Big success at the NC Scholastic Championship

The North Carolina State Scholastic Chess Championship featured more than 500 players March 6-8 — the largest turnout in the event’s 37-year history. The tournament, held at the Blake Hotel in Charlotte, had 7 sections – plus, a Friday night Blitz event, which attracted 43 players.

David High, an 11th grader at East Chapel Hill High School, went a perfect 5-0 in G/90 to capture the K-12 Open Section and punch his ticket to the Denker Tournament of High School Champions this summer. High also won a $1,500 cash scholarship to use at the college of his choice. We do not know of another state that gives a larger cash scholarship to its high school winner. He also received a beautiful House of Staunton chess set — donated by a former state high school champion.

Section winners:

K-12 Open – David High, East Chapel Hill HS
K-12 Under 1300 — (Co-champs) Drew Holloway, Vance HS; Ben Hinson, Myers Park HS; Praveen Suthaharan, Early College HS; and Aaron Atkinson, Wilson Beddingfield HS
K-8 Open – Joshua Mu, Randolph MS
K-8 Under 1000 – Richard Fu. Phillips MS
K-5 – Aaron Balleisen, Club Blvd ES
K-3 – Benjamin Snider, Endhaven ES
K-1 – Samuel Oleg Kio, Barringer ES
Blitz – (Co-champs) Joshua Mu, Randolph MS; Tanner Hogue, East Chapel Hill HS

Team Winners

K-12 Open – East Chapel Hill HS
K-12 Under 1300 – Durham Academy
K-8 Open – Phillips MS
K-8 Under 1000 – Phillips MS
K-5 – Avery’s Creek
K-3 – Veritas Christian
K-1 – Durham Academy

http://www.uschess.org/msa/XtblMain.php?200903082631.0-12820785

Randy Wheeless,
State Scholastic Organizer and Past President, N.C. Chess Association