Chess Team Wins Second State Championship
The SHS chess team won the Illinois High School Association state championship on Saturday, the second state title in program history. Stevenson won all seven rounds in the two-day tournament to capture the crown, joining the 2008 squad as the best in Illinois.
The top-seeded Patriots defeated Wheaton North, Prospect, Barrington, Evanston, Naperville Central and second-place New Trier before dispatching Hinsdale Central at the Peoria Civic Center. In 56 games, Stevenson won 40, had 13 draws, and lost only three. Click here for official results.
Junior David Wallach and sophomore Ashley Yan each won six games. David went 6-0 while Ashley was 6-0-1, with her draw securing the win against New Trier. They were part of a 21-1-4 effort on Boards 4-7. David’s older brother, senior Adam Wallach, had four wins and two draws, while freshman Srihas Rao was 5-1-1.
Sophomore Fred Yuan played all seven rounds and didn’t lose a game on Board 3, finishing 5-0-2. He won three games on Saturday, and his victory in the Hinsdale Central match clinched the state championship. Freshman Rohit Guha had three wins and three draws on Board 2, while junior Ryan Yao went 4-0. Freshman Jack Chen had three wins and a draw in four games. Stevenson also received a win and three draws from junior Ricky Wang on Board 1, while senior Gil Banuelos, junior Vishnu Sadhu and freshman Stella Pashyan all won their only games.
Head coach Vincent Springer celebrated his first state title as head coach. He was an assistant on the 2008 title-winning team, which was led by Scott Oliver – who is an assistant with the current squad. Ken Wallach, father of Adam and David, also served as assistant.
Science Olympiad Team Captures Loyola Invite Title
Stevenson won the Loyola Academy Science Olympiad Invitational on Saturday in Wilmette. SHS Green won nine of 23 events and finished with the lowest score, 71 points, followed by New Trier (97) and West High School from Madison, Wis. (146). Overall, Stevenson’s two teams earned first place in 14 events.
Senior Josh Tsai was involved in four winning events, and six students were part of three: senior Andrew Lee, juniors Krishna Patel, Sneha Mohan, Emily Liu and Phyllis Wang, and freshman Kevin Qian. Two-time winners included seniors Anna Wang and Erin Yuan, junior Richard Bi and sophomore Jonny Abraham. Also part of winning event teams were seniors Eric Gan and Roy Zhou, junior Hannah Liu, sophomores Kelly Mao, Ben Mun and Greycen Ren, and freshman Anthony Kholoshenko.
The Patriots will compete at the University of Pennsylvania invitational on Saturday, then will begin defense of their state championship on March 7 at the College of Lake County regional tournament.
Scholastic Bowl Claims Sectional
The Scholastic Bowl team hosted and won the Class 3A Masonic Academic Bowl sectional tournament on Saturday, qualifying for the state championship meet in Bloomington on March 7. The sectional championship roster included juniors Arjun Nageswaran, Daniel Ding and Billy Bratton, and seniors David Holmquist, Akash Kumar and Healey Kogan.
Choral Guild Fundraiser Today
The Choral Guild is holding fundraisers at three Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria locations today: Buffalo Grove (11 a.m. to 11 p.m.), Libertyville (4-10 p.m.) and Lake Zurich (4-10 p.m.). Show this flyer or mention “Stevenson choir” when ordering.
Archer Sets Personal Record
Junior Malachi Park took fourth place overall among all male archers with a personal-best score of 289 at last weekend’s Cupid Classic in Armstrong, Ill. He recorded 19 bullseyes during his record round.
Eight Earn Honors at Model UN Event in D.C.
Eight SHS students won awards at the 57th annual North American Invitational Model United Nations conference in Washington, D.C. last week. Senior Matthew Li earned an Outstanding Delegate award. Senior Elizabeth Mattes and junior Ishaan Khullar each received a Book Award. Five students were selected for Verbal Awards: senior Govind Prabhakar, juniors Azima Aidarov and Clare Hu, and sophomores Deepa Pulugurtha and Sia Shetkar. More than 3,200 students participated in the four-day event, which is considered one of the most intensive Model UN conferences in the United States. Students spent almost 20 hours in committee debating the most prevalent issues facing the world today.
Around 100 Educators Visiting SHS Today
Nearly 100 people from 15 educational institutions around the country have come to Stevenson today for the monthly Site Visit for Educators program. They are representing the following schools and districts:
- Alamo Heights Independent School District, San Antonio, Texas
- Allen High School, Allen, Texas
- Case High School, Racine, Wis.
- Cleveland Public Schools, Cleveland, Ohio
- Discovery Canyon High School, Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Dixie Heights High School, Edgewood, Ky.
- Elkhorn High School, Omaha, Neb.
- Hazelwood West High School, Hazelwood, Mo.
- Keystone Central School District, Mill Hall, Pa.
- Morton High School, Cicero, Ill.
- Northeast Community School District, Goose Lake, Iowa
- Plainfield East High School, Plainfield, Ill.
- Rockdale County Public Schools, Conyers, Ga.
- Sycamore Middle School, Sycamore, Ill.
