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NASC 2015 Commentary: Round 8

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Go to: Before the Tournament, Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7, Round 8, Round 9, Round 10, Round 11, Round 12, Round 13, Round 14, Round 15, Round 16, Round 17, Round 18, Round 19, Round 20, Round 21, Round 22, Round 23, Round 24, Round 25, Round 26, Round 27, Round 28, Round 29, Round 30, Round 31.

Round 8

Happy day 2 of the NASC!

A terrific Huffington Post interview with Conrad Bassett-Bouchard (Piedmont, CA) at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/scrabble-tricks-tips-champion-conrad-bassett-bouchard_55bb861ae4b0b23e3ce25a00

And great news. Jesse Matthews is here! He flew in from Kelowna, BC, today and he’ll be doing media work, including, I hope, working with me. Here’s to more and better coverage! But honestly, I think, most of his efforts will be on I’ve broadcast commentating on the playoff games. Look for him. I will attach his stuff beneath mine each round. We may mention some of the same games!

Starting off the day in high style, Conrad Bassett-Bouchard (Piedmont, CA) is playing Joey Krafchick (Richardson, TX) at the annotated board 1 in black and red sunglasses. As I walk up they tromp off to the challenge machine, Conrad climbing over the red roping to reach the laptop. FRIABLY* comes off the board and Joey gets to go back and think over that rack for his next turn.

A longtime School SCRABBLE mover and shaker, Ben Greenwood (Florence, MA) is playing one of the program’s prodigies at table 1 in division 3, Zachary Ansell (Los Angeles, CA). Ben was the referee at board 1 for the NASCC (North American School SCRABBLE Championship) where Zach and his teammate Noah Kalus (New Paltz, NY) won the title. Zach started today undefeated and in first place in division 3. Ben and Zach’s game was still in progress, but I saw two bingos for Ben: INDORSED and gLINTED. Zach appears to have tried AMELASE* (I saw it on the challenge slip) and Ben called it off. I find out later that it was Zach’s first loss of this NASC, 245-507.

Chris Williams (Vancouver BC) and Howard Pistol (Oakland Park, FL) are at table 1 in division 2. I note Howard’s SPANNeR and Chris’ BOULLION* and JETtONS.

Dan Stock, division 2 leader, is at a Elizabeth Ralston (Los Angeles, CA) vs. John Karris (San Jose, CA) board. A tile has been discovered on her side of the table, I think, either on the floor or on the table itself. Dan rules that he sees no malfeasance but to make sure all is fair, he shows the tile to both players and drops it back into the bag. The players seem okay with this and turn their attention back to the game. I see MENACERS, RALLIeS, and AeRADIOS on the board. However, my favorite play is Elizabeth’s opening YOUSE!

Kevin Bowerman (Chapel Hill, NC) vs. Tod Taylor (Seattle, WA). Down to very few tiles. I see CURTAINS, MOUsING, and FELLeRS on the board. Kevin is in a T-shirt, but is a wee bit cold, too, as is evidenced by his green knit winter hat with an enormous yellow pom-pom on the top!

James Porter (Cleveland Heights, OH) vs. Alan Stern (Shadow Hills, CA). I can pick out Alan’s VaRIANT for 84 and Jim’s LICENsE for 85. A fun nonbingo VAMPIER is on the board.

Charles Reinke (Middleton, WI) and Jeremy Hall (New York, NY) are pushing back from the table, about to take a field trip to the Zyzzyva machine to adjudicate an outingo: Charles’ SEALERS. Jeremy had to challenge it as it gave Charles the win. They were down to 5 and 19 seconds on their clocks, so this was a steamy, down to the last second affair! The oubingo ruled acceptable, they commenced a recount that ended up giving Jeremy one more point, but Charles won, 416-408. Words on their board: pIRANHA, UNSETTLE, NECTARY, VOMITO, BANDIED, VEGETE, and JUCO.

