Maggie Feng started playing chess when she was 8 years old. In 2016, Feng shattered the glass ceiling and became the first female in history to win the U.S. Junior High School Chess Championship with a strong score of 6.5/7. Feng competed in her first U.S. Women’s Chess Championship in 2017 and tied for fourth place; in that tournament, she won her game against the U.S. Women’s Champion Sabina Foisor. Over the course of the same year, she acquired her new title of FIDE Master. In March of 2018, she competed in her 2nd U.S. Women's Chess Championship and tied for eighth place. Maggie lives in Dublin, Ohio.
At just 15 years of age, Carissa Yip has quickly become one of the top female players in America. Known for her creativity over the board, she enters the tournament with an all-time high US Chess rating of 2408. Yip has been on a record-shattering pace ever since she learned how to play the game from her father at age 6. Three years later, at age 9, she became the youngest ever to reach the title of Expert. Two years later she broke the record for youngest female to achieve the title of National Master at the age of 11 years, 5 months, and 18 days. Along the way to Master, she set the record for youngest female player to beat a Grandmaster for her win against GM Alexander Ivanov in the New England Open a few days before her 11th birthday. Carissa also represented the U.S. at the 2019 World Team Championship in Kazakhstan, scoring many fine wins, including one over former Women’s World Champion Anna Ushenina. She lives in Andover, Massachusetts.
