Summer reports are still flowing in and it was great to hear Swapnil Garg ’18 has racked up a huge kudo winning a gold medal in individual competition at the International Linguistics Olympiad held in Prague, this summer. The U. S. sent two teams, which finished first and second, with Garg’s team (Red Team) taking the silver. Garg also received notice for a best solution on problem #5. Check out these results!
April 12, 2018
Congratulations to senior Swapnil Garg, who last weekend learned that he is officially a member of the United States’ Red team, which will compete at this year’s International Linguistics Olympiad (ILO). Garg ranked sixth overall in North America out of the 153 high school students who moved on to the invitational round of the North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad (NACLO). He soon will begin training with his teammates for the ILO, which is set to take place July 26-30 in Prague.
Harker’s varsity speech and debate team is heading into the end-of-season championships phase! The team has qualified an impressive 18 students (see photo!) to represent us at state and various national championships. The coaches are especially proud that the school will be represented in all of our main events: policy debate, Lincoln-Douglas debate, speech, congress and public forum debate.
This weekend, students will attend the first of the national championships, hosted by the National Debate Coaches Association in Atlanta. Next weekend, team members will attend the state championship in Mountain House, near Tracy. The weekend after, they will travel to the Tournament of Champions in Lexington, Ky. The team concludes its season with the National Speech & Debate Association Championship in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in June. Watch for updates!
Qualifiers are:
Alan Hughes, grade 12
Megan Huynh, grade 12
Serena Lu, grade 12
Jacob Ohana, grade 12
Alycia Cary, grade 11
Nikhil Dharmaraj, grade 11
Haris Hosseini, grade 11
Jason Huang, grade 11
Anusha Kuppahally, grade 11
Cindy Wang, grade 11
Clarissa Wang, grade 11
Avi Gulati, grade 10
Maddie Huynh, grade 10
Sachin Shah, grade 10
Nikki Solanki, grade 10
Jason Lin, grade 9
Andy Lee, grade 9
Andrew Sun, grade 9
Huge congrats to all! Best of luck in the coming events!
Greg Achten, upper school speech and debate coach, has been awarded a 2 Diamond degree of membership in the National Speech & Debate Association’s Honor Society.
The award is directly tied to student performance; the congratulatory letter noted that Achten has earned more than 3,000 points from presentations, competitions and service by students. He earned his first diamond in 2013; a second diamond can only be awarded after five years, and the teacher must earn a certain number of points each year in between. Achten will receive his award at the 2018 National Speech & Debate Tournament in Florida in June, and will be noted in the association’s magazine, Rostrum. Huge congrats!
Late last month, junior Tiffany Wong took second place in the youth division at the Korea International Harp Competition in Seoul! Her performances of Gabriel Pierne’s ‘Impromptu Caprice’ and Hugo Reinhold’s ‘Impromptu in C# Minor’ (arranged by Elizabeth Hainen) won her a trophy, certificate and 500,000 South Korean won (equivalent to $470).
Established in 2015 with the goal of finding and promoting exceptional harpists from around the world, the Korean International Harp Competition also hopes to inspire young talents by offering opportunities to perform and congregate. The competition was juried by world-class harpists including Elizabeth Hainen, Florence Sitruk, Naoko Yoshino and Irina Zingg.
Baylor University, March 26, 2018: Baylor University’s Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise honored 11 outstanding high school-age entrepreneurs, including Harker juniors Nishka Ayyar and Riya Gupta and their business, PromElle LLC. Read story here.
India West, March 20, 2018: Story about two Indian Americans, including a Harker senior, who were on the U.S. International Math Olympiad Team that tied for first place at the Romanian Master of Mathematics competition in late February.
East Bay Times, March 15, 2018: Article on one of our middle school robotics team’s eco efforts.
Denver Business Journal, March 5, 2018: Article notes that Harker is rated second in the nation as a science school, based on findings in the Niche online school rating website.
