Saint Louis, Webster Leap Into Semifinals

Saint Louis and Webster cemented their places as the top two to close the regular season of the 2024 Collegiate Chess League (CCL). 

Webster's victory was a true team effort. Every single player―GMs Benjamin Gledura, Harsha Bharathakoti, Gergely Kantor, and IM Anna Sargsyan―all scored 3/4 vs. Chicago.

Sweeping every board on the Missouri team, GM Benjamin Bok led SLU to a commanding victory.

The CCL playoffs will begin on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at 2 p.m. ET/20:00 CET/0:30 a.m. IST.

Collegiate Chess League - Week 7 Standings

In the last week of the regular season, Webster faced Chicago―led by GM Awonder Liang―as they made their debut on the live broadcast. The season leaders, Saint Louis, dueled vs. the third place Missouri team.

• Webster 12-4 Chicago
• Saint Louis 11.5-4.5 Missouri

Webster 12-4 Chicago

Subbing for GM Aram Hakobyan, Gledura made his first appearance for Webster this season. With Webster fielding three grandmasters and one international master, Chicago was certainly the underdog.

Minutes before the match began, a story became apparent across the screens for Chicago's players. With their board four, Kole Moses, MIA, Chandran picks up his phone presumably to call his missing teammate while Liang and Brown look on, amused. 

After nine moves between Liang and Sargsyan, the American grandmaster's pieces were all back on their starting squares. This was an intentional choice. He chose to move one of his knights to give away nine tempi before beginning to develop his pieces. Though this kind of opening is usually seen as a way of trolling an opponent, Sargsyan was unfazed and ready for the challenge.

CCL Commissioner Joe Lee shared Liang's insights behind the system, which he also played last season: "I feel like it’s honestly not that bad. While I’m shuffling my knight, my opponent is pushing all their pawns and creating weaknesses. That’s when I really take advantage of the position."

Funnily, after Liang used the opening vs. GM Nikolas Theodorou in fall 2023, the Greek grandmaster replied in kind and won. 

Between Sargsyan's victory and Chicago's missing player, Webster took the lead with a 3-1 score. 

When Liang employed the same setup vs. Kantor in round two, the Hungarian grandmaster broke through with imaginative play. 

In round three, Moses appeared, joining the match from bed. Despite their teammate's inspiring arrival, Chicago was unable to make a comeback. Webster steadily increased their lead. 

Liang was finally successful with his curious opening vs. Harsha―though he chose to waste just four tempi in that game. 

Webster sealed the match victory with a round to spare and extended their lead to 12-4 by the finish. With this victory, Webster confirmed their place in the top two, which qualifies them straight into the semifinals.

Saint Louis 11.5-4.5 Missouri

Though Missouri armed all of their boards with grandmasters, Saint Louis one-upped them with their own all-GM lineup, which featured three players over 3000 in Chess.com blitz. In the fall 2023 season, the two teams each beat the other once. Who would tip the scales in their favor this time?

In round one, SLU and Missouri split the scoreboard 2-2 with the top two boards scoring victories for each team. Saint Louis soon took over the lead in round two with a win by Bok and an upset by GM Dambasuren Batsuren vs. GM Mikhail Antipov, the season's top scorer going into the match. 

As Lee described: "This SLU team―they fire on all boards."

This SLU team―they fire on all boards.

―Joe Lee

In round three, GM Grigoriy Oparin made creative use of his king in the opening, but it didn't work out in his favor as Bok gained the initiative.

Meanwhile, GM Robby Kevlishvili wrestled his way through GM Raja Harshit's tenacious defensive effort.

Entering the last round, Saint Louis had stretched their lead to three points. They took no prisoners in round four, sweeping their opponents 4-0. Rallying his team forward, Bok reached 4/4 himself with an attacking miniature vs. Antipov.

Theodorou walked his king from its castled position on the kingside all the way to the queenside in his duel vs. Oparin. This wild and creative battle is our Game of the Day. Enjoy the following analysis by GM Rafael Leitao.

As Bok reveled in his 4-0 performance after the match, a viewer asked: "What does it take to defeat you?"

The Dutch grandmaster shared: "Just playing better chess than me. I played good chess today, but I'm only human after all, so I also make mistakes. Today, fortunately I played very well. Today, nothing could stop me. That's the answer."

Today, nothing could stop me.

―Benjamin Bok

The playoffs begin next week with four teams duking it out in the quarterfinals. Saint Louis and Webster will await the teams that prevail in the semifinals. 

The Collegiate Chess League is the premier online chess competition for college students. The 2024 CCL Spring Season is a team event starting January 20 at 2 p.m. ET/20:00 CET/0:30 a.m. IST and featuring a $25,000 prize fund.

Previous reports:

• Saint Louis Breaks Webster's Winning Streak, Missouri Defeats Rio Grande
• Webster Reaches 5-0, Rio Grande Beats Reigning Champions
• Webster Extends Winning Streak, Dallas Grows Comeback
• Perfect Scores By Harsha, Bok Lead Webster, Saint Louis To The Top
• Saint Louis University Records 15-1 Win Over Prague; Webster Rules In Overtime
• Webster Scores Debut Victory vs. Athens As 2024 Collegiate Chess League Begins
• Registrations Open For The Collegiate Chess League Spring 2024 Season