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By Matt Barrett
In undoubtedly the most entertaining match the Arch Bishops have played this season, Arizona and Saint Louis came down to the wire. The match began at 8 p.m. Central and ended just after midnight with Arizona winning the game on board four and draws on the other three boards.
In the opening stages, many of the boards had similar pawn structures, and there was not much flair in any of the positions. But with Arizona needing a good result to improve their playoff outlook, things would get more dynamic as there was a lot of chess left to be played.
Things started well for the Arch Bishops on board one. GM Andre Diamant was making his USCL debut for Saint Louis and established an early edge with white against IM Mackenzie Molner. With a dangling c-pawn reminiscent of something from a Gruenfeld, Diamant tried to activate quickly and apply pressure down the h1-a8 diagonal. Molner was able to improve his position after ganging up on the c-file and forcing a couple of trades to enter an endgame with chances for both sides. Diamant ended up on the defensive side of a rook-and-pawn ending and easily held the draw.
On board two, IM Priyadharshan Kannappan looked to be in serious trouble after he lost control of the center and had to give up a knight for three pawns. Things only got worse when he allowed a passed pawn to advance like a spike to d6. The awkwardness of the position was compounded by the fact that black's king was severely exposed. IM Levon Altounian missed the natural follow-up 33.Rc7, which would have been a nail in the coffin for Kannappan's king. Instead, he played 33.Qxd3 and later opted to force a queen trade, entering an endgame that while technically winning, would require some caution to execute accurately. The other members of the team already know that Kannappan has a strong will to play out even the most challenging positions. GM Ben Finegold was in the audience and confidently pronounced: "He's down a piece and he's obviously losing, but he'll draw." No one disagreed. Still, more-so in this game than in any of his previous ones, perhaps because of how rarely he has been in a losing position this season, Kannappan proved resourceful and demonstrated resilience in the face of repeatedly sloppy play by Altounian. Down a full knight in the endgame, Kannappan just calmly maneuvered rook and king to keep the white king at a distance from defense of its weak a pawn, allowing the black h pawn to gradually make its way up the board. Despite being obviously losing for black in many variations, this game proved the importance of continuing to fight for chances, playing a position out to the end, and keeping pressure on the opponent.
Of all the games in this match, the one where the Arch Bishops appeared to have the best shot at a victory was on board three, where IM Levan Bregadze gained two pawns in the opening and held a strong central pawn majority. After 20.Qc4, white was in the driver's seat. Clearly, he would have to give a pawn back because of the awkward position of his king and his lack of development. 24.d4 ensured a pair of passed pawns for white. As things continued, black established a nice blockade on d5 and Bregadze's passed pawns couldn't make any headway. They settled for a repetition and it was clear that the Arch Bishops would not be able to win the match, and that a tie was unlikely considering Kannappan and Nolan Hendrickson's games.
At board four, Hendrickson did a fine job out of the opening with the black pieces and held a seemingly equal position against FM Dipro Chakraborty. It wasn't until 30.Qc8+ and 32.Qb8 that Hendrickson's king looked challenged and his queenside pawns began to appear too weak to defend. Interestingly, with the white queen a bit out of play at a7, Nolan got some counterplay and managed to open up white's kingside. Up a pawn, though, white had only to force a queen trade to consolidate a winning advantage on the queenside. Hendrickson had to give up a knight to avoid the first such trade and ultimately resigned on 63.Qe3+ where the loss was unavoidable.
Tonight the Arch Bishops meet the division-leading Dallas Destiny, which has already clinched the top seed in the playoffs.
