2.0	3.0	5.5	4.0
13	Van Law, Leam (12)	1.5	7.0	9.5	5.5	3rd place Kindergarten

Team Hailey Elementary

3rd-5th grade Section

Place	Name/Team	Score	MMed	Solk	Cum	Prize
1	Barckholtz, Zane (2)	5.0	13.0	13.0	14.0	1st place 5th grade
2	Van Law, Quentin (9)	4.0	12.0	13.5	11.0	1st place 3rd grade
3	Baker, Alex (1)	3.0	13.0	13.5	10.0	2nd place 5th grade
4	Kriesien, Walther (6)	3.0	11.5	12.0	10.0	3rd place 5th grade
5	Hattula, Sarah (5)	3.0	10.5	11.0	10.0	1st place  4th grade
6	Feltman, Sarah (4)	2.0	7.5	10.5	3.0
7	Ertz, Benjamin (3)	2.0	6.0	10.0	5.0	2nd place 4th grade
8	Organist, Jordan (7)	2.0	5.0	9.0	4.0	3rd place  4th grade
9	Samaniego, Richard (8)	1.0	7.5	10.5	3.0

Team Woodside Elementary

K-2nd grade Section Cross Table

No.	Name	Pts	Rnd1	Rnd2	Rnd3	Rnd4	Rnd5
1	Stouffer, Owen	5.0	W7	W2	W4	W11	W5
2	Baker, Luke	4.0	W10	L1	W3	W6	W4
3	Loomis, Levi	3.0	W8	W12	L2	L4	W11
4	Porth, Darwin	3.0	W5	W6	L1	W3	L2
5	Archie, Holden	2.5	L4	D8	W9	W7	L1
6	Stouffer, Emmett	2.5	W11	L4	W7	L2	D10
7	Baeza, Osvaldo	2.0	L1	W13	L6	L5	-B-
8	Baker, Erik	2.0	L3	D5	D10	D12	D13
9	Gilman, Josephine	2.0	-U-	-H-	L5	W13	D12
10	Organist, Christopher	2.0	L2	L11	D8	-B-	D6
11	Thompson, Porter	2.0	L6	W10	W13	L1	L3
12	Young, Mathew	2.0	L13	L3	-B-	D8	D9
13	Van Law, Leam	1.5	W12	L7	L11	L9	D8

Team Bellevue Elementary

3rd-5th grade Section Cross Table

No.	Name	Pts	Rnd1	Rnd2	Rnd3	Rnd4	Rnd5
1	Barckholtz, Zane	5.0	-B-	W2	W3	W5	W4
2	Van Law, Quentin	4.0	W6	L1	W5	W3	W8
3	Baker, Alex	3.0	W7	W4	L1	L2	W9
4	Hattula, Sarah	3.0	W8	L3	W9	W7	L1
5	Kriesien, Walther	3.0	W9	W7	L2	L1	W6
6	Ertz, Benjamin	2.0	L2	W8	L7	-B-	L5
7	Feltman, Sarah	2.0	L3	L5	W6	L4	-B-
8	Organist, Jordan	2.0	L4	L6	-B-	W9	L2
9	Samaniego, Richard	1.0	L5	-B-	L4	L8	L3