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Highland Park Tops School Teams Tourney

The American Go Honor Society's 13th annual School Team Tournament (STT) concluded on KGS last month.  Over 150 avid go players duked it out in 54 teams from 40 schools in the US, Canada, and Mexico.  Teams were sorted by their average rank, in four divisions, and played four rounds. Co-sponsored by the AGA and the AGF, the STT has become the largest national youth tournaments in the US.  Leading the pack in the Varsity Division was Highland Park High School (NJ), who were undefeated.  The school has participated in several past tournaments. "We finally achieved good results this year," said team captain Yang Xu 5d, "we've played in the tournament a few times in the past but lacked a consistent team." Xu, who is also a part of the AGHS's Future Leaders Immersion Program (FLIP), describes his school's victory largely as a culmination of hard work and dedication, adding "this year, we were able to play with an overall higher average rank and I think that helped us a lot....hope to be able to participate in this again next year!"  Following up in 2nd and 3rd place  were Neo Fineart Learning Center and Joaquin Miller Middle School, both from CA. In the Junior Division, Tzu Chi Chinese School (CA) took 1st place with Richard Montgomery High School (MD) and Manlius Pebble Hill School (NY) following in 2nd and 3rd. Albert Einstein High School (MD) took 1st place in the Intermediate division, with Richard Montgomery High School (MD) taking second once again and Cary Chinese School (NC) taking third. In the novice division another team from Cary Chinese School, one of the major go playing schools in the country, took first place. Molalla High School (OR) came in 2nd and Manlius Pebble Hill School (NY) was a close 3rd. Prizes ranging from plaques to equipment were given out, with schools that had good participation also receiving rewards. AGHS Co-Vice President, Justin Teng says "a big thanks to everyone who participated, and to the volunteers, including Hugh Zhang, Monsoon Shrestha, and the AGHS officers who helped make this tournament a huge success. We hope everyone had fun and is looking forward to growing their clubs for next year's tournament!" The next AGHS event will be a casual gathering on KGS on April 22nd at 4pm ET for pair-go. Keep up with the AGHS on their website. -Eric Chen, AGHS Co-Vice President, with Paul Barchilon.