The Sacred Heart University Chess team played in the 2026 U2000 Pan American Intercollegiate Chess Championship held in Chicago, January 2nd – 5th. Congratulations to the students representing the university at the #1 college tournament in North America for the sixth year in a row.
The field of 86 teams and 372 players was split into three Sections based on the average rating of the players. The Open Division had 32 teams with 140 players. The Under-2000 Division had 31 teams and 128 players. The Under-1400 Division had 23 teams and 104 players. SHU was ranked #18 in the U-2000 division with a team rating of 1674. The team finished with 2 wins, 3 losses, and 1 tie for a score of 2.5/6.0 finishing #23. See the round-by-round recap below.
Webster University, a perennial powerhouse, finished in 1st place in the Open section. The University of Texas at Dallas (D) finished in 1st place in the U-2000 section. University of the Pacific finished in 1st place in the U-1400 section.
Individual scores:
Board 1 – Senior National Master Mark DeDona (4.5)
Board 2 – Senior Mark Khalil (3.5)
Board 3 – Senior Aidan Shamas (3.0)
Board 4 – Sophomore Forde Todd (0.5)
Team match scores:
Round 1: 1.5 – 2.5 loss to The Ohio State University
Round 2: 1.5 – 2.5 loss to Northwestern University (B)
Round 3: 2.5 – 1.5 win over University of Pittsburgh
Round 4: 2.0 – 2.0 tie with University of Texas at Austin (D)
Round 5: 2.5 – 1.5 win over Howard University
Round 6: 1.5 – 2.5 loss to Johns Hopkins University
SHU is dedicated to the continued growth and success of our chess program and is actively looking for students who want to participate in the competitive arena of collegiate chess. To learn more about becoming part of our program, please email chess@sacredheart.edu or visit http://chess.sacredheart.edu
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