The Niles West Chess Team placed tenth out of 23 teams at sectionals! They will now be traveling to Peoria, IL to compete against 128 other schools from all around Illinois at the 50th annual IHSA State Championship from February 8 through 10. They will compete against other familiar schools in the area including Whitney Young, Evanston Township, Glenbrook South and Lane Tech.
A challenge the team had to face this year was the loss of many great players after graduation which resulted in many new members being brought up to the varsity chess team this year. To help them catch up to speed and also improve returning members, the team practiced every Monday and Wednesday after school. They learned chess tactics, studying each other’s previous games, openings and played competitive games against each other to help achieve their goal of making it to state.
“Our goals were to make it to state, have fun, and improve the skills of every one of our chess members. We practiced every week of the school year [and] had students complete weekly chess homework to help our team improve. This improvement allowed us to reach our goal of making it to state. Our top chess player and captain, [senior] Jack Drucker, put in a large effort in teaching the less experienced players. The chess team has grown very close as friends and everyone has a lot of fun which has helped the team get through a very long and grueling chess season,” Chess Team Sponsor Nathan Noparstak said.
Practice pays off! This isn’t the first time that the West Chess Team has gone to state and returning members are happy to relive the experience again.
“It’s so much fun. We get a day to just mess around in our hotel and go around and visit the nearby stores and stuff. It’s also exciting seeing the other teams from all over the state over there. A lot of the teams know each other just since a lot of us all do the same out-of-school tournaments, and there’s definitely a few school rivalries, but it’s all in good fun,” Drucker said.
New members are also looking forward to their first experience at the state championship. The ranking system in chess is called ‘Board Order,’ and it determines where the player stands on the team. Board one is the top spot, with board eight being the last. Sophomore Gavin DeCicco is excited to be playing in the top half of the board, especially with this being his first year on the varsity level.
“I, personally, am ecstatic knowing that our team has made it to the state finals, but I am most excited for the experience and playing at one of the highest levels. I am playing at board two, the second highest, which is something I had always hoped for. I am super excited for the opportunity to play this high, and especially excited for the time I get to spend with some of my closest friends doing something I enjoy,” DeCicco said.
Since a good part of the team are underclassmen who are new to varsity, the players anticipate greatness in upcoming years as well.
“I’m definitely the most proud of my teammates. For about everyone, this is their first or second year playing chess. Everyone’s improved so much, doing so much work in and out of school. I think everyone wants to really succeed and actively tries to do well to improve their game, I feel, in being able to play against and do well against these really good schools” Drucker said.
Team camaraderie and chemistry also play a big role in the chess team. They spend a lot of time together outside of meetings and have created close connections with each other.
“I’m so grateful to have met everyone on this team as they have become so much more to me than just teammates. Losing them to graduation is an absolute heartbreaker, but nothing lasts forever so make use of what you have while you can,” DeCicco said.
Niles West wishes the Chess team the best of luck at state this upcoming week!
