30 players competed in the annual Thomas Bergquist Memorial State Championship, held September 19-20 in Clarksburg. And for the second time in WVCA history, we have a 12-year-old State Champion.

Day One:
Gallagher Kelsch and Lewis Sanders were the only two players with perfect scores at the end of day one. Ben Good and Jimmy Fuller were at 2.5 after their round 2 draw and winning in round 3. John Roush had a round 2 draw and a 1/2-point bye to remain at 2-1 with several others.

Day Two:
In round 4, Gallagher beat Lewis and John Roush beat Ben Good. Jimmy Fuller won his game against Ed Garner to move to 3.5 and have a chance against Gallagher in round 5. Gallagher won somewhat quickly, though, to secure his first state championship. On board two, Lewis and John Roush were both at 3-1 and could take clear second with a victory. Five other players joined Jimmy Fuller at 3.5. Depending on the result of board two, 3.5 would either be third or second place. John had been up a pawn for the entire game after Lewis’s Wing Gambit, but the position remained tense. John, down to about 1 minute, found himself down a piece, then a rook, and resigned. Lewis then took clear second.

The final game was between John Vallelonga and Ronald Maddalena, both at 2-2. A win for either would give them clear first in the Under 1300. John navigated a tricky rook and opposite color bishop endgame and nabbed a couple of pawns before Ronald lost his rook and resigned.

Final Results:
1st – Gallagher Kelsch 5.0
2nd – Lewis Sanders 4.0
3rd – Ben Good, Jimmy Fuller, Anatoly Boshkin, Elijah Schultz, Siddhartha Bora, Lane Moore 3.5
U1600 – Elijah Schultz 3.5
U1300 – John Vallelonga 3.0
Upset Prize – Alex LeCloux (655) for his victory over David Bruner (1500)

USCF Crosstable

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

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

24 players competed in the WV Action Championship May 9, 2026 in Huntington. Gallagher Kelsch won the 2026 WV Action Championship with a perfect 6-0 score. Ryan Miller of Kentucky was second at 5-1.

USCF Crosstable

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

The 25th Mountaineer Open was held on January 17, 2026 in Morgantown. 52 players competed in the rated sections. Lewis Sanders won the open with 4/4 and Cole Harris won the Collegiate/Scholastic with 4/4.

USCF Crosstable

The Jingle Bell Open and Scholastic was held on December 6 in Bridgeport. The Open Section was won by Gallagher Kelsch with 3.5/4. The Middle/High School was won by Cole Harris with 4/4. The Elementary was won by Zekun Chen with 4/4.

USCF Crosstable

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.

14 players competed in the Thomas Bergquist Memorial 86th WV State Championship, held on September 13-14, 2025 in Huntington. No one escaped unscathed among the small field, and when the dust settled, Lewis Sanders won his third State Championship title.

As the tournament was nearing a close, Gallagher Kelsch and Markle Butcher had already finished their games and had 3.5 points. Lewis was playing Harrison Stone on board one, each having 3 points. A win would mean clear first, and a draw would mean a four-way tie for first. Lewis with the white pieces had been down a pawn most of the game. The players traded down into an opposite color bishop endgame, which are notorious for being drawn and this one was no exception. However, as the time pressure ensued, Harrison slipped and allowed Lewis to push his pawn with discovered check and promote to a queen. Lewis won and became our champion with 4 points out of 5.

Gallagher Kelsch won the Junior Champion title with his second place score of 3.5.
Ed Garner, Vishwadhipa Voore, and Harrison Stone shared the U1900 and U1600 prizes with 3 points.
Vishwadhipa Voore, who started with 3 straight wins, took the upset trophy with his win over Lewis Sanders in round 3.
David Comer and Tina Statts shared the U1300 prize with 2 points each.

USCF Crosstable

31 players competed in the WV Italian Heritage Festival Open and Scholastic event, held on August 23 at the Harrison County Senior Center in Clarksburg. Gallagher Kelsch showed no signs of slowing down his rating climb, reaching 1900+ after going 4-0 in the Open. Andrew Tichenor of Virginia took second with a perfect 3-0 before a 1/2 point bye in round 4.

The scholastic section was won by Aaron Ross with 4-0. Cheat Lake Elementary took the team trophy. Dominic Ashton and Ethan Rakes took home second place trophies, and Sarah Good won a trophy for the highest finishing girl.

USCF Crosstable