On November 24, senior James Liu and freshmen Jayak Patel and Matthew Caproni represented Morris Hills at the New Jersey K – 12 Grade School Chess Championships at Brookdale College. At the tournament, James Liu and Matthew Caproni won the 5th and 10th place individual prizes respectively while the trio won 2nd place as a team. This last victory contributed to Morris Hills fourth chess championship victory in two years. 

Leading up to the tournament, James, Matthew, and Jayak trained daily over two weeks by playing practice games, conducting chess opening analysis, solving puzzles, and generally bonding over their passion for chess. 

At the tournament,  the trio fought hard against high schoolers from all over the state. Before the fifth round, James Liu expressed his fatigue, saying that he “yearned for mental rejuvenation, along with a chicken sandwich.” Even though it was mathematically impossible to win the tournament at that point, James said that he still had a chance to do his best for Morris Hills, his USCF rating, and his family name.

James, Matthew, and Jayak all demonstrated their focus and perseverance as proud members of the Morris Hills Chess Team. They hope to continue their dedication to the game and compete in future tournaments.