I wish I could have played at the state meet, but my school decided not to go.
8... Nb4 might be meetable with Nh4, when Nc2+ gives up two pieces for a rook.
9... f6 seems weak, but 10. d5 blunders an important pawn. I don't know if 10...Bxf3 is best, Nxe5 seems to make more sense.
Black just has a winning advantage after that, I don't see any compensation for the pawn.
Doesn't 24. Rxd6 win a pawn? I might be missing something two though. After 24. cxd6 the pawn is lost.
Down two pawns with no compensation should be enough for black to win easily, especially once your opponent wins a third pawn (even in drawish rook endings 3 pawns extra is always enough).
Here is round 4. I would like it if I could get some help on what I should have done differently in the beginning. Did I do the right thing, or did I overextend my pawns? Thanks in advance.
This was the last round of day 1.