Matthew Tunnicliffe (Ottawa ON) vs. Nick Meyer (Berkeley, CA). They have just wrapped up and Matthew is running the slip in. The room is a bit overly air-conditioned (to make up for the fact that the room will warm up over the course of the day) and so as I settled into Matthew’s chair to look at the board, I enjoyed the leftover warmth! I see Matthew’s COSTIVE and Nick’s LANCERS. Also, the fun nonbingo by Matt: THENAGE (makes me think of Michael Thelan).

Jesse Matthews writes:

As I walk by Panupol Sujjayakorn (Thailand) and Joe Edley (Port Jefferson, NY) early in their matchup, I see the nice play of HAUTBOIS on their board.

Div 1 has no shortage of challenges this round. Tasha Asberry (Cordova, TN) has put Leesa Berahovich (Berkeley, CA) on hold after Leesa’s play of EMERITI. After a pause she challenges, and the play is ruled acceptable. Leesa has a clumsy post-bingo draw, but it looks like she’s jumped to a commanding lead about midway through their game.

Meanwhile, Ross Brown (Ottawa ON) has challenged off EXORTING* by Steve Bush (Richmond, KY). For the CSW players out there, there is a valid anagram for EGINORTX in Collins. Do you know it?

In Div 2 I see BOULLION* on the board between Chris Williams (Vancouver BC) and Howard Pistol (Oakland Park, FL). Close but no BOUILLON, err, cigar. Nearby I see UNSHARING has been played through SH as a 9 in Gwen Stewart and Paul Mishkin’s matchup. Beautiful!

Harriette Lakernick (Chicago, IL) and Brian Nelson (Los Angeles, CA) have BIOTOXINS on their board about halfway through their matchup.

Sandra Finley (Blue Diamond, NV) played Rachel Gillette (Lafayette, CO) in Division 4 this round. Sandra happily tells me that this is her first Nationals and she is loving the experience. That said, she tells me that she drew a rack of all vowels at one point, exchanged, and then two turns later had all consonants! Meanwhile, Rachel scored well with TEAWAREs and DENOTES as bingo plays. Rachel took this matchup, 477-270. Welcome Sandra, and all the best in the rest of your games!

Jerry Lerman (Foster City, CA) and Manop Phiphatboonserm (Thailand) had a close game this round. Manop jumped ahead early with plays like ZANDERS and HOUSINGS, but Jerry pulled back within 30 after scoring high with PYRIDiNe and MITERED. In a key play at the end of the game, Manop saw that Jerry had great letters so he blocked an open N and left the other clunkier letters open. It turned out to be a good decision, because Jerry would have had ACROLEIN to that N! Manop won this game 398-365.

Kate Fukawa-Connelly (Lawrenceville, NJ) tells me that both she and Cesar Del Solar (Albany, CA) wore their reception lanyards by mistake to the games today. Hopefully there are no name tag vigilantes in the room today! She then says that in her game with Cesar she had AEIIIRS. There were two 3x3 lanes open, so she traded two Is. She drew CU, and ended up triple-tripling with AURICLES next turn!

Division 1 Round 8 Auto-Commentary

Darrell Day (Richardson, TX) takes the lead, 7-1 +542, on a 4-game winning streak. Conrad Bassett-Bouchard (Piedmont, CA) is +389, #2 rising from #4. Orry Swift (Houston, TX) is +327, #3 rising from #5. Joey Krafchick (Richardson, TX) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +681, #4 down from #1. Joe Edley (Port Jefferson, NY) is +428, on a 6-game winning streak, #5 climbing from #9. Ian Weinstein (Coral Springs, FL) is +410, #6 rising from #8. Patricia Barrett (Houston, TX) is +372, on a 5-game winning streak, #7 up from #10. Leesa Berahovich (Berkeley, CA) is +322, on a 4-game winning streak, #8 climbing from #14. Trey Wright (Sierra Madre, CA) is +288, #9 jumping down from #2. Jason Li (Dollard-Des-Ormeaux QC) is +258, #10 dropping from #6.

