Junior and Senior Championships Round 4: Rachael Li Does It Again

Rachael Li Improves to 4/4, All Sections Remain Tight

Only two players are better than 3/4 in the 2026 U.S. Junior and Senior Championships. And they're in the same section!

WIM Rachael Li improved to 4/4 in the Girls’ Junior Championship thanks to an 11th hour victory in a rook-and-pawn endgame, but WGM Zoey Tang kept pace, reeling off a third consecutive victory of her own.

In the other three sections, the pre-round leader either drew or (in both Senior events) lost, tightening the races.

Annotations are from your Digital Editor today and tomorrow. But there’s going to be some bonus color commentary tomorrow, as well. If you look at who has the bye in today’s Senior Women Championship, you should be able to figure out who is providing it.

Girls’ Junior Championship: Rachael Li Can’t Lose

Graphic courtesy of SLCC.

As Black against WIM Chloe Gaw, Li got into hot water early in the game. But Gaw crossed the line from patient play into slightly passive play, allowing Li to trade off a few pieces and pose Gaw with a few problems about which of the remaining pieces to keep on.

Rachael Li kept pushing, and was eventually rewarded. (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

The endgame looked sure to be a draw for most of the endgame, although Black did miss one chance early on. By the end, I’d bet the players would have agreed to a draw if not for this tournament’s “no draw offer” rule!

Tang played a fantastic game against 12-year-old WFM Aimee Yang. Yang employed a sharp Grunfeld defense, but Tang demonstrated superior understanding of the positional nuances.

Zoey Tang is doing everything she can to keep pace with the tournament leader. (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

In the final decisive game, Iowa’s CM Irene Jiao Fei picked up more steam, winning her first game of the tournament. Her opponent, WGM Iris Mou, could have remained in a share of third with a draw (or clear third with a win), but it was not to be.

Playing in her first Girls' Junior Championship, Irene Fei is getting used to the spotlight! (Photos courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

Playing in her first Girls' Junior Championship, Irene Fei is getting used to the spotlight! (Photos courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

Today, Li has the white pieces against FM Megan Paragua, who is in clear third with 2½/4. Tang is Black against Fei.

Junior Championship: Ngo, Woodward Join Mishra

In the Junior Championship, tournament leader GM Abhimanyu Mishra was unable to get any chances as Black against GM Brewington Hardaway. The draw improved Mishra to a 3/4 score, allowing both players trailing him by a half-point to catch up.

Graphic courtesy of SLCC.

In GM Andy Woodward’s win against IM Alice Lee, he employed an opening designed to take his opponent out of theory early. The result was a very entertaining game where Lee even had some chances. But once it became a matter of pure calculation, Woodward proved he was more than up to the challenge.

IM Bach Ngo is on fire! By outplaying GM-Elect Liam Putnam in an endgame, he scored his third win of the event. This is his first year in the U.S. Junior Championship, and the Floridian is making quite an impression.

Bach Ngo improved to a share of the lead with his third victory. (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

In the final decisive game, GM Nico Chasin was able to shake off a slow start with a fast attack:

Today, Ngo and Mishra each have the white pieces — against Hardaway and Chasin, respectively — while Woodward is Black against IM Evan Park.

Senior Championship: Shabalov, the People’s Champion

GM Vladimir Akopian entered the round with a 3/3 score and a full-point lead over his closest competitors. The good news for Akopian is he exited the round still in clear first. The bad news is, after losing the round’s only decisive game, he allowed five players to move within one point of him in the standings.

Graphic courtesy of SLCC.

After a tough start, GM Alexander Shabalov won a pawn and continued to press against Akopian. Uncharacteristic impatience from Akopian turned a grinding, but drawish, endgame into an untenable one.

A roaming Shabalov shares his victory with the people! Now, over half the field is within striking distance of the leader. (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

Of the four peaceful games, only one contained any fireworks:

Today, Akopian looks to rebound as White against GM Alexander Goldin. Last year’s champion, GM Alexander Fishbein, knows a thing or two about playing catchup in these events, and today he moves first against Shabalov. The other player tied for second, GM Alexander Onischuk, has Black against GM Gregory Kaidanov.

Senior Women’s Championship: Belakovskaia Shakes Up Standings

In the Senior Women’s Championship, four players have 2½ points. But two of them have played four games, while WGM Anjelina Belakovskaia and WFM Natalya Tsodikova have each only played three.

Graphic courtesy of SLCC.

In the key game for the standings, Belakovskaia won against pre-round leader Jennifer Skidmore Smith.

Skidmore Smith had endured difficult positions twice before, but yesterday Belakovskaia showed enough nerve and patience to convert a great position into a full point.

Tsodikova won against Catherine Dodson in a sharp Delayed Alapin where she showed excellent preparation, maximizing her initiative.

WIM Beatriz Marinello won her first game of the event, defeating WFM Olga Sagalchik.

Sometimes, the first victory is the hardest. Beatriz Marinello has already faced all four of her teammates from this year's gold medal team, so don't count her out! (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

The round’s only draw was a back-and-forth fight between WIM Alexey Root and WFM Ivona Jezierska.

Ivona Jezierska remains in contention after her exciting draw against Alexey Root in Round 4. Today, she faces the two-time defending champion. (Photo courtesy SLCC/Lennart Ootes)

Jezierska got into some trouble early, but roared back with counterplay and had chances for a mating attack. This is one of those games where, after the repetition of moves ends the game peacefully, the players don’t know whether to be more disappointed in missing chances or relieved that they survived.

Today, Jezierska – Tsodikova is the game that will shape the standings heading into the second half of the tournament.