Harker’s speech and debate team has had a great run at this spring’s championship tournaments. Harker students, including some middle schoolers, have placed at championships in all five events: Lincoln-Douglas, policy, congressional and public forum debate, as well as individual speech events.
Our younger debaters had a great showing at the Western JV and Novice National Championship, held at San Francisco State University in March. Jai Bahri, grade 9, and Deven Shah, grade 7, were semifinalists in JV policy.
In JV Lincoln-Douglas, Kelly Shen, grade 10, also made it to semifinals. Joining her were Sachin Shah, grade 9, in quarterfinals, and Annie Ma, grade 9, and Alycia Cary, grade 10, in octofinals. In JV public forum, the duo of Kashov Sharma, grade 9, and Raymond Banke, grade 10, made it to the octofinals, as did partners Aimee Wang and Sascha Pakravan, both grade 7. Elen Guo and Phil Han, both grade 9, made it to octofinals in novice public forum.
Harker also had an outstanding showing in speaker awards at the championship. The first place speaker in JV Lincoln-Douglas debate was Sachin Shah. Also placing in JV Lincoln-Douglas were Shen in sixth place, Ma in 12th place, Cary in 13th place and Arely Sun, grade 7, in 20th place.
In JV policy, Deven Shah took second place, and his partner, Bahri took 10th. In JV public forum, Datha Arramreddy, grade 9, took sixth, Banke was ninth, Amanda Cheung, grade 9, was 13th and Wang was 15th. In novice public forum, Guo took sixth.
The season continued with the National Debate Coaches Association Championship. That event was held at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, in April. Srivatsav Pyda, grade 12, made it to quarterfinals in Lincoln-Douglas, while Serena Lu, grade 11, and Emmie Malyugina, grade 12, were octofinalists. Also representing Harker at the tournament were the policy duo of Molly Wancewicz, grade 12, and Anusha Kuppahally, grade 11. In Lincoln-Douglas, Sachin Shah, Quentin Clark, grade 9, Lauren Fu, grade 9, and Ma also contributed to the strong team performance. Malyugina was also the 10th speaker.
Nikhil Dharmaraj, grade 10, qualified to compete at the state championship in original oratory and advanced to the semifinals. The tournament was held at Arcadia High School at the end of April.
Rounding out the spring series was the Tournament of Championships, held the last weekend of April at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. This is one of the most difficult tournaments to qualify for and Harker is extremely proud of Pyda and Malyugina for representing us in Lincoln-Douglas. Avi Gulati, grade 9, and Jason Huang, grade 10, also qualified in congressional debate. Pyda ended his season with a quarterfinal finish at the event.
Looking ahead, we will be excited to cheer for Aditya Dhar, grade 12, as he performs at the World Schools Debate Championships in Bali, Indonesia, in August. He was one of only five American students chosen to compete at this elite event. At the National Individual Events Tournament of Champions in May, Nikki Solanki, grade 9, will compete in dramatic interpretation, and Gulati and Dharmaraj will compete in original oratory. Also, in June, the National Speech & Debate Association Championship will be hosted in Birmingham, Ala., and Harker will be represented by Huang in World Schools Debate, and Galati and Dharmaraj in original oratory. We are excited to report further as these events take place.
It was Senior Day at Singh Aquatic Center last week, as Jack Farnham, Michael Auld and Justin Culpepper were honored. In the pool, Ethan Hu, grade 9, Yannick Bohbot-Dridi, grade 11, Alex Yu, grade 10, Auld, Culpepper, Vivian Wang, grade 11 and the girls 200 medley relay team each won their events. Qualifying for CCS were Farnham in the 100 backstroke, Bohbot-Dridi in the 200 individual medley, the girls 200 medley relay team and the girls 200 freestyle relay team. The Eagles head to Sacred Heart Prep for league finals this Friday.
Boys Volleyball
The boys volleyball team is now 14-12 on the season after dropping matches to Saratoga and Cupertino last week. The Eagles host Monta Vista on Wednesday for the final regular season match of the year, which is also Senior Night.
Boys Golf
The boys golf team defeated The King’s Academy 174-255 last week to complete an undefeated season and earn a fourth consecutive league title. Daulet Tuleubayev, grade 11, and Ryan Vaughan, grade 12, each shot a 35 to tie for the top score of the day. This Wednesday, the Eagles travel to Eagle Ridge for the WBAL Championship.
