Chess tournament sharpens wits in Ephrata

Annual strategic competition set for February 1

EPHRATA — A hundred young players will go head-to-head – and brain-to-brain – at the Waypoint Foundation Scholastic Chess Tournament in Ephrata Feb. 1. This is the 18th year the tournament has been held at Parkway Elementary School. said Troy Pugh, who created and manages the tournament with his brother Roger Pugh. This year, Pugh said, the foundation has added online registration for the first time. There were 89 players registered Tuesday morning, he said, which is the fastest it’s ever filled up. “Usually, we don’t get to 89 until the week of the event,” he said.