by John D. Rockefeller V & Chris Y. Kim

Welcome to the 2018-2019 qualifying season for the Maryland Sweet 16 2019 on 2019.03.02-03. Since 1995 this annual invitational tournament has featured 16 of the top K-12 Maryland players competing in a separate section of the UMBC Open at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. The MD-Sweet-16 tournament-announcement page contains all tournament details, including qualification rules & Varsity-Points scoring rules. The MD-Sweet-16 Champion will receive a MD-Sweet-16 UMBC Chess Scholarship, valued at $47,112. (There are 2 additional types of UMBC Chess Scholarships for which high-school seniors from any state are eligible.)

9 of the 9 scheduled MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers in this qualifying season have been completed. The Final Standings include the results of MD Chess Roland Park February II on 2019.02.23.

Click below for the current MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers, 2 Alternates, Backup Alternates, & Full Standings.

MD Chess schedules only 2 rounds of G/90 +30 games in the Varsity section at MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers (a.k.a. Local Scholastic Tournaments), to give elite scholastic players the opportunity to compete in games with the same time control used at the MD Sweet 16, the Denker Tournament of High-School Champions (for which the MD High-School Chess Champion will receive a MD Chess stipend of up to $750), the Barber Tournament of K-8 Champions (for which the MD Middle-School Chess Champion will receive a MD Chess stipend of up to $750), & the National Girls Tournament of Champions (for which the MD Girl Chess Champion will receive a MD Chess stipend of up to $750). MD Chess sets the Varsity floor at 1600 to keep the sections reasonably sized & competitive.

Ratings are from US Chess's March Supplement. (Players' published/official US Chess ratings in March will be used to determine the Final Standings, regardless of whether the MD Sweet 16 will be held in February or in March.)

Current 8 MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by US Chess Rating
(Primary path to qualification. Total # of Varsity Points is immaterial. The player's place would be retained, even if the player were to withdraw from the MD Sweet 16.)

Place Name US
Chess
ID #
US Chess Rating 2019.03 Total Varsity Points # of MS16Qs Varsity Points per MS16Q
1 Daniels, Jason 14107163 2187 33.0 1 33.000
2 Tahmassebi, Bijan 14989940 2107 26.5 1 26.500
3 Du, Jeffrey 14354251 2043 35.5 1 35.500
4 Malcolm, Douglas 14673296 2014 37.5 1 37.500
5 Jay, Neel 14803101 1972 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
6 Diep, Andrew 15127811 1964 223.5 9 24.833
7 Power, Sean Kee 15057148 1950 146.0 5 29.200
8 He, Ryan 14836300 1937 0.0 0 #DIV/0!

Current 8 MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by Varsity Points
(Secondary path to qualification. US Chess rating is immaterial. The player's place would be retained (*), even if the player were to qualify by rating [the primary path to qualification] and/or were to withdraw from the MD Sweet 16.)

Place Name US
Chess
ID #
US Chess Rating 2019.03 Total Varsity Points # of MS16Qs Varsity Points per MS16Q
1 Diep, Andrew * 15127811 1964 223.5 9 24.833
2 Joshi, Ariel 14997631 1686 218.5 9 24.278
3 Ballares, Ritz 16568828 1871 207.5 7 29.643
4 Holcomb, Emerson 15557394 1746 182.5 7 26.071
5 Tarantin, Joseph 14385432 1874 175.5 6 29.250
6 Mathura, Max 15313760 1834 165.0 6 27.500
7 Granruth, Anthony 15327252 1778 150.0 6 25.000
8 Power, Sean Kee * 15057148 1950 146.0 5 29.200

Additional Current MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by US Chess Rating (0-16 players)
(Players qualify either because 1+ of the Current 8 MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by US Chess Rating is also 1 of the Current 8 MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by Varsity Points and/or has withdrawn from the MD Sweet 16, or because 1+ of the Current 8 MD-Sweet-16 Qualifiers by Varsity Points has withdrawn from the MD Sweet 16.)

