Wrestler is Harker’s First League Champ; Girls Hoops Finish Season 19-3!
Winter sports are wrapping up! January Athletes of the Month are sophomore Priscilla Auyeung, basketball, and classmate Michael Amick, soccer.
Wrestling
Wrestler Santosh Swaminathan, grade 12, became Harker’s first-ever league champion this past weekend! Classmate Chris McCallaCreary placed second, losing 4-2 in the finals. Senior Jason Mendel also placed second in his weight, making this the first time Harker has ever had three league finalists. All three have qualified for CCS in two weeks. At the end of January, McCallaCreary won the 160-lb. weight class at Overfelt High School. McCallaCreary defeated both the first- and second-ranked wrestlers in CCS on his way to taking the tournament championship.
Basketball
In girls basketball, sophomore Daniza Rodriguez was recognized as the San Jose Mercury’s female Athlete of the Week at the end of January!
The girls basketball team lost their first-ever WBAL league playoff game to Sacred Heart Prep 56-41 in mid-February and now await their CCS seeding. They defeated Crystal Springs and King’s Academy in early February to finish up the regular season with a record-setting 19-3 overall record and second place league finish. In their Jan. 25 Mercy-Burlingame match, a close game was anticipated, but no one expected three overtimes. Mercy-Burlingame made last-second shots to tie at the end of regulation and again to force the second and third overtimes, but our Eagles eventually held off the Crusaders for a 56-53 victory. Rodriguez scored 27 points for the Eagles, and Tanya Rai, grade 12, had 12 rebounds in that game.
Boys basketball had their final home game in mid-February versus a tough Pinewood team, nailing them 61-52. Senior Partha Mahajani scored 15 points, junior Stephen Hughes had 12 and Nikhil Panu, grade 10, scored 10 points. In previous play, the boys defeated Crystal Springs but lost to King’s Academy in early February. Prior to that, the team put up a tough fight against first place Sacred Heart, losing 56-38 (Vik Jain, grade 11, had 10 points) but in late January handled ECP, 44-29.
Cheerleading
In late January, our two senior cheerleaders, Amanda King and Alice Loofbourrow, were recognized for their four years of contributing to Harker athletics. Thanks to both girls!
Soccer
Varsity boys soccer had a fine week in early February defeating Crystal Springs and Pinewood to improve to 5-4-3. Catch their final two home games Wed., Feb. 16 and Fri., Feb. 18 on Davis Field. Ambrish Amaranathan and Isaac Madan were the senior boy soccer players lauded for their years of participation in mid-February prior to their game against KIPP San Jose Collegiate on Davis Field.
Girls soccer lost to ECP and Crystal Springs in early February and face Notre Dame Feb. 15. The team lost to Notre Dame in late January, but three cheers to Alicia Clark, grade 9, who was awarded the game ball by coach Troy Thiele for her improved game. Girls soccer seniors Monisha Appalaraju, Lydia Demissachew, Michelle Holt, Arthi Kumar and Priya Sahdev were thanked for their contributions in mid-February on Davis Field.
GO EAGLES!