The Oregon High School Chess Team Association (OHSCTA) has been running Oregon’s state High School Team Chess Championship for over 40 years.  This year’s event will be held on March 8th & 9th at LaSalle College Prep High School located at 11999 SE Fuller Road in Milwaukie, Oregon.  Five rounds of play will determine the Oregon State Champion Team.

This year, the OHSCTA has added a new section to this annual tournament that is just for Oregon Middle School Chess Teams (Grades 6 to 8).  More about the event after the break…

Unlike an Individual/Team event where you play as an individual and then the top scores for your school are added together to determine how your team placed, this section is a true team event in which your team, composed of five players assigned by rating to specific boards, plays against other teams of five whose players are similarly ranked.  Based on the results of the five individual games, your entire team wins, loses, or draws.

Note that individual middle school players in a school that feeds to a high school with a team may be able to play on the JV High School team for that school.  Also, there are options for those players whose school doesn’t have enough individuals for a team, or who would prefer to play individually (or are from Washington State): The tournament also has an Open Team Section (made up of teams of any group of five players) and an Individual Open section.

If you’re interested in coming, but don’t live in the Portland Area, host LaSalle High School has arranged discounts a few nearby hotels.  For more information about this tournament visit the OHSCTA or the NW Scholastic Calendar web sites.