9 Ye, Chen-Chen 15129761 1927 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
10 Lolla, Satvik 14717778 1888 134.5 5 26.900

Current 2 MD-Sweet-16 Alternates by US Chess Rating
(The FINAL 2 MS16 Alternates are required to be in the Tournament Room at 9:30 AM on the Saturday of the MD Sweet 16, ready to replace any Qualifier who were either to withdraw at the last minute or not show up for Round 1. MD Chess will pay for the 2 MS16 Alternates' entrance fee to the UMBC Open, which runs concurrently with the MD Sweet 16. In case a Qualifier were to withdraw from a later round of the MS16, MD Chess prefers (but will not require) that the 2 MS16 Alternates compete in every round of the UMBC Open that overlaps with a round of the MS16.)

12 Ballares, Ritz 16568828 1871 207.5 7 29.643
13 Guo, Bradley 14921922 1841 0.0 0 #DIV/0!

Current MD-Sweet-16 Backup Alternates (in descending order of US Chess Rating)
(The FINAL MS16 Backup Alternates are not required to be on site at the MS16, as MD Chess will not pay for their entrance fee to the UMBC Open. MD Chess will contact a MS16 Backup Alternate shortly before the MS16 only if the Backup Alternate is needed to replace a withdrawn Alternate.)

14 Muhammad, Zahir 14653988 1838 28.0 1 28.000
15 Zhou, Kevin 13737126 1837 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
16 Mathura, Max 15313760 1834 165.0 6 27.500
17 Zheng, Carissa 15612136 1812 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
18 Cooke, Adam 14367881 1798 136.5 5 27.300
19 Granruth, Anthony 15327252 1778 150.0 6 25.000
20 Booth, Dylan 14931625 1759 133.5 5 26.700
21 Holcomb, Emerson 15557394 1746 182.5 7 26.071
22 Grigsby II, Sherlock 16110477 1740 37.5 1 37.500
23 Yuan, Andrew 15396035 1717 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
24 Rupeshkumar, Shiyam 14892045 1711 80.0 3 26.667
25 Joshi, Ariel 14997631 1686 218.5 9 24.278
26 Mariappan, Anish 15993356 1652 146.0 6 24.333
27 Roytenberg, Anthony 15080935 1624 53.5 2 26.750
28 Hsu, Skylar 14427353 1599 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
29 Zimmer, Kevin 14953206 1593 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
30 Cai, Joshua 14800363 1573 14.0 1 14.000
31 Owens, Ifasoke 14636278 1551 19.5 1 19.500
32 Dutton, Joshua 15592091 1551 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
33 Liu, Joshua 16222106 1539 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
34 Carlson, Richard 16398404 1527 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
35 Joshi, Gabriel 14997652 1509 20.0 1 20.000

Varsity Players Ineligible for the MD Sweet 16
(Non-Maryland residents who attend non-Maryland schools, former MD-Sweet-16 Champions, & disqualified players)

1 Jegan, Alan 16045042   26.0 1 26.000

All MD-Sweet-16-Eligible Varsity Players (in descending order of US Chess Rating)

