It’s like winning a basketball game 38-36

Chess Team Finishes 2nd in Hard-Fought Final Four
Texas Tech Wins Tense Tournament Marked by Lengthy Games, Close Scores

The UT Dallas Chess Team fought through a weekend of marathon games and close scores to a second-place finish in the 2011 Final Four of Chess.

The battle for the President’s Cup, which goes to the top college team in the country, played out in such dramatic fashion that no one could predict the winner until the final moves were on the boards.

“There was such parity among the teams this year,” Chess Program Director Jim Stallings said. “It made for a nail-biting Final Four of Chess.”

When the tournament’s third round drew to a close Sunday, the winning score belonged to Texas Tech University with 7.0. UT Dallas ended the tournament with 6.5.

The other two teams in the championship bout were the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and The University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southernmost College. Competitors were determined by the four top finishes in the Pan-American Intercollegiate Chess Championship, held last December in Milwaukee, Wis.

Technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton hosted the tournament in its facility at Herndon, Va.

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Two hours into the final round, Stallings could not predict a tournament winner because of the close competition.

“This is the most intense Final Four we’ve ever had,” Stallings said.

As the games progressed, UT Dallas players assumed more aggressive stances designed to produce wins. Wang scored a victory for the team against UT Brownsville. Ramirez drew in his final game for the University.

The tournament came down to Bercys’ game, and his UT Brownsville opponent overtook him as time ran out on his game clock. With that finish, Texas Tech was pronounced the winner. Tech won with seven points.

“This was the lowest winning score in Final Four history,” Stallings said. “It’s like winning a basketball game 38-36 because both teams’ defenses are so good.”

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