It was a split for the boys tennis team before the break, as it defeated Nueva 7-0 before falling to Menlo 1-6. This week, the Eagles take on Priory on Wednesday and Pinewood on Thursday.
Boys Golf
The boys golf team continued its winning ways as it picked up four big wins over the last two weeks. In a huge matchup for first place, the Eagles defeated Menlo in a tight 188-192 match, with Victor Shin, grade 12, taking the top spot with a 36. The Eagles then defeated Nueva and Crystal Springs Uplands in a tri-match 176-235-239, as senior Jin Kim led the way shooting a 32. Then, the boys headed up to Moraga where they defeated NCS powerhouse Campolindo 386-391 with Daulet Tuleubayev, grade 12, leading all golfers with a 69. However, over the break, the Eagles took their first loss of the season as Menlo narrowly defeated Harker 198-202. But the Eagles rebounded with a strong fifth-place finish at the Champions Invitational in Southern California over the weekend. The boys competed with 43 other teams with Tuleubayev finishing 18th out of 247 golfers. This week, the Eagles take on Sacred Heart on Monday and Mitty on Thursday.
Lacrosse
The lacrosse team improved to 7-0 as it defeated Woodside 15-14 and Lincoln 15-3 before the break. This week, the girls host Newark Memorial on Tuesday and Mountain View on Friday.
Boys Volleyball
The boys volleyball team brought the record to 15-3 with 3-0 wins over Los Altos and Cupertino before the break. This week, the Eagles travel to Cupertino on Thursday and host Lynbrook on Friday.
Baseball
The baseball team went 2-1 over the last few weeks, picking up wins over Crystal Springs Uplands and Westmoor, before dropping a game against Jefferson. In the 9-3 win over CSU, Dominic Cea, grade 12, had a terrific game with two hits and five RBIs at the plate, as well as throwing a complete game with 12 strikeouts on the mound. Then, in the 17-2 win over Westmoor, Max Lee, grade 10, led the offense with two hits and three RBIs. Finally, in an 4-8 loss to Jefferson, Anthony Meissner, grade 11 and Nicholas Coulter, grade 9, each drove in a run. This week, the Eagles travel to Mills on Tuesday before hosting Mills on Thursday.
Softball
The softball team also went 2-1 over the last few weeks with wins over Castilleja and Pinweood and a tough loss to Mercy Burlingame. In the 16-0 win over Castilleja, Cameron Zell, grade 11, had three hits and five RBIs with Molly Mobley, grade 9, adding three RBIs on two hits, including a home run. The Eagles took an 8-10 loss in extra innings later in the week to Mercy, with three hits each for Kristin LeBlanc, grade 12, Anika Rajamani, grade 11, Lily Wancewicz, grade 11 and Zell. The girls finished with a 9-4 win over Pinewood as LeBlanc and Mobley each drove in two runs. This week, the Eagles host El Camino on Tuesday and travel to Notre Dame San Jose on Thursday
Swim
This past weekend, the Harker swim team competed at the Ron Freeman Invitational at Monte Vista. Ethan Hu, grade 10, won the 50 free and the 100 fly; Andrew Lu, grade 9, won the JV 50 fly, and was second in the 100 breast and third in the 50 free; and Andrew Chang, grade 9, won the 100 breast. The swimmers take to the pool again on Wednesday at the Singh Aquatic Center for the WBAL Jamboree No. 3, followed by the Palo Alto Section Challenge on Saturday.
Track and Field
Over the break, Anna Weirich, grade 9, ran a personal best 5:18.23 in the 1,600-meter run at the prestigious Stanford Invitational. Also, several top Eagle runners competed in a league meet at Palo Alto High during the vacation. Kismet Singh, grade 10, ran a personal best of 17.61 in the 100 hurdles, just off of the school record. Anthony Contreras and Angel Cervantes, both grade 12, placed second and third in the 100; Gio Rofa, grade 10, ran his best ever in the 65 hurdles, ranking him No. 3 in the league. Up next for the track and field squad is a WBAL meet on Tuesday at The King’s Academy, followed by the Bearcat Invitational at San Mateo High School on Saturday.
