Week 9 recap – Arizona vs. Seattle

For the first time since playing for the Scorpions did I feel that our team was a big underdog in a match.  Seattle had an unbelievable 7-1 score coming into the round and was played three of their more consistent scorers, as Nakamura, Mikhailuk and Sinanan are all ‘up there’ in the consideration for All-Star team in their respective boards.  But what a surprise!  Arizona wins their 4th match in a row and moves into 2nd position in the western division.  Here is a recap game by game:

HIKARU “I WILL TAKE REVENGE OF ZIVANIC SOME DAY’ NAKAMURA VS.  ALEJANDRO “HANDI” RAMIREZ

This game actually went very differently from what I expected.  I came expecting Hikaru to play any knight or rook pawn on the first move and then try to create some complications by move 10 and checkmate me.  My opponent actually played 1. e4 and played a relatively main line against the Alekhine’s Defense.  I hadn’t prepared this specifically for this match, but (for some obscure and dumb reason) I had done a fair amount of work on these types of positions.

Hikaru put the pressure throughout the game.  After the nice Qf4-g3 maneuver followed by Bf4 it was clear that my dark squares would never have any remedy.  Despite this, the position was never simple, and I always had some resource up my sleeve.  I was surprised that Rybka actually thinks I’m ‘just fine’ after trading rooks on the e-file and sitting like a duck, but I much prefer the approach I took in the game.  After the exchange sacrifice  32… Re4!  Black changes dramatically the character of the position.  White can either end up and exchange for a pawn, bad with discoordinated pieces and weak pawns around the board or sacrifice a pawn to try to create some play for the dark squares.  Hikaru went for the second, but after some solid moves it was impossible for him to create threats against my king.  The final position is only a slight pull for black, and I’m sure that a player of Hikaru’s caliber wouldn’t come close to losing.

For me personally it’s a great pleasure to play a Super-GM like Hikaru, and I am very happy to have scored with the black pieces, a huge thing in a team match.

LEV “SOLID STEAM ROLLER” ALTOUNIAN VS. SLAVA “I HATE ARIZONA” MIKHAILUK

Levon is one of those players for which the Catalan type setups are serious business.  Somehow, some way, in some perverse part of Armenia he was taught how to grind opponents with white using the most ridiculous types of moves.  Today, this was not the case.  Lev pulled out an anti-gruenfeld Qa4-Qh4 maneuver that Mikhailuk clearly did not know.  After getting an immense amount of pressure on the kingside, black sacrificed a pawn to get rid of the queens, but that landed him in a positionally inferior endgame, where he was also down a pawn and about 40 minutes on the clock.  A near-GM player like Lev will not forgive such a situation, and he won in an amazing way.

Mikhailuk 0 – 2 Arizona

MARCEL “I HAVE THE SAME RATING AS MY OPPONENT!” MILAT VS. ROBBY “I HATE THE BENKO” ADAMSON

Boards 3 and 4 were definitely the most nerve wrecking boards in the match.  After playing an interesting (retarded) line in the Benko, Robby ended up in a clearly inferior position.  His kingside was weakened, his queenside attack was going nowhere and the weak pawn on d5 could simply not be taken.  Despite all of this, the Benko always provides its followers with some resource or another.  After Milat missed some chances, including the simple 25. Bf1! with the idea of Kg2 and Rh1, as well as of Nb5 instead of the positionally ugly 25. f4?!, Robby was able to create some threats and some surprising king side counterplay.  In a psychologically brilliant move, he offered a draw when the position became rather murky.  Milat made what I think was a big team mistake, and instead of pushing for a win he settled for a draw, when it was clear at that point that only a miracle would save Seattle from losing the match, as board 4 was definitely in Arizona’s favor.

In the final position Rybka comes up with the surprising Nb5!  a very difficult move to see indeed, but it poses many difficulties for black, most of which you cannot realistically overcome with 3 minutes left on your clock.

AMANDA “SLINKY FASHIONISTA T-SHIRT” MATEER VS. JOSH “CINNAMON” SINANAN

This game was definitely something that no one, except maybe for me sometimes, expected.  Being outrated by 300 points and being a decidophobic (real word!), it was clear that Amanda was a big big underdog.

First, props for her preparation.  She somehow managed to catch her opponent in a line that he clearly did not know, and this gained her a huge time advantage in the opening.  To anyone that has seen Ms. Mateer play, this is quite essential.  Black played well and after White made the inaccuracy of Bxe4 (Qb2 seemed like a solid edge) black was able to equalize.   A couple of moves later the position turned wild and unbalanced.  White sacrificed a pawn to create what was apparently an unavoidable and lethal pin, only to have black countersacrifice a piece to open a single diagonal against the white king!

