The time is clicking away. One wrong play and it’s all over the dream for victory in one man’s hands. Silence filled the room; it was only him and his opponent there. He waited for the moment to be right; only patience can bring victory. Every move studied until with one swift counter with an instant checkmate. This is Oluwasubomi Akinola Leyden chess player. Subomi’s journey in chess has not always been an up climb; there are always downs.”We faced Hinsdale South, they were a well oiled chess machine. We played well, but in the end we felt short and Hinsdale came out on top.” Subomi shares his reason to keep pushing is “Everytime I lose I think of my graduated chess teammates, they always pushed through setbacks and kept improving, and I know they would want me to keep going through every loss.” A person on the team that motivates people Subomi says “One of my best teammates in chess was Jose Castellanos. Jose is always the first one to encourage everyone to keep their heads up high after a tough loss. Whether or not he won his match he never let it affect his amazing attitude, as he always had a smile on his face after every game. That positivity helped me keep going in chess.” Subomi always stays calm and sticks to his strategy to make sure he wins. Subomi says My chess strategies that helped me win my games were patience and counter attacking. I learned that stalling until my opponent made a bad move and counter attacking was an effective strategy.” Oluwasubomi Akinola reflects on his journey with the chess team as his was his last year with the team Subomi says “Some advice I learned in chess is to never give up, even if it seems hopeless. In chess, even though it looks like you’re losing, a single mistake from your opponent can change the swing of the entire game. One blunder from your opponent could allow you to counter play and win the game. I feel like that could easily apply to everyday life.”