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Standings Wall Charts
It was somewhat of a Cinderella story for Lane Tech (1600) at the 2015 CPS High School Championship at the Rodolfo Lozano Bilingual & International. For the last few years Lane Tech has been in the shadows of some of the elite chess schools such as Whitney Young (1700) and Northside Prep (1800). In 2012, Lane finished 4th behind Northside, Young and Lincoln Park. In 2013, Lane finished 3rd behind Young and Northside. Again in 2014, Lane mimicked the previous year results. For the 2015 results, the tides have turned and Lane finished undefeated in 1st place followed by Young in 2nd, Lincoln Park in 3rd and Northside in 4th.
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For the championship matches, 124 young minds showed up to compete through four rounds. The schools formed 10 different 8-person teams and 24 students played in the individual section. In the small gymnasium where they played, the games showed intensity. Much of that intensity surrounding the Lane table. During round two I was a witness to this. As the time dwindled down from their g/50 5d, a large number of spectators gathered to watch the final few games. The Lane players were always aware of the situation via communication cards from the coach. After each game was completed the team silently celebrated with high fives and fist pumps. Between the victory gestures and the team mascot (a stuffed otter) nearby, this helped lift the moral of team and assisted with their victories throughout the day.
Marshall Metropolitan High School (1300) playing out of Garfield Park and dressed in bright yellow hoodies showed poise. Marshall faced Kelly (1400) in previous years and lost in the last rounds against them. This year Marshall and Kelly faced in round two and Marshall was able to secure a win. Marshall is led by coach Joseph Ocol who started the chess club in 2005 to keep students occupied during the after-school hours.
This is the first official tournament since the merge with Academic Chess Competition. Many more tournaments will follow. Upcoming tournaments include the Greater Chicago K-12 Championships February 7th and CSCL 5-Board Team Tournament on February 28th.