Lacrosse
The lacrosse team picked up a 14-2 win over Notre Dame Belmont and an 8-7 win over Sacred Heart Cathedral last week to bring their season record to 10-6. The Eagles host Mercy Burlingame on Tuesday and Notre Dame San Jose on Friday to finish off league play. The girls are currently in third place in league, but within striking distance of the top two teams.
Softball
The softball team had a roller coaster of a week as it lost a heartbreaking 10-9 game in 10 innings to Cupertino before taking care of Notre Dame San Jose 10-1 later in the week. In the loss to Cupertino, seniors Joyce Li, Grace Park and Marti Sutton each drove in two runs. In the victory over NDSJ, Anika Rajamani, grade 10, had four hits and drove in three runs. Kristin LeBlanc, grade 11, was equally as impressive on the mound as she struck out nine batters to pick up the win. This week, the Eagles host The King’s Academy on Tuesday and Notre Dame Belmont on Thursday.
Boys Tennis
The boys tennis team had an impressive showing at the WBAL Tournament last week as the doubles finals round was Harker vs. Harker. The team of Ed Tischler, grade 12, and Ram Vegesna, grade 9, defeated the duo of Randy Zhao, grade 11, and Neil Bai, grade 11, to earn the league title. Rishi Dange, grade 9, and David Wen, grade 11, went third and fourth respectively in singles play. CCS boys tennis starts on Wednesday.
Baseball
First place El Camino swept two games from the baseball team last week before the Eagles picked up a win over North Valley Baptist. In a 9-1 loss to El Camino, Mitchell Kole, grade 11, drove in the only Harker run. Later in the week, the Eagles fell 9-8 to El Camino with Varun Haltore, grade 12, leading the offense with three hits and an RBI. Finally, the Eagles took care of NVB 10-0 with Dominic Cea, grade 11, picking up three hits and three RBIs. Cea also combined with Tanay Kamat, grade 11, for a no hitter, striking out 10. This week, the Eagles play at Jefferson on Tuesday and at home against Jefferson on Thursday.
Track and Field
The track and field team competed at the final WBAL meet of the regular season and once again had some great results. The boys 400-meter relay team lowered its season best time as it won its event. Setting the second best Harker time and winning the 100 hurdles was Kismet Singh, grade 9. Anthony Contreras, grade 11, took second in the 100 and 200, setting a personal best in the 100. Grace Koonmen, grade 11, improved her best jump by over a foot in the long jump as she took the number three spot in the league rankings. Tiffany Shou, grade 11, and Davis Howard, grade 12, each threw personal bests in the shot put. The Eagles compete at the WBAL trials this Saturday at Palo Alto High.
Alumni
Izzy Connell ’13 continues to break her own records as her Pepperdine track career comes to an end. Check out all of Connell’s accomplishments here:
The career of D.J. Blickenstaff ’09, a musical theater certificate graduate, continues to heat up! Check him out in the trailer for Netflix’s new series, “Dear White People,” which premiered April 28! https://www.instagram.com/p/BRi7bRfh6tx/
Parents, both those new to Harker and those new to a campus, have the opportunity to meet each other at revamped new parent meetings. The outings are relaxed, offering information as well as plenty of time to socialize!
Earlier this month, Harker took first place at the 2017 Northern California State Championship quiz bowl tournament, organized by National Academic Quiz Tournaments. The Harker A team of senior Nikhil Manglik, juniors Swapnil Garg and Edgar Lin, and freshman Kyle Li went 10-1 overall in the event, which took place April 15 at U.C. Berkeley. In a format similar to game shows, players were asked questions on a wide variety of topics and had to “buzz in” to answer the question before the opposing team.
The Harker A team — minus Garg, due to a schedule conflict — will be competing at the national championship in Atlanta in May, as will another team from Harker made up of ninth graders Arun Sundaresan, Jeffrey Fung and Rohan Cherukuri. Best of luck!
Congratulations to Elise Mayer, grade 10, who was among the top female lacrosse players in the Bay Area to be invited to try out for the National Lacrosse Team. After a grueling tryout, Mayer made Team No. 1 and will represent NorCal in a national competition at Yale over Memorial Day weekend. Great job Elise!
Boys Golf
It was business as usual for the boys golf team last week as it picked up two more wins. The Eagles started the week shooting their best score in Harker history with a 2-under-par performance as a team, defeating Menlo 178-187. Jin Kim, grade 11, led the team as he medaled with a 34. Later in the week, the boys defeated Crystal Springs Uplands 178-207. The Eagles shot the top four scores, with Ryan Vaughan, grade 12, leading the way with a 33, followed closely by Avi Khemani, grade 12, shooting a 34. Today, the Eagles take on Sacred Heart Prep and Thursday they face off with The King’s Academy.
