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Noah Polacek wins Class E State Chess Championship @ UNO!

WHS sophomore continues to improve his school record USCF rating

December 04, 2016

WHS sophomore Noah Polacek (center) won the NSCA Class E Chess Championship at UNO on Dec. 3! Sophomore Mathew Wolf (left) finished 2nd in Class H, and freshman Alex Tomjack won two matches, raising his rating from 260 to 289.

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WHS sophomore Noah Polacek (center) won the NSCA Class E Chess Championship at UNO on Dec. 3! Sophomore Mathew Wolf (left) finished 2nd in Class H, and freshman Alex Tomjack won two matches, raising his rating from 260 to 289.

Wahoo High School sophomore Noah Polacek won the Nebraska State Chess Association Class E Championship (for players with a rating from 1000 to 1199) held at the University of Nebraska at Omaha on December 3! Polacek won all of his matches.

“His second match was a close one,” said WHS Chess Club Sponsor Larry Fangman. “Both players only had pawns left, but Noah had a one-pawn advantage, and he smartly used his king to protect one of the pawns and get it all the way down the board to get his queen back. The other matches he won easily.”

Polacek increased his school record USCF (U.S. Chess Federation) rating from 1015 entering the tournament to 1140 after he breezed through the field. Click HERE to read more information about USCF Chess ratings.

Sophomore Mathew Wolf finished second in Class H (for players with a rating of 400-599) and raised his USCF rating from 550 to 650.

Freshman Alex Tomjack also competed at the meet. He won two matches and raised his USCF rating from 260 to 289.

The high school chess club will not have another meet until 2017. Middle school and elementary chess club will start their season after Christmas break.