The boys soccer team improved to 3-0-1 on the season after a 3-0 win over Saratoga and a 5-3 win over Leigh last week. This Friday, the Eagles host Valley Christian on Davis Field.
Boys Basketball
The boys basketball team had an impressive showing at the Lynbrook Tournament last week, going 2-1 and finishing second. The Eagles defeated North Monterey County 56-43 behind 10 points from Richard Wang, grade 11, in the opening round game. In the second round, the boys picked up a hard-fought 86-85, double OT win over host Lynbrook, with Eric Jeong, grade 12, scoring 21 points and Gene Wang, grade 11, adding 18 points. However, the Eagles fell to Mills 38-52 in the finals. Jarrett Anderson, grade 11, had 12 points in the loss. Next up for the Eagles is a trip to Woodside High on Saturday.
Girls Basketball
The girls basketball team went 1-2 at the Santa Clara Tourney last week. In their 20-70 opening round defeat by Edison, Satchi Thockchom, grade 12, led the way with six points. The Eagles bounced back in their second round matchup, defeating Hill 54-30 with Akhila Ramgiri, grade 11, leading the offense with 15 points. The girls dropped their final game 45-67 against Lowell, with Ramgiri scoring 11 points and Thockchom adding 10 points. This Saturday, the girls play at Woodside High.
Girls Soccer
The girls soccer team dropped two games last week, a 3-0 loss to North Monterey County and a 7-0 defeat to O’Connell High. This week, the Eagles take on Alisal High on Friday on Davis Field.
Swim
Congratulations to Ethan Hu, grade 10, and Vivian Wang, grade 12, on their strong showing at the USA Winter Junior Nationals. Hu won the 100 yard butterfly and Wang won the B final in the 100 breaststroke. Hu and Wang are coming off a Harker swim season last spring in which both finished fourth in the state finals in their respective strokes.
Yesterday’s LID Vision Day offered Harker teachers the opportunity to attend a variety workshops led by Harker middle school teachers, some of whom participated in the 2017 LID Grant program. A total of six sessions, held concurrently in various rooms around the middle school campus, gave teachers insight into how their colleagues used the program to bolster their teaching methods.
History teacher Sara Pawloski, English teacher Mark Gelineau and Spanish teacher Julie Pinzas demonstrated Google Expeditions VR by taking teachers on a virtual trip to New York’s Citi Field using special headsets. Science teacher Kathy Peng recapped the fidget spinner projects she had her students conduct using 3-D printers, which provided valuable lessons on how to design group projects that integrate self and peer assessment, project reflection and other useful concepts.
In history teacher Melanie Ramsey’s classroom, teachers learned how visual notetaking could help students better retain and understand the material they learn, in addition to improving their creative thinking. Math teacher Andy Gersh showed teachers how the use of games such as Minecraft could encourage reflection on classroom lessons.
Teachers attending math teacher Hava Sasson’s workshop learned the various uses of Desmos, an web-based graphing calculator that also serves as a collaboration tool, and how teachers can use it to creative unique lessons and assignments. History teacher Keith Hirota demonstrated how to create interactive lessons using software called Apollo, whose simple drag-and-drop functionality makes adding files easy. Students can also collaborate on these files using their own devices as well as access them from home.
Lower school chess champs Omya and Vyom Vidyarthi (grade 2 and 5, respectively) have done it again! At the 2017 CalChess Grade Level Championship last weekend, Vyom won all six rounds in the fifth grade section to take first place. Meanwhile, Omya placed third in the second grade section.
Vyom had success in November as well, tying for third place at the 2017 California Class Warfare Championship, held Nov. 24-25, where he competed against grand master, international master and national master players. He was also one of 17 top young chess players invited to the US Chess School in Glendale.
Omya and Vyom were also members of a team that included Harker students Anika Rajaram, grade 4, and Rohan Rajaram, grade 1, which won the elementary competition and placed fourth overall in the combined K-12 and K-8 section at the bi-annual Northern California Scholastic Team Championship, held Nov. 11-12.
