Go to: Commentary Games Players Photos Reports Standings

Back to NSC 2008 Live Coverage

NSC 2008 Commentary: Round 10

[ ]

Go to: 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, Award Ceremony.

Round 10

Phil Wertheimer (Short Hills, NJ) is 10-0. I walk by his board, which has been picked up, and he tells me that his last opponent, Jason Keller (Piscataway, NJ) played mISQuOTE through the Q for 185 points. At that point, Jason had a score of 187, so that play virtually doubled his score!

I walk by a division one game and Nathan Benedict (Tucson, AZ) points to a word on his board. I peer down and am delighted to see that he played his own name: BENEDICT! These kind of things just make me so happy!

School SCRABBLE faceoff at table 1 in division 6: Aune Mitchell (Ridgefield, CT) vs. Bradley Robbins (Windham, NH). I see that on their in-progress board the play PORKIESt played through the E.

Gene Tyszka (Mississauga ON) finds me and brings me back to a unique board, for sure. His opponent, Andy Ludwig (Tempe, AZ), played URInATE for 78 and then a few turns later played URINATE for 66. Gene has lost six games in a row, including this one, 316-390, but he is still laughing. I notice his 65-point play of CREVICES. I then ask him to show me his new folding deluxe board. It uses a series of medical magnets to attach the base to the folding top portion. Matt finish on the board, firm attachment on the bottom, firm rotation; a nice board, indeed.

From the "no comment" department, Ida Ann Shapiro (New York, NY) played PRIG and on the next turn, through that O, played GENITALS.

Texas School SCRABBLE champ, Stephen Sneed (Fort Worth, TX) lost this round to Dawn Doyle (Ft Lauderdale, FL), 332-347. He is now 7-3. His board picked up, he gently explains that he held UUY racks that game and that he let the X stay on his rack for too many turns. He says his best play that game was EX for 38 and hers was BRASSED for 89. Both of them got the blanks, one each, at the end. He admits that getting his earlier would have been far more help. Of the event, he said, "This is my first Nationals. It is sooo much fun. I've been looking foward to it for a long time." Stephen mentions that his buddies here--Matt Canik (Austin, TX), Chris Canik (Austin, TX), and Joey Krafchick (Roswell, GA)-- check in on him often.

Jason Keller (Piscataway, NJ) is wearing a T-shirt today that mentions that he is blogging this. I ask him where and he says at livejournal.com. I think sr-orangepants will help you find his blog. He relates that earlier in the tournament someone challenged him when he played POO.