Harker middle and upper school students competed at three tournaments in March, all against high school students.
San Francisco State University
From March 10-11, 31 schools across two states representing 157 entries competed in debate events. Fifty-one Harker middle and upper school students competed.
Junior Varsity Policy
10th – Helen Li, grade 9, and Mir Bahri, grade 7, 3-2 record
On March 21, about 50 Harker middle schools students competed in three distinct events.
Speech (Impromptu & Memorized Interpretation)
1st – Zubin Khera, grade 7
2nd – Madeleine Hansen, grade 8
Public Forum
1st – Krish Mysoor and Ansh Sheth, both grade 6
2nd – Joe Li and Ramit Goyal, both grade 6
Public Forum Speaker Awards
1st – Krishna Mysoor, grade 6
2nd – Ansh Sheth, grade 6
3rd – Deeya Viradia, grade 7
4th – Sathvik Chundru, grade 6
5th – Carol Wininger, grade 7
6th – Lexi Nishimura, grade 7
7th – Joe Li, grade 6
8th – Aniketh Tummala, grade 6
Lincoln-Douglas
1st – Krish Maniar, grade 7
Santa Clara University No. 2
From March 23-25, 87 schools across two states, representing 1,012 entries, competed in speech and debate events. About 75 Harker middle school students competed.
Novice Duo Interpretation
3rd – Nikhil Devireddy and Zubin Khera, both grade 7, finalist
Last weekend, filmmaking educator Michael Hernandez gave a special workshop to Harker journalism students on video storytelling. Hernandez, who teaches at Mira Costa High School in Southern California’s Manhattan Beach, has spent nearly 20 years helping students develop projects that positively impact communities around the world. Recognized by PBS, Google and Apple for his innovative methods, he has traveled with his students on documentary trips to places including Guatemala, Vietnam and Cuba.
Over the course of the two-day workshop, students learned how to research, film, edit and publish stories in a short time period, exercising skills such as videography, interviewing and capturing sound. Students also practiced writing for broadcast formats and how to record voice-overs. The students used these skills in their video coverage of Saturday’s March for Our Lives rallies in San Jose and San Francisco, capturing footage of the marchers as well as reactions from students on the ground to create a powerful report of the events.
The boys volleyball team had a very good week! It started with a 3-1 win over Mountain View and a 3-0 win over Los Altos, before taking second in the Monta Vista Tournament over the weekend. The Eagles defeated Lynbrook, Christopher, Branham and St. Francis, all 2-0, before falling in the championship to host Monta Vista 0-2. The 13-3 boys team will host Los Altos on Wednesday and Cupertino on Friday.
Swim
Last week, the Harker swim team hosted nearly 200 swimmers from 11 teams at the first WBAL jamboree of the season.
The Harker boys came out on top in the meet, defeating The King’s Academy, Pinewood, Menlo, Crystal Springs and Nueva.
It was a one-two-three sweep in the varsity 50 free with Matthew Chung (CCS time), Jason Kwok and Rhys Edwards, all grade 9.
Ethan Hu, grade 10, and Yannick Bohbot-Dridi, grade 12, were first and third in the 100 fly, with Hu placing second in the 100 back. Both swimmers made CCS cuts in the event.
Alex Yu, grade 11, won the 500 free in CCS time and took second in the 100 breast.
The varsity 200 free relay team of Edwards, Arnav Joshi, grade 10, Kwok and Bohbot-Dridi took first.
The varsity 400 free relay team of Chung, Kwok, Bohbot-Dridi and Hu took first.
For the JV boys, Russell Yang, Andrew Chang, Nicky Kriplani and Andrew Lu, all grade 9, won the medley relay and 200 free relay events.
Lu and Chang went first and third in the JV individual medley, and Lu went on to win the 50 free in varsity time with Kriplani taking third and winning the JV 50 fly.
