York Student Ranks Second At State Chess Tournament

ELMHURST, IL — York Community High School's Chess Team headed to Peoria, Illinois on Feb. 9-10 to compete at the Illinois High School Association's Chess State Series. The district said York qualified for state during the sectional tournament two weeks prior, securing their spot in the competition. The team competed alongside 128 teams in seven rounds of competition, each lasting up to two hours.

Led by Coach Jeremy Paschke, standout player junior Manu Mehta, who is in his third year of competition, went undefeated in each of his seven games, the district said. Mehta closed out the competition placing second on Board One.

The team, which placed 109th overall, is comprised of seniors Daniel Sussman, Daniel Rafac, Martin Kelty and Sergi Martin Sarrau; juniors Manu Mehta and Bozydar Kaszuba; sophomores Matthew Tully and Leron Maddi; and freshman Aaron Taub.

Photos provided by District 205.