In Class B: Darrell Day (Richardson, TX) is the lead, 7-1 +542, on a 4-game winning streak. Patricia Barrett (Houston, TX) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +372, on a 5-game winning streak, #7 climbing from #10. Leesa Berahovich (Berkeley, CA) is +322, on a 4-game winning streak, #8 rising from #14. Nigel Peltier (Portland, OR) is +77, on a 5-game winning streak, #11 jumping up from #17. Norases Vesdapunt (Stanford, CA) is +30, #12 jumping up from #19. Charles Reinke (Middleton, WI) is 2 games behind the leader at 5-3 +431, #15 up from #21. Avery Mojica (Overland Park, KS) is +422, #16 tumbling from #7. Chris Cree (Dallas, TX) is +335, #17 down from #11. Thomas Reinke (Middleton, WI) is +297, #18 down from #13. Sal Piro (New York, NY) is +107, #23 down from #15.

In Class C: Tasha Asberry (Cordova, TN) is the lead, 5-3 -121. Jeff Fiszbein (South Lyon, MI) is 1 game behind at 4-4 +111, #33 rising from #41. Reid Hattaway (Moscow, ID) is +78, #34 climbing from #43. Greg Heidler (Waialua, HI) is +41, #37 up from #40. Marlene Milkent (Hattiesburg, MS) is +13, #38 leaping up from #47. Amnuay Ploysangngam (Thailand) is -298, #44 leapfrogging up from #55. Paul Erland (Pegram, TN) is 1.5 games behind the leader at 3.5-4.5 -79, #45 whizzing up from #56.

High Win: Kate Fukawa-Connelly (Lawrenceville, NJ) 535-435 vs. Cesar Del Solar (Albany, CA). Low Win: Paul Erland (Pegram, TN) 327-319 vs. David Pearl (Long Beach, CA). High Loss: Doug Brockmeier (San Francisco, CA) 457-479 vs. Amnuay Ploysangngam (Thailand). Low Loss: Siri Tillekeratne (Calgary AB) 258-350 vs. Mark Miller (Radnor, PA).

Division 2 Round 8 Auto-Commentary

Chris Williams (Vancouver BC) stays in the lead, 7-1 +783, on a 5-game winning streak. Dave Leifer (Alpharetta, GA) is +450, on a 3-game winning streak, #2 climbing from #5. Elizabeth Ralston (Los Angeles, CA) is +440, #3 improving from #4. Matthew Ridout (Lexington, KY) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +435, #4 up from #8. Jeff Martin (Albuquerque, NM) is +424, on a 3-game winning streak, #5 climbing from #7. Howard Pistol (Oakland Park, FL) is +400, #6 slipping from #2. John Karris (San Jose, CA) is +390, #7 falling from #3. Martin Weisskopf (Huntsville, AL) is +354, #8 leaping up from #13. Carlene Wallis (Sparks, NV) is +289, #9 rising from #10. Paul Avrin (New York, NY) is +192, on a 4-game winning streak, #10 up from #15.

In Class : In Class B: Jeff Martin (Albuquerque, NM) is the lead, 6-2 +424, on a 3-game winning streak. Martin Weisskopf (Huntsville, AL) is +354, #8 leaping up from #13. Mark Peltier (Seattle, WA) is +39, #11 dropping from #6. Guy Ingram (Ellenwood, GA) is +38, on a 5-game winning streak, #12 climbing from #17. James Porter (Cleveland Heights, OH) is 1 game behind at 5-3 +250, on a 3-game winning streak, #17 rising from #23. Kit Morehead (Berkley, MI) is +149, #20 whizzing up from #39. Paul Mishkin (San Francisco, CA) is +114, #23 up from #30. Sam Masling (Washington, DC) is -2, #28 whizzing up from #42. Connie Creed (Philadelphia, PA) is -11, on a 3-game winning streak, #29 whizzing up from #45. Ken Smith (Pukalani, HI) is -163, #31 whizzing up from #46.

In Class C: Elizabeth Ralston (Los Angeles, CA) is the lead, 7-1 +440. Edward Gowash (Fort Worth, TX) is 2 games behind at 5-3 +189, #19 down from #12. Cynthia Pughsley (Oakland, CA) is +81, #24 climbing from #32. Carol McDonald (Northboro, MA) is +44, on a 4-game winning streak, #27 up from #36. Diana Grosman (Reisterstown, MD) is -143, #30 collapsing from #16. Bruce Shuman (Wilmington, NC) is -252, #32 collapsing from #18. Carole Denton (New Carrollton, MD) is 3 games behind the leader at 4-4 +316, #34 soaring from #49. Paula Catanese (Mountain View, CA) is +83, #40 whizzing down from #29. Carolyn Easter (Birmingham, MI) is -3, #46 plummeting from #28. Cheryl Melvin (Grand Rapids, MI) is -44, #49 down from #41.

