The hardest part for me about being a chess coach is building a team. Every year is a struggle and something always happens to throw a wrench into the plan. This year has been no exception.
My perfect team scenario is to have 2 teams of 4 players in both the 6th and under section and the 3rd and under section. It is rare for this scenario to play out perfectly.
This year, I had so many good players at both schools that I couldn't, with good conscience, pick just two teams in the 6th and under division. I decided to create 3 teams at each school and even then had players who I felt were deserving but didn't get placed on a team.
The decision to have three teams paid off. At Washington, all three teams qualified for state. At Madison, two of the three teams qualified. The one that didn't only had three players due to an absence which is a disadvantage every round because the last board is always scored as a loss.
I have one team of 5 players this year. It's hard to have a team of more than four because the players have to rotate in and out throughout the day and it disrupts the flow of the team. (One year, I had seven players on a team. I'll NEVER do that again!) The reason for having five players on the team is complicated but I feel good about the decision.
At some point, I'll create a post about all of the crazy things that have happened with my teams over the years and why I've come to the conclusion that 2 teams of 4 players is best.
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Monday, February 13, 2017
Reflections on the Goshen chess team tournament
I was pleased with the performances of the chess teams over the weekend at the Goshen team tournament. It's now time to look forward to the regional tournament on Feb. 25.
In order to qualify for state, teams will need to score at least 3.5 points. Last weekend, two teams passed this threshold, the Washington 6th and under A team and the Madison 3rd and under A team.
The 3.0 point threshold is where is gets interesting. Some teams with three points will qualify for state while others will not. It all depends on tiebreaks. Three teams scored 3.0 last weekend, all in the 6th and under section, Madison B, Washington B, and Washington C. These are the "bubble teams", they could go either way at regional.
Two 6th and under teams scored 2.5 points. Both have a good chance at qualifying for state. Madison A had a controversy in their fourth round match last Saturday. After talking with the the tournament director afterwards, there were grounds for Madison a to win by forfeiture of the match. Since the tournament was a "practice" tournament, only a warning was given. At regional and state, the directors will not be so kind. The only error on behalf of the Madison players is that they continued to play their games after the infraction rather than pausing the games and waiting for the tournament director to come and hear the complaint.
I must admit. Two MadWash teams committed offenses that could have led to forfeiture, one of the teams played out of order and another team played on the wrong side of the board. I guess what comes around goes around, but that's why the practice tournament is held, to make sure these mistakes are not made at regional or state.
All in all, I like our chances a t regional. If we continue to work hard I see no reason why we can go on to state from regional. I will try to post some material online to help prepare the players for regional. Our lessons in chess club will be focused on taking the next steps on our journey to state, too.
In order to qualify for state, teams will need to score at least 3.5 points. Last weekend, two teams passed this threshold, the Washington 6th and under A team and the Madison 3rd and under A team.
The 3.0 point threshold is where is gets interesting. Some teams with three points will qualify for state while others will not. It all depends on tiebreaks. Three teams scored 3.0 last weekend, all in the 6th and under section, Madison B, Washington B, and Washington C. These are the "bubble teams", they could go either way at regional.
Two 6th and under teams scored 2.5 points. Both have a good chance at qualifying for state. Madison A had a controversy in their fourth round match last Saturday. After talking with the the tournament director afterwards, there were grounds for Madison a to win by forfeiture of the match. Since the tournament was a "practice" tournament, only a warning was given. At regional and state, the directors will not be so kind. The only error on behalf of the Madison players is that they continued to play their games after the infraction rather than pausing the games and waiting for the tournament director to come and hear the complaint.
I must admit. Two MadWash teams committed offenses that could have led to forfeiture, one of the teams played out of order and another team played on the wrong side of the board. I guess what comes around goes around, but that's why the practice tournament is held, to make sure these mistakes are not made at regional or state.
All in all, I like our chances a t regional. If we continue to work hard I see no reason why we can go on to state from regional. I will try to post some material online to help prepare the players for regional. Our lessons in chess club will be focused on taking the next steps on our journey to state, too.
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