Four Wrestlers Qualify for State Finals
Four Patriot wrestlers finished in the top four at the Illinois High School Association Class 3A individual sectional tournament at Barrington High School on Saturday, qualifying for this weekend’s state meet at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Leading the way was sophomore Cole Rhemrev, who won the 120-pound championship to earn his second straight trip downstate. Cole improved to 36-5 on the season with a 10-2 major decision over Belvidere senior Presley Beasley for the sectional title. Cole, who also won the regional championship on Feb. 8, qualified at 106 pounds last season. Freshman Lorenzo Frezza placed third at 113, becoming only the second SHS ninth-grader to make the state tournament (Cole was the first). Lorenzo, whose older brother Tommy was a three-time state qualifier, recorded a technical fall over Rockford East senior Eh Ta Sor for third place. Also making their first state appearances will be senior Matt Millman (12-5) and junior Keegan Houlihan (30-9), who placed fourth at 195 and 285, respectively. Matt pinned Grant’s sixth-ranked wrestler to guarantee his trip to UI.
Pep Bus for Students: The Athletics Division is sponsoring a pep bus for students to attend Saturday’s wrestling finals. The bus will leave parking lot E at 5 a.m. Saturday and return around 11:30 p.m. that night. Students must sign up by 3:30 p.m. Friday. The cost is $25, which includes transportation and admission, but not food. Students must ride the bus to and from the event. Use this link to sign up and complete the required parent permission form.
Boys Swimmers Win Sixth Straight NSC Title
The varsity Patriot boys swimming and diving team won its sixth consecutive North Suburban Conference championship Saturday by winning the league meet at Lake Forest. SHS, which also went 6-0 in NSC dual meets, cruised past Mundelein, 337-231, and five other schools. (The junior varsity also won the conference championship; results will be posted in Wednesday’s Digest.)
Stevenson won eight of 12 events, with sophomore Josh Song having a hand in four of them. He won the 200-yard individual medley (1:58.56) and the 100-yard butterfly (51.35), both state-cut times. Josh also swam legs in two winning relays. He led off the 200 free relay (1:28.32) that included junior Dima Kobets, sophomore Brandon Xiong, and senior Jake Kim. Josh also was part of the 200 medley relay (1:37.27) with Jake, senior Jack Zhang and freshman Michael Wywrocki. Jack won the 100 backstroke (53.21) and also had the anchor leg in the 400 free relay (3:16.37) with Dima, junior Foster Swanson and freshman Jonny Farber. Jack also was named the school’s recipient of the NSC Sportsmanship Award. Stevenson’s other conference champions included senior Ari Zaritsky in the 100 breaststroke (1:01.48), and sophomore Jack White in 1-meter diving (455.10). Stevenson plays host to an Illinois High School Association sectional meet on Saturday in the Patriot Aquatic Center. – Daily Herald
Saturday’s Other Varsity Results
Boys Basketball
Stevenson 60, Prospect 40: The Patriots had no letdown after their big win Friday night at Mundelein, easily dispatching the Knights at the Camp Horseshoe Shootout at Lake Park High School in Roselle. Senior John Ittounas scored 10 of his team-high 14 points in the first quarter as SHS (21-4) built a 19-9 lead. He also had five rebounds and two assists in the game. After Prospect (12-14) pulled within eight points at 37-29, a dunk by senior RJ Holmes (11 points) and layup by John sparked a 13-2 run that sealed the victory. Fellow senior Matthew Ambrose had 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, and classmate Matt Kaznikov added nine. Stevenson returns to action tonight against Waukegan; tip-off is at 7 p.m. in the Sports Center. – Daily Herald
Boys Ice Hockey
St. Viator 5, Stevenson 1: The Lions captured the opening game in the best-of-three Scholastic Hockey League semifinal playoff series at Mount Prospect Ice Arena. Junior Liam Jones scored the lone Patriot goal, assisted by junior Andrew Chambers and freshman Davis Jegers. Stevenson will seek to stave off elimination when it plays host to Game 2 at 7 p.m. Wednesday. However, the game will not be played at Twin Rinks Ice Pavilion. Instead, the contest will be played at Mount Prospect Ice Arena. All Stevenson fans in attendance are encouraged to wear black.
Friday’s Varsity Results
Boys Basketball
Stevenson 50, Mundelein 49: Junior Evan Ambrose sank two free throws with 1.7 seconds to lift the visiting Patriots (20-4, 10-1) past the Mustangs (22-4, 9-2) in the showdown for first place in the North Suburban Conference. The win was Stevenson’s fourth straight and ninth in 10 games. Evan’s older brother, senior Matthew Ambrose, scored a team-high 19 points for SHS, which defeated MHS at home, 67-64, on Jan. 10. Matthew nailed four of his five 3-point attempts. The Patriots were in control for most of the game, building a 15-point lead early in the fourth quarter before a furious Mustang rally. Senior RJ Holmes scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds, while classmate John Ittounas also had eight points. Senior Matt Kaznikov contributed seven points and Evan had six. – Daily Herald, Pioneer Press
Quick Hits
Tonight’s varsity and sophomore boys basketball games against Waukegan will be streamed live from the Sports Center onto Stevenson’s NFHS Network page. The sophomore game starts at 5:30, followed by the varsity at 7 o’clock.
Stevenson Daily Digest 