I was intently watching the game at this point (since mine was just boring, who needs concentration against a 2800?) and saw that Sinanan played the excellent 18…Bf3! I didn’t see anyway to play without accepting the sacrifice, and thought the game would end peacefully after Kh1.  To my horror, Amanda played 20. Kg2?? which loses to the obvious move e3! and after fxe3 simply Nxe5+ recovers the piece and leaves black with two extra pawns and a better position.

Never have I heard a bigger sigh of relief win Sinanan played Nh4+??  After that the game should technically end in a draw, but with Sinanan being pressured to win since it was very unclear that whether Milat would take a draw or not, he pushed too hard and Amanda was able to cleanly and efficiently dispose of her opponent with an extra piece, showing very nice technique for a ‘class A chick’.

Props to Amanda and Lev for playing great games and leading our team to victory!  Go Scorpions!

What a match we have in store this week!

In the unofficial USCL power rankings, Seattle sits at #2 and Arizona sits at #3 in the league. Clearly, this match is going to be a battle between teams that have proven to be heavyweights in 2009.

Board 1 pits two young phenoms against each other. In the red corner, GM Hikaru Nakamura, the current US Champion and undisputed superstar of the USCL this season. Naka weighs in with an October-supplement USCF rating of 2824 (!) and a whopping 5-0 record in the league. In the blue corner, we see the return of GM Alejandro Ramirez, weighing in with an October-supplement rating of 2623 and a solid 3-1 record this season, which includes a GOTW win over GM Joel Benjamin. It is safe to say that Naka–who leads the league in MVP points–is the favorite, but no one should ever underestimate the spaghetti-making Central American wonder that is Alejandro Tadeo Ramirez Alvarez. DO NOT MISS THIS GAME!

On Board 2, IM Levon Altounian reps the Scorpions against FM Slava Mikhailuk. Early this season, Arizona’s IM Mark Ginsburg dealt Mikhailuk his only loss of the 2009 season. Scorpions fans hope that Levon (who has drawn all 3 of his games this season) can do the same. This board could easily be the critical game for the match and looks to be a must-win for the Scorps!

On Board 3, FM Robby Adamson (2.5-1.5) will also be looking to convert a full point with black against FM Marcel Milat (0-1). Though both players weigh in with similar ratings, Robby has two advantages in this game:  (1) he has been staying much more active in recent years than Milat, who hasn’t played a USCF or FIDE tournament since 2006 and usually only gets played once a year in the USCL; and (2) he is the blitzmaster.

On Board 4, Amanda Mateer makes her debut for the Scorpions, taking on NM Joshua Sinanan. Earlier this season, Arizona’s NM Leo Martinez drew Sinanan. Weighing in with a 5-1 record this season and a USCF rating of 2248, Sinanan looks to be the favorite on this board. However, Amanda has proven her talent against much stronger players than Sinanan, so this game could easily still go either way. Besides, as Alejandro will remind us, Amanda is sooo creative!

Tune in tomorrow evening to watch this important battle between two teams leading the West! If you have been watching the Scorpions’ action-packed matches the past few weeks, I shouldn’t have to convince you that it could be epic.

Let’s quickly look and see what Week 9 has in store for us. NJ is going to try and clinch the East, while Seattle closes in on the West. Everyone seems to be alive in the East while the West is seed-to-be-determined, with Dallas having an outside chance. I have done much lately in picking, although of course that’s all luck.

Queens Pioneers vs. Carolina Cobras

Queens wins to keep mathematically alive. Queens wins 2.5-1.5.

Dallas Destiny vs. Chicago Blaze

A battle for Dallas to stay alive in the West – Dallas and Chicago battle to 2-2 tie.

San Francisco Mechanics vs. Tennessee Tempo

San Francisco wins 3-1 – they have more to prove than Tennessee, who has been eliminated from playoff contention.

Philadelphia Inventors vs. New Jersey Knockouts

Gulko = win for NJ – should wrap up the division and may dash the playoff hopes of Philly. NJ wins 2.5-1.5.

Baltimore Kingfishers vs. New York Knights

The biggest match of the night perhaps. NY has the edge on board 4. Erenberg probably needs a win with white for Baltimore to have a chance. NY wins 2.5-1.5.

Boston Blitz vs. Miami Sharks

A match with significance for both teams. No Becerra, no LarryC – should be a tight match. Perelshteyn gives Boston the edge and a very narrow win. Boston wins 2.5-1.5.

