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Schools

UMBC Chess Ties For First in Major Tournament

The chess team finished tied for the top spot in the Pan-Am Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship in late December.

Could the Retrivers be crowned king?

The University of Maryland, Baltimore County's chess team took a step that way, tying for first in December's Pan-Am Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship—its tenth title there—which let it move on to the national "Final Four."

The Retrievers finished tied for first with University of Texas, Dallas plus Webster University and the University of Illinois in the tournament in Princeton, NJ.

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Up next is the 2013 President's Cup, considered the "Final Four" of collegiate chess, set for April 6 and 7 in Herndon, VA.

UMBC won five straight Pan-Am titles from 1998-2002 is considered one of the country's top collegiate chess programs. The school's last Pan-Am title came in 2009.

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"It was an exciting finish. This was the strongest Pan Am in the history of the event. Twenty-three grandmasters as well as five teams rated over 2500 competed,” said Alan Sherman, director of the UMBC chess program, in the press release.

For more information on the UMBC chess program, visit its website.

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