As a result of his recent performances, Vyom has been named one of the top 10-year-old chess players in the country, and will compete as a representative of the United States next year in Spain at the World Cadets Chess Championships.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
We asked Harker grads now in their second year of college a few questions about their freshman year to give our 2017 alumni – and those who will follow – some perspective on that first year away. Read on!
How tough were the academic requirements the first year of college compared with your senior year at Harker?
Comments ranged from “pretty hard” and “slightly more difficult” to “insanely easy; I couldn’t believe it.” Others responded in more detail: “I thought that the academic rigor was as much as my senior year load at Harker. Granted, I took five AP classes, but I truly felt overprepared for managing my time and making sure I finished all my assignments, successfully completed projects and adequately studied for midterms.”
“The structure of the material and assignments were different, but the difficulty and challenges were very similar; the transition was easy, and I felt I had the confidence to tackle my courses head-on.” “College is definitely significantly harder than any year at Harker. You have to be a lot more self-sufficient, and the material is much harder.” “Harder. Mainly because much more personal motivation was required.” “A little less. Less homework and assignments, but a lot of difficult exams.”
What was easier to figure out or adjust to than you expected?
Answers included such things as “moving” and “my schedule.” Some respondents elaborated: “Living an independent lifestyle and scheduling … for the most part.” “Living without parents seemed like it would be tough, but it can also be a lot of fun!” “I was very worried about adjusting to college life and balancing everything, but I didn’t even have to think how to adjust to academics. Harker prepares you perfectly.”
“Adjusting to the academic lifestyle of college was much easier than for some of my peers. Pacing my work and setting priorities was a breeze. And knowing to use stress productively for finals and midterms made those periods much easier.” “Living away from my parents was not as bad as I thought it would be.”
What was the best piece of advice your parents gave you about college that turned out to be helpful?
Answers ranged from the frank, “I honestly can’t recall,” to “Time is incredibly valuable; don’t waste it.” Other responses included “join clubs” and “stay on top of your work. Honestly, it feels so good to be ahead of your homework schedule.” “Have fun and don’t forget to focus on your studies. Although not entirely helpful, it was incredibly reassuring to know that my parents were encouraging of my college life. When I began to slack off, I would remind myself why I came in the first place.”
“They told me that it was essential to reach out to others (professors, fellow students) to get the most out of the college experience. Usually, people would be more than happy to help or have a conversation, and everyone benefits from it.” “Take it one step at a time. It’s not a race, it’s a marathon – only take on what you are passionate about and can handle.” “Work hard, but relax sometimes and try not to stress out too much or overwork yourself.”
Some cited very practical advice, including “always demand money from your friends” – presumably when on group outings and money is being spent! Also, “Don’t leave your laundry in the machines overnight (clothes get wrinkly, thrown outside because someone else wants to use the machine, or stolen).”
Did anything really catch you by surprise?
We were happy to see this response! “The ease of the classes I took, but that won’t stand true for everyone. However, Harker does prepare you for the workload, which helps.” Others shared similar sentiments: “It’s not as hard as people make it out to be,” said one, while another said, “College is much more relaxed and less stressful.”
We received plenty of practical feedback, too! “How easy it was to stay alone in my room. Honestly, go out and meet people. You don’t realize how valuable friendships can be when it comes to college. The people you meet will carry you through everything (academically and socially). It’s great.” “The academics. The social environment. The fact that I could slack off and have no repercussions … except, you know, the fact that I’d have to eventually catch up.”
What was the hardest thing about dorm life?
Getting used to sharing space was tough for some. “The most annoying thing for me was showering in communal showers” or, as another said, “Living with other people! They are all on different schedules, have different priorities and are not use to the academic rigor from their high school that you are used to.”
“Meeting people you like or setting ground rules that people actually follow. Also, there are a lot of people who don’t know how to live by themselves. If they stress you out, take the time to teach them. Most importantly, though, I can’t stress how important it is to be empathetic to the fact that everyone comes from a different background. If you take the time to appreciate the differences between you guys, then you’ll have an awesome time at college.”