High Win: Carole Denton (New Carrollton, MD) 537-382 vs. Martin Gold (Arlington, VA). Low Win: Scott Leifer (Mansfield, MA) 327-324 vs. Arthur Finkle (Coral Gables, FL). High Loss: Geoff Tongue (Tacoma, WA) 428-433 vs. Ken Smith (Pukalani, HI). Low Loss: Brett Jackson (Pensacola Beach, FL) 225-420 vs. Gunther Jacobi (Portland, OR).

Division 3 Round 8 Auto-Commentary

Bill Ewing (Missoula, MT) claims the lead, 8-0 +476, on an 8-game winning streak. Ben Greenwood (Florence, MA) is 1 game behind at 7-1 +820, on a 5-game winning streak, #2 climbing from #3. Zachary Ansell (Los Angeles, CA) is +325, #3 sliding from #1. Tapani Lindgren (Roseville, CA) is +283, on a 3-game winning streak, #4 up from #5. Charles Dupont (Seattle, WA) is 2 games behind the leader at 6-2 +550, #5 jumping up from #14. Dave Lockrem (Blaine, MN) is +433, #6 climbing from #8. Daniel Novinson (San Francisco, CA) is +424, #7 up from #13. Carol Tillson (Silver Spring, MD) is +401, #8 down from #4. Claudia Finn (Seattle, WA) is +376, #9 rising from #15. Lynda Wise (Toronto ON) is +359, #10 climbing from #17.

In Class B: Zachary Ansell (Los Angeles, CA) is the lead, 7-1 +325. Carol Tillson (Silver Spring, MD) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +401, #8 sliding from #4. Claudia Finn (Seattle, WA) is +376, #9 leaping up from #15. Betsey Wood (Concord, MA) is +340, on a 4-game winning streak, #11 down from #10. Margo Kuno (Philadelphia, PA) is +301, #12 down from #11. Lindsey Dimmick (Baton Rouge, LA) is 2 games behind the leader at 5-3 +159, #21 tumbling from #9. Rhonda Morris (Oklahoma City, OK) is +37, #25 jumping up from #34. Mary Ellen Weisskopf (Huntsville, AL) is -141, #31 rocketing up from #43.

In Class C: Cooper Komatsu (Los Angeles, CA) is the lead, 5-3 +441. Nancy Hanley (Wilmington, DE) is +116, #22 down from #20. Chloe Fatsis (Washington, DC) is +90, #24 up from #31. Joey Gordon (Fort Worth, TX) is -20, #26 leapfrogging up from #40. Ruth Brower (Hockessin, DE) is -97, on a 3-game winning streak, #28 whizzing up from #39. Ani Migirdicyan (North York ON) is -132, #29 soaring from #42. Chris Autio (Missoula, MT) is -135, #30 whizzing down from #18. Dani Roter (Valley Village, CA) is 0.5 games behind at 4.5-3.5 +197, on a 3-game winning streak, #32 leapfrogging up from #44. Sander Post (Ottawa ON) is 1 game behind the leader at 4-4 +143, on a 4-game losing streak, #35 dropping from #27. Troy Millington (Calgary AB) is +47, #40 collapsing from #28.

High Win: Eli Shupak (Toronto ON) 596-337 vs. Rhonda Roederer (New Orleans, LA). Low Win: Ani Migirdicyan (North York ON) 337-311 vs. Yolanda Ushry (Fort Smith, AR). High Loss: Dan Horowitz (Wilmington, DE) 407-436 vs. Ruth Brower (Hockessin, DE). Low Loss: Zachary Ansell (Los Angeles, CA) 245-507 vs. Ben Greenwood (Florence, MA).