Boys Tennis
The boys tennis team stayed red hot as it swept Priory and Pinewood last week, both 7-0, and have now won seven matches in a row. Today and tomorrow, the Eagles will be playing in CCS qualifying matches at Menlo, with CCS starting next week.
Lacrosse
It was a very good week for the lacrosse team as it picked up three wins to bring the season record to 8-6. The girls started the week with an 18-10 win over Salinas, followed by a hard-fought 13-12 win over Carlmont, with a 20-10 victory over Stevenson to finish the week. This week, the Eagles host Notre Dame Belmont on Tuesday and travel to Sacred Heart Cathedral on Friday.
Softball
Members of the softball team flexed their muscles as they put up big numbers in two wins last week. In a 12-1 win over Fremont early in the week, Kristin LeBlanc, grade 11, had three hits and three RBIs, with Grace Park, grade 12, and Taylor Lam, grade 10, also driving in two runs each. Later in the week, it was LeBlanc making noise on the mound as she no-hit Castilleja in a 15-0 mercy rule game. Park led the offense with three RBIs. This week, the Eagles travel to Cupertino on Tuesday and host Notre Dame San Jose on Thursday.
Track and Field
The Eagles took their largest team ever to face off with some of the best in CCS track last week at the CCS Top 8 at Los Gatos. The girls 400-meter relay team of Grace Koonmen, grade 11, Gloria Guo, grade 11, Nikki Solanki, grade 9, and Alycia Cary, grade 10, broke their school record for the third time this season, lowering their mark by .5 seconds. Also, Anthony Contreras, grade 11, ran a personal best in the 400. Next up for the Eagles is a trip to Sacred Heart Prep for WBAL meet No. 3.
Boys Volleyball
The boys volleyball team dropped a 3-2 match with Homestead last week to bring its season record to 14-10 on the season. This week, the Eagles take on Saratoga at home on Wednesday and travel to Cupertino on Friday.
Baseball
The baseball team went 1-2 last week, dropping 9-0 and 6-4 games to Crystal Springs Uplands, before defeating San Jose 13-2 later in the week. The 8-8 Eagles play home and away on Tuesday and Thursday versus El Camino before traveling to North Valley Baptist on Friday.
Swim
The swim team was off last week.It will take on The King’s Academy this Wednesday at Singh Aquatic Center.
The literary success continues for Jacqueline He, grade 11, who was recently awarded second place in the fiction portion of the Bennington College Young Writers Awards. More than 2,000 students from across the world entered this year’s contest, held by Vermont’s Bennington College, whose alumni have included Pulitzer Prize winners, poet laureates and a MacArthur Fellow.
Earlier this year, He received four Gold Keys and four Silver Keys in the 2017 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and took first place in the high school poetry category in Writing Conference Inc.’s 2017 Writing Contest. In December, she was named a national finalist in the 2017 YoungArts Competition.
A team of Harker students won the first Stanford Pre-Collegiate Economics Competition, held April 15 at Stanford University. The team of Adriano Hernandez, Alan Jiang, Jacob Ohana, Derek Yen and Randy Zhao, all grade 11, narrowly defeated teams from Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and The Bishop’s School in San Diego. During the competition, Harker’s team gave a presentation on the federal response to the Great Depression and the 2008 financial crisis. The competition also included a multiple-choice exam. As a bonus, the students also had the opportunity to attend a talk by influential macroeconomist John Taylor, who is currently a professor at Stanford.
The track and field team was very busy and very successful last week. On Wednesday, it traveled to Bellarmine to compete at the WBAL No. 2. Highlights included a new school record in the girls 400-meter relay by Grace Koonmen, grade 11, Gloria Guo, grade 11, Nikki Solanki, grade 9, and Alycia Cary, grade 10. In addition, Davis Dunaway, grade 12, won both the 100-meter dash and 300 hurdles; Andy Koonmen, grade 10, won the boys 3200; Niki Iyer, grade 12, won the girls 1600; Davis Howard, grade 12, won both the discus and shot put; and Kismet Singh, grade 9, won the 100 hurdles, followed by Lilly Anderson, grade 10, and Solanki, for a Harker 1-2-3 sweep.
