DAVID R. SANDS: Alexander Ivanov adds to his collection of Eastern Open chess titles

With his closest pursuers all winning, veteran Massachusetts GM Alexander Ivanov came through with a last-round win over D.C. master Srdjan Darmanovic to capture the 41st annual Eastern Open last month, a Washington year-end tradition held at the Doubletree Hotel in Bethesda.

Ivanov, the 1995 U.S. co-champ and a multiple winner of the Eastern over the years, finished undefeated at 6-1 in the Open section, a half-point clear of Maryland IM Tegshuren Enkhbat. Another half-point back at 5-2 were New Jersey IM Dean Ippolito and Virginia master Daniel Lowinger.

Virginia Class A player Victor Guzman scored one of the bigger upsets of the event, capturing the Under-2200 tournament over many more highly rated players at 5½-1½. Other section winners included: Under 1900 — Evan Maxwell Ling and Sherwin Rugless, 6-1; Under 1600 — Theodore Covey and Yasser Mahmoud, 5½-1½; and Under 1300 — the District’s Roy Russell III, with the weekend’s only perfect 7-0 score. Congratulations to all.

The 58-year-old Massachusetts grandmaster was the highest rated player in the 32-entry Open section, but he did not roll through the event unchallenged. Ivanov was held to a draw by both Enkhbat and Ippolito and found himself in a spirited fight with Lowinger in Round 3. This would be Lowinger’s only loss of the event.

Black doesn’t back down in this unusual French line, accepting the challenge to attack the wayward White king on 9. cxd4 Bb4+ 10. Kf2 g5! 11. fxg5 Ndxe5 12. Nxe5 Nxe5 13. Kg2. White’s position looks suspect, but he has real compensation. His pieces will develop quickly and it is actually Black’s king who has a harder time finding shelter.

The pins and counterpins mount up on 16. Bf4!? (giving up a pawn to get an unbalanced position; safer was 16. Bb2 Bd7 17. Qd2 h6 18. Rc1) Nxd4 17. Be3 e5 18. Bd3 Bg4 (Qe6 was worth a long look; e.g., 19. Bxd4 Qh3+ 20. Kf2 exd4 21. Re1+ Be6 22. Bb5+ Kf8, and both sides have weaknesses) 19. Bxd4 exd4 20. Re1+ Kf8 21. Rc1, and Ivanov’s more active rooks compensate for the sacrificed pawn.

Lowinger’s king walks a tightrope but never quite falls off after 22. Ne5!? (Rxe8+ Kxe8 23. Qe1+ Be6 24. Rc8+ Kd7 25. Rxh8 Bxh8 27. Bxh7 Qc5 looks only equal) Bh3+ 23. Kxh3 Rxe5 24. Qg4 Qe6 25. Rc8+ Ke7 26. Rc7+ Kd6, but Black makes his only serious miscalculation of the game on 29. Rxf7 Rc8?, when holding on to the h-pawn with 29…h5+ 30. Kh4 Rc8 31. Rxb7 Rc3 32. Bg6 a5 33. Ra7 d3 offered better survival chances.

After 30. Bxh7 Rc3 31. Rf3! Kc5 (Rxf3 32. Kxf3 Bg7 33. Kf4 Be5+ 34. Kg4 Bg7 35. h4, the White kingside pawns roll) 32. h4 Kb4 33. h5 Ka3 34. h6 Kxa2 35. Rxc3 dxc3 36. Bd3 Kxb3, Ivanov’s entire queenside has been obliterated, but his g-pawn can’t be stopped from queening. Black’s bishop tries to nurse his own pawn to the queening square, but the White queen invades decisively after 45. Qxb5 Kc2 46. Qa4+ Kc1 47. Qb3 and Black can’t advance; Lowinger resigned.

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The University of Maryland-Baltimore County once again qualified for the college chess Final Four with a third-place finish in the Pan-American Intercollegiate Championships held the last week of 2014 in Brownsville, Texas. The powerhouse all-GM Webster University team out of St. Louis (average rating 2734) predictably took first with a 5½-½ match score, with the University of Texas-Dallas and Texas Tech rounding out the list of finalists.

The American college chess scene has seen a vast jump in strength in recent years, with the 46 teams from 26 schools at the 2014 Pan-American including some 22 grandmasters and 15 IMs.

The four finalists for the President’s Cup will meet in early April at the New York City Athletic’s Club in Manhattan.

UMBC never faced the Webster A team’s Murderers’ Row in Brownsville, but did manage to inflict the only match loss of Webster’s still potent B team, which boasted an average rating of 2557. The Retrievers’ GM Akshayraj Kore picked up a critical point in the 2½-1½ victory, defeating Webster GM Manuel Leon Hoyos from the Black side of an English opening.

