Webster Wins Seventh National Chess Tournament

Coach Liem Le and the Chess Team members who competed at the President's Cup Collegiate Chess Tournament this weekend pose with the trophy after winning it for a seventh time, a new record in the world of college chess.

Webster University’s chess team won its seventh national championship during the annual President’s Cup Chess Tournament, held at the University of Texas at Dallas this weekend. This win earns Webster's program the distinction of having more President's Cup championships than any other collegiate team in the country.  

Webster competed against Saint Louis University, University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley and UT Dallas to earn the top spot. This was the 13th consecutive time that Webster qualified to compete for the national title. Webster previously won the President’s Cup in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2023, with the 2023 tournament being held on Webster’s main campus in St. Louis.  

“Our team has once again shown that no matter the challenge or the caliber of our opponents, we have the ability to rise to the occasion and bring the championship back to Webster University,” said Webster Chess Coach Liem Le. “Consistency, discipline, and heart - that's our secret to victory." 

At the President’s Cup, the teams have four active players and up to two alternative players each. During each of the three rounds, four players from one team face off against four players from another team, each on an individual board. All four schools eventually play against each other. For each win, a player earns one point, while both players receive one-half point for each draw. No points are awarded for a loss.  

This year Webster students Lazaro Bruzon Batista, Yasser Quesada Perez, Harsha Bharathakoti, and Emilio Cordova Daza were the primary chess players. All four are ranked as grandmasters by FIDE, the international chess federation. Backing them up as alternatives were Webster students Anna Sargsyan and Annamaria Marjanovic. Sargsyan is ranked as an international master and a woman grandmaster, and Marjanovic is a woman grandmaster.  

In the first round, played Saturday morning, Webster faced off against Rio Grande Valley and the teams tied with two points each. SLU played against Dallas and took the lead with 2.5 points to Dallas’ 1.5 points. In the second round, Webster played against Dallas, earning 2.5 points, while SLU played against Rio Grande Valley, earning 2 points. This tied Webster and SLU with 4.5 points each.  

On Sunday, the two leaders faced off against each other. Webster moved ahead of SLU in round three by winning two games and drawing one, but tension rose in the room as Rio Grande Valley quickly caught up to Webster’s total points while playing against Dallas. The tournament ended Sunday afternoon with a nail-biting finish as Rio Grande Valley and Webster were declared co-champions. However, Webster finished first place on tiebreaks with the slimmest margin possible. Therefore, Webster was awarded the official President's Cup.   
This is the second time Webster's team has won under Coach Le’s leadership. Le, a Webster alumnus, also played in the President’s Cup on Webster team from 2014 through 2017, contributing to the University’s tournament wins in all four years.  

Since its founding in 2012, Webster’s chess team has been the highest-ranked team in the United States. With this win, it surpassed the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) for having the most national championships. Only two other institutions have had more consecutive appearances at the President’s Cup than Webster. UMBC qualified for the tournament 15 times in a row, and UTD qualified 13 times in a row. UTD currently holds the record for having the most appearances at the President’s Cup with 20.