Later in the week, the Eagles competed at the Bearcat Invitational at San Mateo High. Koonmen, Guo, Solanki and Cary once again broke the school record in the 400 relay, finishing with the third fastest time in league this season. Angel Cervantes, grade 11, Mitch Granados, grade 10, Anthony Contreras, grade 11, and Dunaway ran the fastest 400 relay time in league this year. Contreras also ran 200 and 400 races that put him No. 2 in league, while Dunaway set the best pole vault mark in league this year. Setting season bests were Koonmen in the 100, Singh and Anderson in the 100 hurdles, and Tiffany Shou, grade 11, in the discus. In addition, Howard set a personal best in the discus by 20 feet.
Next up for the Eagles is the CCS Top 8 meet at Los Gatos on Saturday.
Boys Golf
The boys golf team continues to dominate as it took care of Pinewood 199-300 last week. Jaimin Bhagat, grade 9, led Harker with a 38, followed by Ryan Vaughan, grade 12, and Victor Shin, grade 11, each shooting 39. This week, the Eagles take on Menlo on Wednesday and Crystal Springs Uplands on Friday.
Lacrosse
The girls lacrosse team picked up a hard-fought 9-8 victory over Newark memorial last week. It’s a busy week for the Eagles as they host Salinas on Tuesday and Carlmont on Wednesday before traveling to Stevenson on Friday.
Boys Volleyball
The boys volleyball team went 1-1 last week and is now 14-9 on the season. The Eagles defeated Westmont 3-2 early in the week before falling to Los Gatos 3-2. This week, the boys host Homestead on Tuesday.
Swim
The Harker swim team hosted a jamboree last week, with good results. Highlights included Vivian Wang, grade 11, winning the 200 and 100 free in CCS qualifying times; Angela Li, grade 10, winning the 200 individual medley; the 200 medley relay team of Wang, Li, Alyssa Huang, grade 9, and Clarissa Wang, grade 10, winning their race in CCS qualifying time; Ethan Hu, grade 9, qualifying for CCS in both the 100fly and 100 breast; and the team of Jack Farnham, grade 12, Yannick Bohbot-Dridi, grade 11, Justin Culpepper, grade 12, and Hu qualifying for CCS in the 200 medley relay. Next up for the Eagles is a home meet versus The King’s Academy on April 26.
Baseball
The baseball team dropped two games to Mills last week. The Eagles started the week with a 4-0 loss, followed by a 6-4 loss. In the latter game, Max Lee, grade 9, and Varun Haltore, grade 12, each had two hits and an RBI. Next up for the boys is a trip to Crystal Springs Uplands on Tuesday and a home game with CSU on Thursday.
Softball
Last week, the softball team picked up a 9-2 win over Pinewood before dropping a tough game to Palo Alto 12-8. In the win over Pinewood, Taylor Lam, grade 10, and Kristin LeBlanc, grade 11, each drove in two runs. In the loss to Palo Alto, Marti Sutton, grade 12, and Lam each drove in two runs and Cameron Zell, grade 10, had three hits and an RBI. This week, the Eagles host Fremont on Tuesday and travel to Castilleja on Thursday.
Boys Tennis
The boys tennis team continues to roll as it defeated Evergreen 6-1 last week. The Eagles have won 10 of their last 11 matches. This week, the boys take on Priory on Wednesday and Pinewood on Thursday.
Elisabeth Siegel ’16, a Mitra Grant recipient during her senior year at Harker, has had her Mitra paper, titled “Ideology through Subliminal Propaganda: A Critique of Portrayals of Palestine and Palestinians in Israeli and Western Online News Media during Operation Protective Edge,” published by Yale Review of International Studies! http://yris.yira.org/essays/2005.
Harker history teacher Damon Halback, who mentored Siegel while she wrote the paper, spotted Siegel’s Facebook post, and noted she had added a call to action to current Harker students:
“HARKER STUDENTS — if you still have the chance to apply for a Near/Mitra grant, PLEASE do. It was definitely one of the highlights of my time in high school. It took me on so many unexpected twists and turns, from learning practical skills like writing natural language processing stuff to aid a social science paper as well as not leaving footnotes till the last week before the due date, as well as less tangible things, like determination and self-drive, how much of my life I’d taken for granted, and much more. DO IT!”
Halback also added a special kudos to his colleagues who help administer and manage the endowment papers process. “This is a credit to all the hard work put in every year by Donna [Gilbert, history department chair], Sue [Smith, library director], Meredith [Cranston, upper school librarian] and Lauri [Vaughan, upper school campus librarian] to make Near/Mitra such a wonderful example of the scholarly values that Harker promotes,” he said.
The deadline to apply for a John Near or Mitra Family endowment grant is April 21 at 6 p.m. Details can be found here: http://library.harker.org/Scholars/ScholarApps