At the sound of a single word, the long game comes to an end. One team is giddy with the joy that accompanies a win. That team is the Albion team. What was that one powerful word? Well, that word would be “checkmate.”

Starting out five years ago, there would have been few kids that even thought twice about joining a chess club. The expectation for turnout was low, and nobody ever could have imagined how much this club would grow. Now in the fifth year, the Albion chess club has grown from a small unknown club to an enormous group. Ranging from 20 to 50 students participating per year, this club helps the students think fast and quickly avoid problems that suddenly occur. This year, everybody knows what name to fear in the world of chess, and that name is Albion.

Three years ago, the Albion Middle School chess team started competing in the high school league. The first year they competed they placed fifth, then sixth, but this year they shocked everyone jumping from good to stupendous. This year the middle school team earned second place! While the middle school placed in second, the high school placed in fourth.

“Albion is becoming a bit legendary,” says Explorations teacher at Albion, Mr. Keller. “We’re the team to beat.” Early on one of the advanced players was Joe Pearl; he won our first in-house tournament. The following year Cody Stymus and Nikiel Harden were two of the best players. Not to mention, the legendary Fitzak brothers, Nick and Alex. They were amazing then and continue to amaze now. They led their division to many wins this year. Nick also won the “Top Scorer” award this year. This year’s ninth grade class has an awesome group of chess players. These players include Brett Zicari, Robert June, Brandon Doyle, and Patrick Yannatone. Patrick secured first place for his team during the last match of the regular season.