Lemont Places 23rd At IHSA Chess State Finals

LEMONT, IL — Head coach Ken Suslek’s chess team is a fixture in state finals competition, but his program reached new heights this season, the school said in a release. Sparked by freshman triplets who occupy the top three slots in the line-up, Lemont placed 23rd at the 2022 IHSA Chess State Finals, which were contested at the Peoria Civic Center on Feb. 11-12.

Lemont has advanced to the IHSA State Finals 25 straight years, and has won multiple state finals contests each of those seasons, the school said.

Lemont won five state finals matches in one season for the first time in program history, knocking off Schaumburg (55.5-12.5), Riverside-Brookfield (68-0), Downers Grove South (51-17), Downers Grove North (39.5-28.5) and Hinsdale South (43.5-24.5), the school said. Lemont previously had won four state finals matches eight times, including in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Lemont, which has advanced to the state finals each season since 1998, also established a new program best with its 23rd-place finish, the school said. Among Class 3A schools, only Benet Academy (15th) placed better in the final standings. Lemont’s previous best finish in the team standings came in 2007, when it placed 40th.

Lemont never had a player post an undefeated record over seven state finals matches, but two players achieved that feat in 2022, the school said. Freshman Vikram Oberai totaled 6.5 points at Board 1, winning six matches and posting one draw. He was one of only seven players at Board 1 to record 6.5 points or more at this year’s state finals.

Oberai’s siblings also shined in their state finals debuts. Anisha Oberai also went undefeated, collecting 5.5 points (four wins, three draws) at Board 3, while Adi Oberai earned 4.5 points (four wins, one draw) at Board 2. The Oberai siblings combined for 16.5 of a possible 21 points (14 wins, five draws) in their matches, according to the school.

Lemont’s line-up includes two additional sets of siblings, the school said. Sophomore Rehan Saraiya earned 4.5 points (four wins, one draw) at Board 7, while senior Safin Saraiya totaled 4.0 points (three wins, two draws) at Board 4. Sophomores Owen Geraghty (4.0 points; four wins) and Ryan Geraghty (3.5 points; three wins, one draw) competed at Boards 6 and 8, respectively. Senior Sunny Rana earned 2.5 points (two wins, one draw) at Board 5.

Lemont dominated the South Suburban Conference-Blue Division, posting a 12-0 record and winning 803 of a possible 816 points in conference matches, the school said. Suslek’s teams are 103-5 in SSC Blue play over the last nine seasons.

Adi Oberai, Anisha Oberai, Vikram Oberai and Safin Saraiya each earned All-SSC honors this season as Lemont capped the year with a 29-4 record in dual matches.