Division 4 Round 8 Auto-Commentary

Jennifer DeWaelsche (San Antonio, TX) seizes the lead, 7-1 +622. Hannah Rozear (Durham, NC) is +353, #2 sliding from #1. Jim Laris (Altadena, CA) is +159, on a 5-game winning streak, remaining unchanged at #3. Rachel Gillette (Lafayette, CO) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +423, on a 5-game winning streak, #4 climbing from #8. Jennifer Hay (Portland, TX) is +40, #5 climbing from #10. Jean Wolin (Toronto ON) is 2 games behind the leader at 5-3 +337, #6 climbing from #11. Jack Peters (Nantucket, MA) is +331, #7 falling from #4. Richard Banker (Ankeny, IA) is +306, #8 climbing from #12. Marvin Kraus (Newton, MA) is +212, #9 dropping from #6. Mary Fonti (Hallandale, FL) is +199, #10 jumping down from #5.

In Class B: Jennifer DeWaelsche (San Antonio, TX) is the lead, 7-1 +622. Jim Laris (Altadena, CA) is +159, on a 5-game winning streak, steady at #3. Rachel Gillette (Lafayette, CO) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +423, on a 5-game winning streak, #4 climbing from #8. Richard Banker (Ankeny, IA) is 2 games behind the leader at 5-3 +306, #8 up from #12. Laurie Holz (Los Angeles, CA) is +98, on a 3-game winning streak, #14 rising from #18. Sandra Finley (Blue Diamond, NV) is -142, #17 jumping down from #9.

In Class C: Jennifer Hay (Portland, TX) is the lead, 6-2 +40. Jack Peters (Nantucket, MA) is 1 game behind at 5-3 +331, #7 sliding from #4. Margaret Hughes (Los Angeles, CA) is +156, #11 dropping from #7. Keith Forman (El Cajon, CA) is +130, #13 improving from #17. Pamela Pudelka (Corpus Christi, TX) is +36, #15 rising from #19. Sheng Guo (Amawalk, NY) is +0, #16 climbing from #20. Dustin Brown (Fairfield, CT) is 2 games behind the leader at 4-4 +203, #18 dropping from #13. Donna Leigh (Menomonee Falls, WI) is +58, #23 jumping up from #30.

High Win: Rachel Gillette (Lafayette, CO) 477-270 vs. Sandra Finley (Blue Diamond, NV). Low Win: Gil Baker (Chicago, IL) 321-320 vs. Francina Bailey (Wilmington, CA). High Loss: Ron Barker (Boise, ID) 402-439 vs. Sheng Guo (Amawalk, NY). Low Loss: Sandra Finley (Blue Diamond, NV) 270-477 vs. Rachel Gillette (Lafayette, CO).

Division CSW Round 8 Auto-Commentary

Dave Wiegand (Portland, OR) seizes the lead, 7-1 +756, on a 4-game winning streak. Becky Dyer (Austin, TX) is +628, #2 falling from #1. Amit Chakrabarti (Hanover, NH) is +478, on a 3-game winning streak, remaining steady at #3. John O'Laughlin (San Francisco, CA) is 1 game behind at 6-2 +380, on a 5-game winning streak, #4 up from #5. Austin Shin (United Kingdom) is +337, #5 climbing from #11. Steve Polatnick (Miami, FL) is +209, #6 climbing from #10. Tony Leah (Ajax ON) is 2 games behind the leader at 5-3 +545, #7 rising from #12. Nick Ball (San Bruno, CA) is +463, #8 rising from #14. Orlet Bullock (Barbados) is +394, #9 whizzing up from #19. Stefan Rau (Hudson, NY) is +364, #10 climbing from #16.

High Win: Jean McArthur (Austin, TX) 599-270 vs. Michael Gincel (Lakewood, NJ). Low Win: Martin DeMello (San Francisco, CA) 365-354 vs. Eric Kinderman (Burlington, VT). High Loss: Geoffrey Newman (Brampton ON) 455-498 vs. Stefan Rau (Hudson, NY). Low Loss: Michael Gincel (Lakewood, NJ) 270-599 vs. Jean McArthur (Austin, TX).