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The semifinalists for the 2024 Collegiate Chess League (CCL) have been determined after The College of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) staved off a late comeback towards the Nationwide Technical College of Athens, whereas The College of Missouri (Mizzou) stormed to a 10-6 victory over the College of Texas Dallas (UT Dallas).
GMs Gleb Dudin (3/4) and Raja Harshit (3.5/4) have been the heroes for his or her respective groups and with these outcomes, UTRGV will conflict with Webster College and Mizzou will face Saint Louis College (SLU) to determine who will undergo to the grand remaining.
The CCL semifinals will happen on Saturday, March 23, 2024, at 2 p.m. ET/20:00 CET/0:30 a.m. IST.
Collegiate Chess League Playoffs – Standings
Comeback Falls Brief: UTRGV 8.5-7.5 Athens
UTRGV, who had a mediocre exhibiting within the common season relative to their lofty requirements started their finals marketing campaign in fashion with a 4-0 match-one victory over Athens. Exhibiting indicators of nice kind, UTRGV’s board two Dudin capped off the spherical with a puzzle-worthy end for the followers!
With GMs Dudin and Viktor Gazik selecting up wins rapidly within the second spherical, Athens’s hopes of enjoying within the semifinals of their first CCL season seemed to be taking place in flames. This match would have just a few twists but although as Athens managed to attain 1.5/2 on the remaining boards, courtesy of a Dimitris Alexakis IM win over IM Ekin Ozenir and a draw between GM Andreas Kelires and IM Juraj Druska.
Already inside two factors of claiming the match, UTRGV have been nonetheless the agency favorites going into spherical three however then, the unthinkable occurred. With their backs towards the wall, Athens mounted a comeback of epic proportions. Splitting the factors 1.5-1.5 in spherical three, the ultimate recreation between Gazik and Alexakis would decide Athens’s destiny.
Up the alternate, UTRGV’s board one opted to play for the win, a choice he would later rue following a blunder in time stress on the forty eighth transfer. Assured that he might nonetheless draw the knight and pawn vs. two-pawn ending, Gazik blitzed out strikes together with the misguided 59…Ke5??, which gifted the Athens board two the win.
this was completely insane pic.twitter.com/pkjE2IhhZX
— CollegiateChessLeague (@CollegiateChess) March 16, 2024
With the scores poised at 8-4, Athens would have wanted a 4-0 miracle to tie up the match and although they finally got here up one level quick, the comeback was virtually “essentially the most historic” within the historical past of the league. In the long run, a board one draw between Gazik and Kelires proved decisive within the match, with Kelires taking a repetition maybe doubting that his crew can be able to a sweep.
For UTRGV, whom Bok sees as one of many prime contenders for the 2024 CCL season the match was a combined bag. Whereas Dudin’s efficiency was a spotlight, consistency throughout all 4 rounds will probably be a necessity in the event that they need to overcome their powerhouse semifinal opponent, Webster College.
Harshit Stars: Mizzou 10-6 UT Dallas
Workforce Mizzou has had a gold-or-nothing method this season and the prospect of a matchup with their state rivals SLU within the semifinals appeared to spur on the four-GM crew on Saturday. For UT Dallas, who have been the runners-up within the 2023 season, this was a possibility to avenge their 11-5 loss by the hands of Mizzou in week two of the common season.
A 2-2 tie to kick off the match was the proper curtain-raiser for the conflict and the brutal nature of chess was on full show as UT Dallas’ GM Ivan Schitco performed with 92.6% accuracy but nonetheless managed to lose after a single mistake.
The dynamic duo of Oparin and Antipov helped Mizzou draw back within the second spherical, the latter’s win over IM Andrei Macovei got here after Black allowed White to seize en passant, leaving too many weaknesses for Antipov to focus on.
A testomony to the depth of Mizzou’s CCL crew this yr, Harshit, who in a post-match interview instructed Lee and Bok that “the King’s Gambit” is one in all his favourite openings, completed on 3.5/4, the best on his crew.
you realize we’re anticipating to see this from you now, proper, Harshit? pic.twitter.com/vz2MX1d0Gu
— CollegiateChessLeague (@CollegiateChess) March 16, 2024
With the scores matching the day’s earlier match after two rounds, UT Dallas felt bullish about their possibilities of a comeback nevertheless Mizzou continued to play constantly in rounds three and 4, quashing any hope of a Texan resurgence.
10-6 was the ultimate rating between the 2 groups and when all was stated and finished, one recreation stood tall above the remainder. Our Recreation of the Day, which was a Sicilian Protection: Freak Assault that featured two good strikes, has been analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao and will probably be added quickly.
Due to their victory, Mizzou will go on to face SLU in a grudge match between the groups. Bok vehemently backs his Saint Louis comrades as “the favorites” though a Mizzou crew stacked with gamers like Harshit, Oparin, and Antipov, who’re firing on all cylinders, ought to come all the way down to the wire.
The Collegiate Chess League is the premier on-line chess competitors for faculty college students. The 2024 CCL Spring Season is a crew occasion beginning January 20 at 2 p.m. ET/20:00 CET/0:30 a.m. IST and that includes a $25,000 prize fund.
Earlier experiences:
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