After a previously undefeated season, the Independence High School chess team’s first loss came against top-ranked and undefeated Brophy Prep, but the team finished 3-1-1 against Glendale and 3-2 against Goldwater at Day 2 of the region’s 7-11 tournament on Saturday.

 

On Friday, the Patriots opened the tournament swiftly defeating their two opponents; Moon Valley and Greenway, raising the team score from a previous 617 to 644.  

 

“I couldn’t be prouder,” Patriots head coach Bill Bolton said of the tournament outcome. “In the way they played, their performance, really went beyond my expectations.”

 

“It taught me a lesson that I have to shoot higher (and) for them as well,” Bolton added.

 

However, it wouldn’t be until Saturday that the Patriots would be tested the most.

 

At the start of Saturday’s match, the top five players from both the Patriots and Broncos took their seat, shook hands and began their individual games.

 

Patriots freshman Ricardo Molina, who was starting at the No. 5 board,  left his king exposed, which ultimately allowed his opponent to then corner his king moments later.

 

While all other schools competing were near done completion, the top four remaining Patriots were battling to come out on top with time ticking away.

 

The Patriots’ No. 4 board, senior Anthony Adams, started his game solid but his timing proved to be a factor which made him succumb to the strain.

 

To put that in perspective, Adams was narrowing in with a time of 11 minutes while his opponent was sitting comfortably with 23 minutes.

 

Not long after, Patriots’ No. 3 board Kevin Romero was down to his last minute while his opponent Daniel Noon was hanging on at four minutes. 

 

Both looked to be playing equal fights but with Romero low on time, the fight ended short.

 

With only two remaining matches and all four players having United States Chess Federation credentials under their belts, Patriots assistant coach Jair Amaya said the player who comes out on top would be determined by the level of experience.

 

At the No. 1 board Patriots senior Stephen Hoven and Brophy senior Dave Mohan were neck-and-neck with almost identical times of five minutes.  

Mohan then strategically maneuvered his remaining pieces to block Hoven’s king, ending the game.

 

“I decided to switch up my move order a little bit to throw him off,” Mohan said. “And get the position that I wanted with him getting a position he wasn’t as comfortable with.”

 

Hoven said his initial plan going into the game was to do his absolute best and not do anything stupid.

 

“If I had unlimited time, I would have not made the mistakes I did,” Hoven said. “I was not expecting to win but hoping to draw the end game, obviously when he goes for a sharp opening like that it usually is going to lead to a very calm end game which is going to be a draw, if played correctly by both sides.”

 

The last one to try to take a win for the Patriots was at the No. 2 board, junior Ethan Amaya.

 

Amaya said he set the bar for his opponent, Mason Miller, higher than what he expected going into the match.

 

“In the beginning he spent so much time analyzing things, but he was relentless in many of his attacks,” Amaya said of his opponent's style of play. “In the 14th move he tried checkmating me, trying to weaken my defenses.”

 

But with time hitting the zero mark for Amaya, the match would go to the Broncos.

 

“Honestly the game was much tougher than what I expected,” Miller said. “He played really well.”

 

At the end of regionals, Independence is among one of eight teams to qualify the for state championships in Tucson on Friday, Nov. 16.