Sixty-one chess players visited the Sacred Heart University (SHU) campus on Saturday, November 1st, for the 5th Annual Pioneer Open Chess Tournament! In the U1800 section, SHU senior Mark Khalil finished in 1st place with a perfect 4.0/4.0 score. In the Under 1400 section, SHU students, sophomore Evan Gioia and freshman Sam Deeney faced off in the final round with perfect 3.0 scores. The game ended in a draw with the two players tying for 2nd place in the section.

For the first time in event history, we welcomed four high school student players from Notre Dame Prep (NDP) of Sacred Heart University. NDP recently formed a chess club and chess interest is high at this fine college preparatory institution!

The Sacred Heart Chess Club participants and scores were:

Open Section:

· Mark DeDona – 2.0

· SHU alum Brent McCreesh – 1.5

Under 1800 Section:

· Mark Khalil – 4.0, 1st place

· SHU alum Ryan Richter – 3.0, 2nd place tie

· Aidan Shamas – 2.0

Under 1400 Section:

· Sam Deeney – 3.5, 2nd place tie

· Evan Gioia – 3.5, 2nd place tie

· SHU alum Declan Coleman – 3.0

· Michael Baker – 3.0

· Ben Mandler – 3.0

· Forde Todd – 2.0

· Rob Capodicasa – 2.0

· SHU alum Ryan Lopes – 2.0 Full tournament results: https://ratings.uschess.org/event/202511010233 Summary and photos: https://www.redbanditchess.com/pioneeropen2025 To learn more about Chess at SHU, please email chess@sacredheart.edu.