Chang and Yang went first and second in the JV 50 breast. Karthik Nukala, grade 10, won the 50 back.
The Harker girls defeated The King’s Academy, Pinewood, Nueva and Mercy SF.
The girls medley A relay team of Taylor Kohlmann, grade 12, Vivian Wang, grade 12, Alyssa Huang, grade 10, and Angela Li, grade 11, won the event in CCS time.
Huang was third in the 200 IM, posting a best time.
Wang won the 50 and 100 free in CCS time.
Claudia Opris, grade 11, won the JV 50 and 100 free with best times for both races.
Next up for the Eagles is the Ron Freeman Invitational at Monta Vista on April 7.
Boys Golf
Last week, the boys golf team took fourth out of 21 teams at the Wildcat Invitational in Fairfax. Daulet Tuleubayev, grade 12, placed third overall. Later in the week, the Eagles defeated The King’s Academy 217-183, with Jaimin Bhagat, grade 10, leading the way with a 34. This week, the Eagles battle for first place with Menlo on Monday, followed by a league match with Crystal Springs Uplands and Nueva on Wednesday, and finishing the week with a trip to Moraga to take on one of the best teams in the NCS, Campolindo.
Baseball
Last week, the baseball team defeated Summit Rainier 19-4. The Eagles got huge games from Matthew Kennedy, grade 12, who had two hits and four RBIs, and Max Lee, grade 10, who had three hits and three RBIs. This week, the 3-2 Eagles travel to Crystal Springs Uplands on Monday, host Westmoor on Tuesday and travel to Jefferson on Thursday.
Track and Field
The track and field team competed at the Firebird Invitational last week with more great results. The girls sprint medley relay team of Grace Koonmen, grade 12, Nikki Solanki, grade 10, Gloria Guo, grade 12, and Anna Weirich, grade 9, won with a new school record time of 1:59.99. All four were running in their third race of an 11-hour track meet. The boys 400-meter relay team of Marcus Tymous, grade 11, Angel Cervantes, grade 12, Mitch Granados, grade 11, and Anthony Contreras, grade 12, placed second. Kismet Singh, grade 10, placed third against 30 other runners in the 100 hurdles. Contreras ran a personal best 11.57 to place fourth in the top 100 heat. Also, 15 runners posted their best times of the year. This weekend, the Eagles compete at the Stanford Invitational.
Lacrosse
The lacrosse team started the season on fire as it defeated Notre Dame San Jose 14-6 and Lincoln 13-3 last week to bring its record to 5-0. This week, the Eagles travel to Priory on Tuesday and host Lincoln on Thursday.
Softball
The softball team picked up its first win of the season as it defeated The King’s Academy 6-3 last week. Anika Rajamani, grade 11, had three hits and an RBI and Molly Mobley, grade 9, drove in two runs. This week, the Eagles host Mercy Burlingame on Tuesday and Pinewood on Thursday.
Boys Tennis
The boys tennis team was able to beat the rain and pick up a 7-0 win over Sacred Heart Prep last week. This week, the 7-1 Eagles take on Nueva on Monday and Menlo on Tuesday.
After being canceled last year due to ongoing construction, the annual upper school Hoscars variety show made its Rothschild Performing Arts Center debut on Friday, featuring dozens of students putting their many talents on display, be they musical, comedic or terpsichorean. Several students performed modified versions of popular songs, such as the duo of pianist Annabelle Perng and violinist Susan He, both juniors, who played a medley they put together in an experiment to see how many songs they could fit into three minutes. The show also featured energetic dance performances, as well as a comedic monologue by Andrew Semenza, grade 12, offering a feverish interpretation of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” recreated faithfully by Harker students posing as the famous painting’s subjects.
Because of limited capacity in the Patil Theater, this year’s Hoscars consisted of two shows to give as many students as possible the chance to attend. Audiences at both shows were very enthusiastic, relishing the opportunity to be among the first to cheer for Hoscars performers at the new venue, which is especially suited for live performances.