Author Archives: wvchess

WV Italian Heritage Festival Open

17 players competed in the 2026 WV Italian Heritage Festival chess tournament, held on August 29, 2026 at the Harrison County Senior Center in Clarksburg. John Roush and Ben Good shared 1st-2nd with 3.5/4. Hans Wikle took 1st U1500 with 2.5/4 and 2nd was split between Mathew Johnson, Evan Pugh, and Maddox Andriotto who had 2.0/4.

USCF Crosstable

WVCA Chessable Authors

We have two young authors in our midst. Amber Arora and Anika Arora have both authored courses on Chessable. They became the youngest authors on Chessable in 2020 after creating the Master Checkmates course in response to Chessable’s Create Your Own Course Challenge. They have since added the Prodigy Checkmates course.

You can find them here:

Suncrest Spring Fling

31 players competed in the rated sections of the Suncrest Spring Fling event, held on May 23, 2026 at Suncrest Middle School in Morgantown.

Results:
6-12 – Cole Harris 4.0, five players tied for second at 3.0; Team – East Fairmont HS
K-5 – Manvith Maheshkumar 3.5, Henry Esguerra 3.0; Team – Taylor County MS
Open – Benjamin Good 2.5, Jimmy Fuller 2.0

USCF Crosstable

2025-2026 Grand Prix Standings

Standings after 2 Events
Events Included: Mountaineer Open, Action Championship

 1. Gallagher Kelsch           34.17
 2. Lewis F Sanders            27.83
 3. James A Fuller             20.75
 4. Skyler Anthony Blatt       19.25
 5. Anatoly Boshkin            17.92
 6. Elijah David Schultz        8.75
    Joseph Baker                8.75
    Pushkal Solanki             8.75
 9. Markle W Butcher            8.33
10. Charles Alexander Kayuha    7.20
    James Crump                 7.20
    Julian Schmidt              7.20
    Justice Garn Sever          7.20
14. Harrison Stone              6.00
    Andrew M Thomas             6.00
    Zachary Valen Nelson        6.00
17. Anurag K Srivastava         5.17
    Bryson Michael Connolly     5.17
    Larry K Graham              5.17
20. Donald Joseph King          4.33
21. Paul George Rebelo          3.50
    Ray Hadsel Richards         3.50
    Robert Allan Wells          3.50
    Tina Statts                 3.50

WV Scholastic Championship Results

69 players competed in the WV Scholastic Championship held in Clarksburg on March 21.

Individual Winners:
K-12: Nathaniel Des Ruisseau 5/5
K-8: Gallagher Kelsch 4/4
K-5: Aadhavan Thangasamy 4/4
K-3: Julian Schmidt, Nikil Mathew (VA) 4.5/5

Team Winners:
K-12: Berkeley Springs High School
K-8: John Adams Middle School
K-5: Weberwood Elementary School
K-3: MMS Knights

USCF Crosstable

11th WV Senior Championship

14 players competed in the 11th Annual WV Senior Championship, held in Bridgeport. Anatoly Boshkin and Marco Wotschka (OH) tied for first with 4.5/5 points. However, due to a lapse in WVCA membership, the Senior Champion title again goes to James Fuller, who finished with 3.5/5. Jimmy will be offered a spot in the Irwin National Tournament of Senior State Champions in 2026.

USCF Crosstable.