Place Name US
Chess
ID #
US Chess Rating 2019.03 Total Varsity Points # of MS16Qs Varsity Points per MS16Q
1 Daniels, Jason 14107163 2187 33.0 1 33.000
2 Tahmassebi, Bijan 14989940 2107 26.5 1 26.500
3 Du, Jeffrey 14354251 2043 35.5 1 35.500
4 Malcolm, Douglas 14673296 2014 37.5 1 37.500
5 Jay, Neel 14803101 1972 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
6 Diep, Andrew 15127811 1964 223.5 9 24.833
7 Power, Sean Kee 15057148 1950 146.0 5 29.200
8 He, Ryan 14836300 1937 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
9 Ye, Chen-Chen 15129761 1927 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
10 Lolla, Satvik 14717778 1888 134.5 5 26.900
11 Tarantin, Joseph 14385432 1874 175.5 6 29.250
12 Ballares, Ritz 16568828 1871 207.5 7 29.643
13 Guo, Bradley 14921922 1841 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
14 Muhammad, Zahir 14653988 1838 28.0 1 28.000
15 Zhou, Kevin 13737126 1837 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
16 Mathura, Max 15313760 1834 165.0 6 27.500
17 Zheng, Carissa 15612136 1812 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
18 Cooke, Adam 14367881 1798 136.5 5 27.300
19 Granruth, Anthony 15327252 1778 150.0 6 25.000
20 Booth, Dylan 14931625 1759 133.5 5 26.700
21 Holcomb, Emerson 15557394 1746 182.5 7 26.071
22 Grigsby II, Sherlock 16110477 1740 37.5 1 37.500
23 Yuan, Andrew 15396035 1717 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
24 Rupeshkumar, Shiyam 14892045 1711 80.0 3 26.667
25 Joshi, Ariel 14997631 1686 218.5 9 24.278
26 Mariappan, Anish 15993356 1652 146.0 6 24.333
27 Roytenberg, Anthony 15080935 1624 53.5 2 26.750
28 Hsu, Skylar 14427353 1599 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
29 Zimmer, Kevin 14953206 1593 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
30 Cai, Joshua 14800363 1573 14.0 1 14.000
31 Owens, Ifasoke 14636278 1551 19.5 1 19.500
32 Dutton, Joshua 15592091 1551 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
33 Liu, Joshua 16222106 1539 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
34 Carlson, Richard 16398404 1527 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
35 Joshi, Gabriel 14997652 1509 20.0 1 20.000

All MD-Sweet-16-Eligible Varsity Players (in descending order of Varsity Points)

Place Name US
Chess
ID #
US Chess Rating 2019.03 Total Varsity Points # of MS16Qs Varsity Points per MS16Q
1 Diep, Andrew 15127811 1964 223.5 9 24.833
2 Joshi, Ariel 14997631 1686 218.5 9 24.278
3 Ballares, Ritz 16568828 1871 207.5 7 29.643
4 Holcomb, Emerson 15557394 1746 182.5 7 26.071
5 Tarantin, Joseph 14385432 1874 175.5 6 29.250
6 Mathura, Max 15313760 1834 165.0 6 27.500
7 Granruth, Anthony 15327252 1778 150.0 6 25.000
8 Power, Sean Kee 15057148 1950 146.0 5 29.200
9 Mariappan, Anish 15993356 1652 146.0 6 24.333
10 Cooke, Adam 14367881 1798 136.5 5 27.300
11 Lolla, Satvik 14717778 1888 134.5 5 26.900
12 Booth, Dylan 14931625 1759 133.5 5 26.700
13 Rupeshkumar, Shiyam 14892045 1711 80.0 3 26.667
14 Roytenberg, Anthony 15080935 1624 53.5 2 26.750
15 Malcolm, Douglas 14673296 2014 37.5 1 37.500
16 Grigsby II, Sherlock 16110477 1740 37.5 1 37.500
17 Du, Jeffrey 14354251 2043 35.5 1 35.500
18 Daniels, Jason 14107163 2187 33.0 1 33.000
19 Muhammad, Zahir 14653988 1838 28.0 1 28.000
20 Tahmassebi, Bijan 14989940 2107 26.5 1 26.500
21 Joshi, Gabriel 14997652 1509 20.0 1 20.000
22 Owens, Ifasoke 14636278 1551 19.5 1 19.500
23 Cai, Joshua 14800363 1573 14.0 1 14.000
24 Jay, Neel 14803101 1972 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
25 He, Ryan 14836300 1937 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
26 Ye, Chen-Chen 15129761 1927 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
27 Guo, Bradley 14921922 1841 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
28 Zhou, Kevin 13737126 1837 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
29 Zheng, Carissa 15612136 1812 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
30 Yuan, Andrew 15396035 1717 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
31 Hsu, Skylar 14427353 1599 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
32 Zimmer, Kevin 14953206 1593 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
33 Dutton, Joshua 15592091 1551 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
34 Liu, Joshua 16222106 1539 0.0 0 #DIV/0!
35 Carlson, Richard 16398404 1527 0.0 0 #DIV/0!