ETHS chess: Kits tie for first at Highland Park Tournament

The Evanston Township High School varsity chess team starts its last-round match against Glenbrook South. From left front to back: Max Tornheim, Shane Asbra, Felix de Warren, Nimish Vats, Yusuf Bilgic, Josh Beatty, Derek Wang and Ziad AbuZayyad. Credit: Suzanne Sheridan After trading wins in October at their respective home tournaments, Evanston Township High School and Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois, both played at the Nov. 7 Highland Park chess tournament but did not face one another. Instead, each team won all four of its matches against other teams to finish ahead of the other 22 teams. Stevenson took first place on tiebreaks because of its larger winning margins, and ETHS was awarded the team plaque for second place. Evanston’s performance was nonetheless impressive, given the strength of the tournament field, which included five of the top six finishers at February’s Illinois High School Association state finals. After an opening win over Highland