April 22, 2024
By JAMES EVANS
Rutherford County Schools
Ethan Harrelson of Riverdale won all five games and the overall championship in Saturday's inaugural Contest of High School Chess Champions.
Xavier Sztapka (Rutherford County Virtual School) and Ben Chen (Central Magnet School) finished second and third place, respectively.
Other competitors included Aiden Mauldin (Stewarts Creek), Darren Keoni (LaVergne), Atticus Hiott (Smyrna), Youssef Mekhail (Blackman), and Kenneth Lugo (Oakland).
The event was held Saturday, April 20, at Patterson Park Community Center in Murfreesboro.
The event was spearheaded by Rutherford County property assessor Rob Mitchell, who formed a partnership with Rutherford County Schools to provide chess materials to each high school in preparation for the championship.
You can read more about Mitchell and his chess initiative here: https://www.rcschools.net/apps/news/article/1896371.
Congratulations to all the participants.
PHOTOS
Students from eight Rutherford high schools competed in the inaugural Contest of High School Chess Champions, which was held at Patterson Park Community Center on Saturday, April 20, 2024.
Director of Schools Dr. Jimmy Sullivan plays Oakland teacher and chess club coach James Haynes from Oakland while Rutherford County Property Assessor Rob Mitchell watches.