Last year, the school chess team played strong against top area schools Gunn, Monta Vista, Lynbrook and Palo Alto, finishing in the top 10 of the online league matches.

But this year, the chess team hopes to take their talent even further, perhaps recapturing the medal at states.

“We have the same team as last year, so we’re still rocking and kicking,” club president Evan Ye said. “Of course we’re going to face strong teams from Mission San Jose and Dougherty Valley. We can beat them—its all tournament-day luck.”

Key players include seniors Evan Ye, Brian Wei and Sankash Shankar and junior Kevin Garbe, who led Redwood Middle School to its first state championship as an 8th grader in 2009.

“I’m sure we have the capabilities to rock this year. It was this team that got second at states last year,” Ye said. “And we have three soon incoming second-semester seniors. That gives us the time to beat up the other schools.”

Apart from the team’s competitive spirit, the club hopes to influence more people to get interested in the game.

Ye said that the sophomore and freshman players don’t seem yet in shape for big league tournaments such as nationals but definitely create a conducive environment that supports club competition and enthusiasm.

Looking forward, the team also hopes to win the County Tournament that hosts local high schools in the Bay Area. The team has tied for first once, and placed twice in this tournament previously.

The first league matches kicks of this Wensday, as Saratoga goes head to head with Lynbrook and Cupertino, both of which of are strong competitors. League play kicked off Oct. 12, as Saratoga went head to head with Lynbrook and Cupertino.