With 11. h4 Qb6 12. Kf1?! (0-0 looks more normal here, but Black can play for a quick draw with 12…Ne5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. Bxd5 cxd5 15. Nxd5 Qd6 16. Nc3 Bxg3 17. fxg3 Qxg3+ and a perpetual), Leon Hoyos bets on a quick kingside sortie, but it is Black who grabs the initiative after 12…N7f6 13. h5 Ng4! 14. d4 e5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. e3 exd4.

The Black pieces invade on 19. bxc3 Qb5+ 20. Kg1 Re2 21. a4 Qa6 22. Qf4 Rxf2, when 23. Rh4 is met by 23…Qe2! 24. Bh1 Nf6, retaining the edge. White tries 23. Bf1 Qa5 24. Ra3? (see diagram; this leads to a lost game, though the defense was already difficult) Qd5! 25. c4 Rxf3 (good enough, but even stronger was 25…Rxf1+! 26. Kxf1 Qxc4+ 27. Kg1 Re8, with the devilish threat of 28…Re1+!! 29. Nxe1 Bxd4+ 30. Kg2 Qe2+ 31. Kh3 Nf2+ 32. Kh2 [Kh4 Qh5 mate] Nh3+ 33. Ng2 Nxf4 and wins) 26. Rxf3 Qxd4+ 27. Kg2 Qb2+ 28. Qd2 (Kg1 Bd4+) Be4, and White will have to endure the paralyzing pin for another dozen moves as Black prepares his forces for the ending.

The exchange is finally cashed in on 39. g4 Kf6 40. Bd3 Bxf3+ 41. Kxf3 Bc3, and the win is a matter of technique despite the opposition colored bishops. The advanced Black f-pawn keeps the White king occupied, while Black’s a-pawn will eventually costs White his bishop. In the final position, the a-pawn is ready to advance and White resigned.

Ivanov-Lowinger, 41st Eastern Open, Bethesda, Md., December 2014

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. c3 c5 6. f4 Nc6 7. Ndf3 Qb6 8. g3 cxd4 9. cxd4 Bb4+ 10. Kf2 g5 11. fxg5 Ndxe5 12. Nxe5 Nxe5 13. Kg2 Nc6 14. Nf3 Bf8 15. b3 Bg7 16. Bf4 Nxd4 17. Be3 e5 18. Bd3 Bg4 19. Bxd4 exd4 20. Re1+ Kf8 21. Rc1 Re8 22. Ne5 Bh3+ 23. Kxh3 Rxe5 24. Qg4 Qe6 25. Rc8+ Ke7 26. Rc7+ Kd6 27. Rxe5 Qxg4+ 28. Kxg4 Bxe5 29. Rxf7 Rc8 30. Bxh7 Rc3 31. Rf3 Kc5 32. h4 Kb4 33. h5 Ka3 34. h6 Kxa2 35. Rxc3 dxc3 36. Bd3 Kxb3 37. g6 c2 38. Bxc2+ Kxc2 39. g7 d4 40. g8=Q d3 41. Qc4+ Bc3 42. Qa4+ Kc1 43. Qb3 Kd2 44. Kf3 b5 45. Qxb5 Kc2 46. Qa4+ Kc1 47. Qb3 Black resigns.

Leon Hoyos-Kore, Pan-American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championships, Brownsville, Texas, December 2014

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. cxd5 Nxd5 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 c6 6. d3 Bg7 7. Bd2 O-O 8. Qc1 Nd7 9. Nf3 Re8 10. Bh6 Bh8 11. h4 Qb6 12. Kf1 N7f6 13. h5 Ng4 14. d4 e5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. e3 exd4 17. exd4 Bf5 18. Qd2 Nxc3 19. bxc3 Qb5+ 20. Kg1 Re2 21. a4 Qa6 22. Qf4 Rxf2 23. Bf1 Qa5 24. Ra3 Qd5 25. c4 Rxf3 26. Rxf3 Qxd4+ 27. Kg2 Qb2+ 28. Qd2 Be4 29. Bf4 Qxd2+ 30. Bxd2 Rd8 31. Bg5 Rd1 32. Be2 Rxh1 33. Kxh1 Bd4 34. Kg2 Ne5 35. a5 a6 36. Bd8 f5 37. Bc7 Kf7 38. Bxe5 Bxe5 39. g4 Kf6 40. Bd3 Bxf3+ 41. Kxf3 Bc3 42. gxf5 gxf5 43. Ke3 Ke5 44. Be2 Bxa5 45. Bh5 Bb6+ 46. Kd3 f4 47. Bg4 Bc5 48. Bc8 f3 49. Bxb7 f2 50. Ke2 a5 51. Bxc6 Kd6 52. Ba4 Bd4 53. Bb5 Kc5 54. Kf1 Kb4 55. Ke2 Bc5 56. Kf1 a4 White resigns.

• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.