In plain and simple language: “Your roommate will either be a hit or miss. If you have a great roommate, dorm life is a breeze. If not, you will most likely be miserable.”And, finally, there is the unfortunate: “I hated my roommate and had to live with him. Also communal bathrooms were kinda annoying. My room was next to the common room, and we could NOT sleep, ever.”
What did you like best about dorm life?
In short, most graduates like the freedom and independence of living away from home! One respondent was frank: “The freedom to plan out and live my life as I please instead of at the behest of others (cough, parents).” Added another, “It’s your own place. Your dorm is your home away from home, and you can keep it however you would like. You can choose when to socialize versus when to study, you can leave to the library or classroom building whenever you like.”
Others enjoy the social side of dorms: “Roommates.” “I got to meet a lot of bright and interesting students around my age, and made many close friends.” “Finding friends. I loved all the friends I made. The people on my floor became my closest friends, and they still are. We had a really tight community.”
And finally, the right to stay up all night: “Being able to game all night long, without anyone judging me.”
What was your routine for managing homework and extracurricular activities while maintaining a social life?
There are those who handle the dichotomy of academics and socializing with aplomb: “Eh, just play it by ear and things will work out. Don’t take a ridiculously hard schedule.” Others, meanwhile, set up a system that gives them structure: “I made a schedule for the week, prioritized what I had to complete by a certain day and made sure I took one day off from work per week.”
One alumni summed it up nicely: “Setting priorities, but being flexible enough to push one out for the other; college is about experiences, not accomplishment.” Finally, “You can’t have the best of both worlds, unless you love being sleep deprived and stressed all the time.”
Did you have a surprisingly good or surprisingly bad class? If bad, how did you cope?
The good news: “I had some surprisingly good classes but not really any surprisingly bad ones.” Added another, “My freshman writing seminar was a surprisingly wonderful class, and I’m friends with everyone from that class even today.” The practical advice: “I coped by forming study groups, getting to know other students, etc. The best friendships are made through mutual suffering.”
“There will always be that one class per semester that ends up being incredibly painful to sit though. Make at least one good friend in that class to help you through it. You can rant and study together if you have a friend.” “My econ class second semester was surprisingly horrible. I could not get through one session without wanting to fall asleep from the professor’s droning. But I coped by reading the textbook, going to mentor sessions for help on the problem sets and approaching the professor directly during office hours to ask for clarifications on topics I couldn’t understand (or tuned out) during class.”
The wonderful: “Many of my freshman fall classes, while difficult, were really good! In particular, one of the statistics classes I took was amazing. It was very different from AP stat and it opened my eyes to the realm of possibilities within stats.”
Do you have any good advice for socializing in your first few months at college?
Some solid opinions on this question! “You have to reach out and make an effort!! You can’t just expect new friends to walk up and knock on your door because they’ve heard about how great you are. Get out there and be social and interesting!”
Great practical advice: “Be free to get out of your comfort zone a little; talk to people about your interests and hopefully it will work out. That being said, don’t let people peer pressure you into doing things you know you don’t want to do.”
Less easy to endorse: “Do something crazy! Others will admire you for it, and you’ll have some great inside jokes for the rest of the year.”
Is the climate significantly different at your university than in the Bay Area? If so, what is your most memorable experience with the new climate?
Most respondents are in temperate zones, but we did hear from a couple of alumni on the East Coast: “Yep! Ithaca, N.Y., is one of the coldest places ever. California is one of the warmest places ever. I am the only person from California in my friend group, yet I bonded with my best friends through knowing nothing about the snow. We took a walk around campus on the first snow, we went sledding down the ‘slope’ when we had a snow day – and these were some of the most fun moments in my freshman year.”
“Blizzards were fantastic, but hurricanes were awful. Seventy mile per hour winds and we still had class. Also it got down to 10 below zero and that was darn freaking cold, but we still had class.”