Seattle Sluggers vs. Arizona Scorpions

I predict my Scorpions and Seattle battle to a tie, 2-2.

Last week – 5-2! (That is 10-4 in 2 weeks!).

IM-Elect Danny Rensch makes a new video on chess.com about Isolated Queen Pawns. You can check out the video on chess.com as well as clicking this link. You can check out more videos by Danny concerning Isolated Queen Pawns and other subjects in the future. You can also check out our own Arizona Scorpion blog at chess.com.

You can also check out more videos from USCL players such as GM Vinay Bhat, GM Josh Friedel, IM Sam Shankland, IM David Pruess, FM Todd Andrews, as well as our very own blog contributer FM Elliott Liu.

Well, the Scorpions did it again!  They squeaked by the Chicago Blaze 2.5 – 1.5

Let’s see a very important ending on board 3 where Mehmed Pasalic (CHI) was battling Danny Rensch. A very dramatic battle with several key, instructive moments.

Pasalic (CHI) – Rensch (ARZ)  Sicilian Najdorf

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.f4 e5 7.Nf3 Nbd7 8.Bd3 b5 9.0-0 Bb7 10.Qe2 Be7 11.Kh1 g6?! I don’t understand this move. I would just cackle. I can do …g6 later, usually as a reaction to white’s probe Nf3-h4 move.

12.fxe5 dxe5 13.Bh6 Ng4 14.Bd2 Nc5 15.Rad1?! After something like 15. h3 h5 16. a3, black’s knight is just hanging in limbo on g4 and white is better.

15…Nxd3 16.cxd3 b4 17.Nb1 h5 18.Be1 Qb6 19.Bf2 Nxf2+ 20.Rxf2 Qe6 21.Nbd2 0-0 22.Nc4 f6 Black’s kingside pawns look funny but white doesn’t have the right pieces on the board to exploit it.

23.Qe3 Kg7 24.Rc2 Rfc8 25.h3 a5 26.b3 a4 27.Qe1 Rd8 28.Re2 Ba6 29.Rc2 Bxc4 More foxy is 29…axb3 30. axb3 Rac8 and black can decide when or if to play Bxc4.

30.dxc4 axb3 31.axb3 Rxd1 32.Qxd1 f5 33.Re2 Rd8 34.Qe1 Bf6? 34…f4 kept the balance.

35.Qxb4 Rd3 36.Qb8! This is strong and black might have underestimated it.

36…fxe4 37.Qb7+ Kh6 38.Qxe4

White has control

After an up and down game, white is starting to assert himself.   It is starting to get really interesting, and this is when I started watching. It didn’t look good.

This is a good moment to pause due to a tactical nuance.

Here ICC kibitzers initially were calling for black to take on b3:  38…Rxb3.  Another kibitzer pointed out that this was not playable due to “38…Rxb3 39. Nd4!” so we thought it was unplayable. But go a little deeper!    39. Nd4 Rxh3+!! (a fantastic resource!) 40. Kg1 (40. gxh3? Qxh3+ and black is not worse at all) 40…Qb6! and black is only a little worse!

38…Qd6?

Both sides were running low on time.  Here white missed two clean wins.

The easiest, as pointed out by IM D. Fernandez, was 39. Rd2!!  Rxd2 40. Qe3+ Kg7 41. Nxd2 and white is completely winning, maintaining the e4 blockade.

The second choice, and very popular in ICC kibitzing (but inferior to Fernandez’s move but it’s harder to work out), was the more complicated 39. b4. After 39…Rd1+ 40. Re1 Rxe1+ 41. Qxe1 e4 it’s time for another interesting quiz.   What’s best here?  Answer to be posted later.

White to Play. Quiz Time (analysis)

Position after 41….e4; White to play and win (analysis).  Can you solve it?

39.Nxe5?! White bypasses both of those wins, but as we shall see, this should have been winning too.

39…Bxe5 40.Qxe5 Qxe5 41.Rxe5 Rxb3

Yermolinsky Sets Us Straight

Most ICC kibitzers felt this was totally drawn.  Only GM Yermolinsky was wise enough to enlighten us – see comment to white’s 43rd move.

42.h4! The correct first step to fix the g6 pawn.

42…Rc3

Moment of Truth

43.Rc5??

Only GM Yermolinsky recognized this as a blunder.  He laid out a winning plan that is foolproof and brilliant in its simplicity.  In hindsight obvious, but he is the only one that saw it among the gawking multitudes.  Put pawn on c5, he said, and prepare then put pawn on g3, and Rook on g5 holding everything, and move king to queenside.  Indeed, that pins black’s king to g6, and black is helpless against the white king shepherding the c-pawn.  A fantastic, simple in hindsight, and very aesthetic plan!  Black is completely powerless to stop its realization.

