Featured Players

“When I was first introduced to the game of chess, I was five years old, and I remember thinking to myself that the pawns should have their own names too,” recalls Thomas Schiwek. “Just because they were small, they were far from insignificant. I came to learn, quickly enough, that they had a unique power…

Teaching has become as important as playing for National Master William Graif, one of the NSCF’s star alumni. The 18-year-old senior at Edgemont High School is both player and coach for his school’s chess team, which just won the New York State Scholastic Chess Championship for the second year in a row. William began playing…

The winners of our 2017-18 NSCF Grand Prix competition were presented their awards after the November 18, 2019 tournament held at Greenwich Country Day School. It was exciting to have so many of these aspiring chess players on hand to pick up their plaques in person and to play in the tournament. For the complete…

Brunswick School and Greenwich Academy took home many of the top honors at the 2018 Greenwich City Scholastic Chess Championship held on January 21. Many of the sections were super tight, as evidenced by GA’s Serena Evans and Brunswick’s Miles Gillott who both scored 3.5 our of a possible 4 points; Serena won on tie-breaks to become 4th…

Chess player Jared Schwartz attributes his proficiency in chess to “intense learning at an early age”. Pointing out that chess is its own language, Jared said, “Learning a language at 40 is hard where learning one at 6 is easier.” The seventh grader at Solomon Schechter Upper School in Hartsdale said he first learned to…

The very first tournament I played was a NSCF tournament. It was 5 years ago. I was 7 years old and unrated. I felt no pressure and just had fun. I won the Novice section with 4/4 and a first place trophy. I was hooked. I liked the tournaments. They were a lot of fun…

Our Individual Winners The 2016 Westchester County Scholastic Chess Championships were held at Church Street Elementary in White Plains on Saturday, March 5. Over 100 students from all grades competed for both individual and team prizes. Here are most of the top prize winners: Nicklaus Breslin from Pelham HS (right) won the combined Middle School/High School section…

“I’d really like to get above 2000. That’s my goal,” says chess player Danielle Sharp. “Having a goal encourages me to focus.” The 2015 NSCF Grand Prix high school champion, Danielle also took 2nd place honors in the 2016 Grand Prix after participating in only six tournaments. “I played at the Hunter tournaments more last…

Reuben O’Neill, the NSCF 2014-15 Grand Prix Middle School Champion, is a proud example of how chess can help a child learn to overcome obstacles beyond the chess board. Reuben was first introduced to chess while attending his kindergarten and first grade years at the Solomon Schechter School of Westchester and really liked the game.…

Persistence and perspective are the two words that come to mind when speaking to Robby Schetlick, the 2013-14 NSCF Middle School Grand Prix chess champion. Just a minute into our conversation and I can feel his excitement for chess. “I first learned to play from my dad. There was a chess set in this hotel…

by Polly Wright The NSCF Grand Prix Awards for the 2012 – 2013 season were awarded at the first NSCF tournament of the new school year. The overall Grand Prix winner is Shawn Cobb. This is the third year in a row Shawn has won the overall championship. He also won the Middle School Championship…

Greenwich Academy student Helena Servin-Demarrais, our overall Middle School champion, was recognized during our 2015-16 NSCF Grand Prix Awards ceremony held at Greenwich Country Day School on Sunday, November 10. “Anyone can have a great event and take home a tournament trophy. The Grand Prix Awards recognize the persistence and determination of our chess players over an…

  On Saturday, March 18, over 100 competitors battled in 8 sections at the 2017 Westchester Scholastic Chess Championship. Organized by grade (K-1 and Middle/High School were each combined into single sections), the tournament was open to all students regardless of where they live, with prizes awarded to the top individual and team performers. In…

The 2017 Greenwich City Scholastic Chess Championship is now in our history books or, in our case, in the results section of our website. On January 22 at Greenwich Academy, 129 competitors battled in eight sections organized by grade (K-1 and Middle/High School were each combined into single sections). The tournament was open to all students regardless of…