Fourteen members of CHSD170's Chess Team recently competed against other fifth- through eighth-grade students at the Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) Chess State Competition in Peoria.
Washington-McKinley School's Elijah Vasquez earned a bronze medal in the 6th-grade division netting 5.5 out of a possible 7 points.
Performing as a reasonably new squad, the team proved remarkably strong in earning Top 25 honors at every grade level. Many of the students secured Top 10 boards in various portions of the competition.
The students who represented the district were: Diego Belmontes (Grant), Elijah Vasquez, Imanol Santiago, Madison Johnson, and Celeste Rodriguez-Lopez (Washington-McKinley), Emily Belmontes and Claudia Mendoza (STEM), Benjamin Vera, Oliver Vera, Josue Perez, and Victor Martinez (Garfield), Diego Morales (Kennedy), Sabir Johnson (Roosevelt), and Serenity Williams (Wilson).
"All of our students have worked incredibly hard this season to improve their game," said Mamie Kernagis, the team's coach and a 7th/8th Grade Language Arts teacher at Washington-McKinley School.
"The students have continually demonstrated excellence as competitors and displayed incredible sportsmanship, including kindness and empathy."
LeBaron Ward, a student from last year's team who now competes as a member of Bloom High School's Chess Team, returned to the district to provide lessons for the team.
"Our players are excited to become better chess players, team members, and ultimately, better students," added assistant coach Dana Walaszczyk, 8th grade SPED teacher at Washington-McKinley.
"We are proud of how far they have come, and we are excited to see where they will go."