Clearly Pasalic missed it, but so did most of the ICC kibitzers.

43…Rc2 44.Rc7 Rd2 45.Kh2 Rd4! By bothering white’s kingside pawns, the black rook “latches on” and prevents any further progress. The Scorpions win the match by the narrow 2.5 – 1.5 margin!

46.g3 Rd3 47.c5 Rd2+ 48.Kg1 Rc2 49.Rc8 Kg7 50.Rc6 Kf7 51.Kf1 Kg7 52.Rc8 Kf6 53.c6 Kf5 54.c7 Kg4 55.Rg8 Rxc7 56.Rxg6+ Kf3 57.Kg1 Rc2 58.Rb6 Kxg3 59.Rb3+ Kxh4 60.Rb4+ Kg3 61.Rb3+ Kg4 62.Rb4+ Kg3 63.Rb3+ Kg4 64.Rb4+ Kg3 Game drawn by repetition 1/2-1/2

Wow!  A great fighting, titantic battle in the best USCL tradition!

Last year, I, too, held a draw in a bad game vs Pasalic to win a CHI-ARZ match.  Chicago must be getting tired of us!

GM Robert Hess, a fan of the Arizona Scorpions, once again chimes in with his thoughts about the Arizona Scorpions victory over the Chicago Blaze. The AZ Scorpions thank Robert for his contribution.

ARIZONA WINS!! What a weekend it has been for Arizona teams. The Wildcats of Arizona and the Sun Devils of Arizona State each provided wins on Saturday to begin the ‘Zona rampage. The Cardinals, defending NFC champions, humiliated the Seahawks 27-3 (Thank you Warner and Fitzgerald for being on my fantasy team – no thank you Cardinal stingy defense, I also have Hasselbeck!) on Sunday to move to a tie atop the division. Best for last, your Arizona Scorpions, barring a complete meltdown, may have assured themselves a playoff berth with their third straight match win. This week it was a 2.5-1.5 victory over the Chicago Blaze. To the games we go!

Board 1: Angelo Young (IM, 2325) vs. Rogelio Barcenilla (GM-Elect,2583)

Angelo Young has yet to lose a game in the USCL. His record is phenomenal, especially considering he is often considerably out-rated. Daniel Rensch, Arizona’s third board, has a significant rating advantage over Young. However, Young maintained steady dominance over his GM-elect opponent. Barcenilla seemed to be playing from a worse position for most of the game. Instead of playing an early cxd4, he allowed Angelo to obtain a large space advantage. After sacrificing an exchange, the game should have been easily over. However, black missed an opportunity with 37… Qc5+, which does give black some good fighting chances. Additionally, the only way for black to keep on breathing after 38. Qb7 was Qxb7 39. axb7 Rb8 with chances to make a draw. However, after Rogelio missed these two finds, Young made quick work of his opponent. 1-0

Board 2: Dionisio Aldama (IM, 2473) vs. Florin Felecan (2430, IM-Elect)

Aldama played for the second straight week and again proved productive. Felecan, the ever dangerous player (he did have a great victory over Yury Shulman earlier this year), seemed to obtain a strong Sicilian position. Aldama played smooth, forward chess, not succumbing to passivity. Even after Felecan stole a pawn, Dionisio still pressed on for the win. Unlike typical Felecan games, there were not all too many tactics involved. Rather, white achieved the initiative and kept on rolling.

18. f5 was also a possibility for white, as g5 is responded to by 19. Bf2 (targeting a nice cushion on b6).

Black could have played 35… Rd6 36. Qb3 (36. Bb4?? Rdxc6!) a2! 37. Qb7 Qxb7 38. cxb7 Rb8!! 39. Rc8+ Kh7 40. Rxb8 Rxd5 41. Rd8 Rxa5 42. B8=Q A1= Q 43. Qb3 Qa2 about = to my eyes.

