Naperville North set to defend title as IHSA chess tourney opens Friday in Peoria

One of the largest state chess tournaments in more than 40 years opens Friday in Peoria, and two suburban high schools - Adlai E. Stevenson and Naperville North - are looking like the teams to beat.

Both are seeded among the top five. Naperville North is the defending champion and Stevenson returns as last year's second place finisher (they placed second three of the last four years), but seeded first this year.

Returning suburban teams from last year's top 10 include: New Trier, Evanston, Glenbrook South, Neuqua Valley and Benet Academy.

“We know going in that we are the team to beat and that we will be competitive,” says Stevenson Head Coach Vincent Springer. “We just have to see the whole thing through this year.”

Stevenson's young team is led by sophomore Alex Bian, who was a Board 1 medalist last year as a freshman. This year, the Patriots went undefeated in the tough North Suburban Chess League, which includes seven of the top 15 teams at state.

At the same time, Naperville North enters as the DuPage Valley Conference champions, their eighth in a row, despite graduating six of their eight starters last spring.

Last year, Naperville North was the only team to go undefeated at state, winning all seven matches.

“I love where we are situated going into state,” says Jeff DiOrio, dean of students at Naperville North and chess coach. “Our team is very strong on our lower boards and we are extremely dangerous on our upper boards.

“Couple this with the fact that we are young and fearless,” DiOrio adds, “and being overlooked, makes for a perfect opportunity to shock the state again.”

This will be the 42nd annual IHSA team chess state tournament and it takes place at the Peoria Civic Center. A total of 146 high schools from across Illinois are entered, and about 1,550 competitors and 300 coaches will participate in the two-day event.

“This is the largest team chess tournament in the country, and perhaps the world,” says IHSA Assistant Executive Director Scott Johnson. “People think of chess as an individual pursuit. Turning it into a team competition encourages players to help their teammates improve and fosters a sense of camaraderie.”

The tournament also will feature a visit from Grandmaster Yury Shulman, the 2008 U.S. chess champion. The Belarus native came to the United States in 1999 to attend the University of Texas, achieved grandmaster status at age 20, and now lives in Barrington.

He is not only one of the top players in the country, but he works with suburban chess players at area high schools, including Stevenson — offering inspiration and strategy.