Room and boards: In-person chess events spring back to life

As the COVID-19 vaccination rates climb, over-the-board chess is springing back to life, and not a moment too soon.

Our own D.C. area is happily part of the positive trend, with two events of note being held in recent days.

Catholic University provided the venue May 22 for the D.C. qualifying tournaments for both the Denker National Tournament of High School Champions and the Dewain Barber Tournament for Middle School State Champions. It was all about the Benjamins as Benjamin Nemelka emerged as the city’s Denker hopeful and Benjamin Tyrrell will represent the nation’s capital in the Barber event.

Thanks to U.S. Chess Center President David Mehler, who co-directed both events with Justin Swain, for the score to today’s exciting first game, in which Nemelka survived a near-death experience to defeat a very game Amanda Loseff. The fight for the initiative is particularly fierce in this Queen’s Gambit, and Black’s aggressiveness nearly gets her in trouble early after 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. Nd2 g5?!, when, instead of the game’s 17. Bxb8, White had 17. Nxe4! dxe4 (and not 17…gxf4? 18. Nxf6+! Qxf6 19. Bxd5+ Bxd5 20. Qxd5+, winning material) 18. Bd6 Qf7 19. Bxc5, picking off a pawn.

Equality restored, it is again Loseff who carries the play with 21. b3 Bd3 22. Qd2 c4! 23. bxc4?! Rb2! 24. Qd1 Qf5 (see diagram), and Black’s pressure is worth far more than the sacrificed pawn. White’s best now might be to go with the grim 25. Rf1 Bxf1 26. Qxf1 Rd8 27. Rb1, and hope to survive, but the game takes a far more dramatic turn.

Thus: 25, f3? Qa5? (a shame — Black’s enterprising play should have been rewarded with the crushing 25…Rxg2+! 26. Kxg2 exf3+ 27. Kf2 [Qxf3 Be4 wins at once] Qh3! 28. e4 Qg2+ 29. Ke3 Bxe4, and White’s king is not long for this world) 26. fxe4 Rd8 27. Qf3 Rdb8 28. Rad1 Qc3 (Black tries to stay on the attack, but is rocked by White’s next move) 29. e5!.

Suddenly, Black’s king is feeling the heat, while the advanced Black bishop on d3 becomes a target as well: 29…Rxg2+ (now this moves qualifies as desperation; no better were 29…fxe5 30. Qd5+ Kh8 31. Qxd3 and 29…Qc2 30. exf6) 30. Qxg2 Rb2 31. Qd5+ Kh8 Qd8+ (Qxd3 was also good enough, but Nemelka plays for mate) Kg7 33. Qxf6+, Kg8 34. Qd8+ Kg7 35. Qxd3, finally nabbing the unfortunate bishop.

Black gins up one last-gasp threat, but runs into the ultimate refutation — 36. Rf1 Qxa2 37. Qd7+ Kg6 38. Rf6+ Kh5 39. Qh3 mate. Loseff’s fine effort did not go unrewarded. It was announced that she will be the District’s entry in the WIM Ruth Haring National Tournament of Girls State Champions in July in Philadelphia.

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The 8th Annual Cherry Blossom Open was also a flesh-and-blood affair, held over the long Memorial Day weekend at the Washington Dulles Marriott in Northern Virginia. Ukrainian-born top seed GM Illia Nyzhnyk, GM John Burke and Greek IM Nikolas Theodorou shared top honors in the Open section with matching 7-2 scores.

Nyzhnyk, an anchor of the powerhouse Webster University college chess juggernaut, scored a crucial point with a Round 4 takedown of Indian GM Ramesh Panchanathan in a short, sharp Bishop’s Opening.

Things become unbalanced early after 11. Ng3 h6?! (moving the pawn in front of the king will come back to haunt Black) 12. Bxf7+!? (not winning, but disruptive to the flow of Black’s game) Kxf7 13. b4 d5?! (another odd choice, opening up the center when Panchanathan’s own king is less than fully secure; more logical seems 13…Kg8 14. Qd2 Nc4 15. dxc4 Be6, with a solid game) 14. Qe1 Bxb4?! (giving up a very useful bishop; Black seems to be badly underestimating the dangers lurking in the position) 15. Qxb4 b6 16. Qb2!, taking dead aim at the Black king position along the long diagonal.

One more Black inaccuracy pushes him over the edge: 18. dxe4 Nxe4? (an idea flawed in theory and practice: Black had to try something like 18…c5 19. Re1 Qc7 20. Bf4 Nc6 21. Nd3 Qf7 and hope to hold on) 19. Nxe4 Qd5 20. Re1 Rxe5 (getting back the piece, but leaving himself open to a nasty counterpunch; also bad was 20…Qxe5 21. Nf6+!, winning) 21. Bxh6! Bf5 (a woozy Panchanathan goes down for the count; 21…Nc4 [gxh6 22. Nf6+] 22. Qc3 Ba6 23. Rad1 Qf7 24. Bc1 Qf5 at least kept the game going a while) 22. Rad1 Qe6 23. f4!, delivering the knockout.

Any rook move allows 24. Qxg7 mate, and 23…Nc4 24. Qc3 Qxh6 25. fxe5 b5 26. Nd6 Be6 27. Qg3 leaves White the exchange and a pawn up, with the better position to boot. Black resigned.

Nemelka-Loseff, D.C. Qualifier, Denker Tournament of High School Champions, Washington D.C., May 2021

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 b6 5. cxd5 exd5 6. g3 Bb7 7. Bg2 Bd6 8. O-O O-O 9. Nb5 Re8 10. Nxd6 Qxd6 11. Bf4 Qe7 12. Re1 Ne4 13. Ne5 f6 14. Nf3 c5 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. Nd2 g5 17. Bxb8 Raxb8 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. e3 Qe5 20. Qc2 Ba6 21. b3 Bd3 22. Qd2 c4 23. bxc4 Rb2 24. Qd1 Qf5 25. f3 Qa5 26. fxe4 Rd8 27. Qf3 Rdb8 28. Rad1 Qc3 29. e5 Rxg2+ 30. Qxg2 Rb2 31. Qd5+ Kh8 32. Qd8+ Kg7 33. Qxf6+ Kg8 34. Qd8+ Kg7 35. Qxd3 Qa5 36. Rf1 Qxa2 37. Qd7+ Kg6 38. Rf6+ Kh5 39. Qh3 mate.

Nyzhnyk-Panchanathan, 8th Cherry Blossom Open, Dulles, Va., May 2021

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 Nc6 4. Nc3 Na5 5. Bd5 c6 6. Bb3 Be7 7. Nf3 d6 8. O-O O-O 9. h3 Re8 10. Ne2 Bf8 11. Ng3 h6 12. Bxf7+ Kxf7 13. b4 d5 14. Qe1 Bxb4 15. Qxb4 b6 16. Qb2 dxe4 17. Nxe5+ Kg8 18. dxe4 Nxe4 19. Nxe4 Qd5 20. Re1 Rxe5 21. Bxh6 Bf5 22. Rad1 Qe6 23. f4 Black resigns.

• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.