However, this is tough to find over the board, and I found this based on 15 minutes pure calculation. Maybe a computer engine will prove me wrong, but to my human eye, seems like black’s best try. 1-0

Board 3: Mehmed Pasalic (IM, 2346) vs. Daniel Rensch (IM-Elect, 2434)

This was arguably the most crucial board of the match. On paper, at least, this was the best match-up, pitting two recently minted IMs against one another. Rensch is known to have a rough time in the league, with his performance rating just two above his birth year (1987 performance, 1985 birth). That being said, he is undoubtedly much better than that, proven with his last IM norm at the Spice Cup B section. Pasalic, on the other hand, has proven his strength in the league, performing 2492 last year with 4/6. Now moving to the game…

Rensch came out like a man with something to prove. He chose a very active opening, and certainly achieved a rather nice position. After 15 moves, black was already better. Rensch had the two bishop advantage and probably should have put his dark-squared bishop on the g1-a7 diagonal. However, after trading on c4, the position remained equal until f5 was played. White immediately had a better position, as it weakened the dark squares. After everything was traded on e5, Pasalic attempted to consolidate his pawn advantage. His best try was to go 47. Kg2 but regardless it looks rather drawish. Interesting game here. ½-½

Board 4: David Adelberg (2160) vs. Eric Rosen (2164)

This was a matchup between two players on the rise. Both have become much stronger as of late. But nobody should be surprised to see Adelberg win this match for his team. The kid has been on fire for the Scorpions, playing quite well in most of his games (disregarding the hiccup vs. Gregory Young). After 19. Bd2, perhaps just retreating Qc7 was best. After Qh5, though, it seems that black is just losing. Yes, perhaps the queen can escape with a move like g5!? After Nh4, but this just looks too weakening. Ng4 was immediately losing, and Adelberg played a very solid game and easily took home the point. 1-0

Match Recap

Overall, a rather strong showing by the Scorpions. All boards were hard fought, and with the exception of the upset on board 1, proved to play in Arizona’s favor. Angelo Young did a fantastic job taking down Barcenilla on board 1, ‘Zona took control with the white pieces, and Rensch held down Pasalic. 3 wins a row, steamrollin’ their way into the playoffs: yourrrrrrrr 2009 Arizonaaaaaaaa Scorpionssssss (dramatic effect like at an NBA game)

Lets briefly recap Week 7, (where I finally picked well (5-2). I mean I had to pick well once this year).  Seattle solidified their stranglehold on 1st place in the West Division with a hard fought win over Miami, while both New Jersey and Boston improved their record to 6-1 as they continue their dominance in the East.  Arizona, San Francisco, and Miami are all tied for 2nd in the West, with a record of 4-3. All teams in the East except Carolina are in playoff contention in the East, with only 1 match win separating 3rd from 5th place.  The results this week should clarify or confuse the division.

New Jersey Knockouts vs Boston Blitz

With firstp lace on the line in the East, except a very competitive match.  No GM Joel for NJ, and no GM Larry for Boston. The GM match-up of  Boris Gulko and Eugene Perelshteyn should be a dandy – as both are undefeated in USCL play this year. Boston seems a little stronger on the other boards and that should provide an edge. NJ has been impressive this season, so we will see if that difference matters. I think Eugene will hold Gulko to a draw and therefore the edge switches to Boston, and therefore Boston wins. 2.5-1.5.

Dallas Destiny vs Miami Sharks

Miami has a slight rating advantage, and because of  Dallas’s late substitution on board 4, Miami has the edge on most of the boards. For Dallas to be successful, they need IM John Bartholomew to hold at least a draw and perhaps have IM Daniel Ludwig exact some revenge from his previous loss to IM Bruci Lopez.  Despite the advantages for Miami, somehow I think Dallas and Miami battle to a tie, 2-2.

Chicago Blaze vs Arizona Scorpions

Go Scorpions! Arizona wins.
New York Knights vs Carolina Cobras

Rating advantage on 3 boards + Need to win to keep hold of 3rd place = Win for NY Knights, though it will be closer than people think,  NY 2.5-1.5

Philadelphia Inventors vs Baltimore Kingfishers

Philly better make their move soon if they are gonna make the playoffs, like my beloved Phillies. This match is a total toss-up. Philly seems a little stronger, though Baltimore is very close to making the playoffs if they can find a way to win. This should be an exciting match – I predict a draw, that way no one is happy.

San Francisco Mechanics vs Queens Pioneers

Queens needs this badly or their playoff hopes are over. San Francisco needs it as well to keep pace in the West. SF wins a close one, 2.5-1.5.

Tennessee Tempo vs Seattle Sluggers

It is so difficult to pick against Seattle when Nakamura is playing, no matter who the opponent. TN chose not to use either of their GM’s, its hard to pick anything but a Seattle win.  TN has to hope for production on boards 3 and 4, and a draw on boards 1 or 2. TN will put up a valiant effort, in the end, you cant get around the NAKA factor. Seattle wins 3-1.

Last Week 5-2!