How long did it take to adjust to being away from home?
Apparently, practice makes perfect (see World Wise, page 50) and Harker grads adapt pretty quickly to being away: “Not very long. I had taken week-long camps where I was away from home for the past five years, so I knew how to adjust.”
“It honestly took until mid-October at least. Even when I went back for Thanksgiving break, it took a while to adjust going back to school for finals. It will take however long you need it to, and you honestly bond with people at college about being away from home as well! If you are going through it, odds are someone else is too.”
“Not long. I had attended debate camps throughout high school, so the experience was very similar. A month or less.” “Not long. I missed my family the first couple of days, but soon orientation and then classes quickly picked up, so I was preoccupied with a lot of things and didn’t have time to think about home.”
Is the culture where you now live significantly different than in Northern California? If so, how, and how would you recommend new freshmen approach the differences?
Ah, the voyage of discovery: “People wear a lot less (even in the winter) and practically everyone is a liberal. I find it borders on a kind of tribalism, ironically, but most people still work to be accepting of everything.” Another added this bit of practical advice: “The Silicon Valley and the West Coast are way different than everywhere else. Don’t take offense when a New Englander doesn’t want to be friends. It’s not you personally, it’s just the culture. Know that you probably won’t be able to find Indian food outside of a big city.”
This respondent offered some wise words: “You will meet people who come from vastly different socioeconomic, cultural and family backgrounds from you. Everyone should take the time to reflect on their privilege in coming from a school like Harker and take the time to genuinely listen and understand other people’s stories. Make the point of meeting people who aren’t the same as you because those people are the ones who will push you to grow the most.”
“As you are making friends in your first year, choose people who are positive and supportive. Also be conscious of the kind of friend you are – constantly repeating how tired and/or stressed you are doesn’t help anyone’s mood. Don’t be afraid to open up and be vulnerable because that’s how casual friendships grow deeper. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Know the counseling and psychological services available to you, and never hesitate to use them when you need it. Don’t let stigma or pride or fear keep you from getting support that everyone needs at some point in their lives.”
Did you take advantage of office hours? If so, did going help?
Both sides weigh in: “Nope. Probably went like once,” said one respondent, but another countered, “Yes! They do [help]. I didn’t for the first semester, but second semester I did and they truly help 100 percent.”
And the ambiguous: “Yes and no. I didn’t go to most office hours but that was mostly because I was lazy. I did go whenever I had questions or just wanted to go over the material, which helped most of the time. Definitely go if you’re struggling to keep up.” Less ambiguously: “Yes!! Please, please take advantage of office hours. Especially for liberal arts colleges, professors are there for you, and they want to help. They won’t think you’re dumb if you don’t understand something; most professors will try earnestly to explain things in different ways so you can understand. Professors are not out to get you, they want you to do well!”
Food for thought: “Yes, but most classes had TAs during office hours and not the professors themselves.” “My professors had useless office hours and were never there so, no, not really.”
What are some tips for meeting and getting along with your roommate and/or the people on your hall?
One respondent just said, “Hang out in common areas,” but others were more forthcoming: “Get out there and be weirdly social,” said one, while another advised, “Disclose all your weird stuff up front – then there are no surprises.”
Solid advice: “Just introduce yourself and talk normally. No need to feel awkward. Everyone is nervous; it’s their first time living away from home. I introduced myself to one of my neighbors, and asked a question. We ended up spending 30 minutes figuring out the answer … and now she’s my best friend and we’re living together this year. You never know when you’ll meet someone who will be in your life for a very long time!”
“Setting ground rules is a must. Especially when it comes to personal space and cleanliness. Make sure to clean up after yourself and your friends who visit!” “Getting along with your roommate; make accommodations. Don’t be that person who refuses to turn off the main light in your room if your roommate wants to sleep. Living with a roommate means that you have to cooperate and compromise, and if you don’t learn to do that, problems will inevitably arise. You’d be surprised at the little amount it takes for people to start laughing and having fun in college. We were all eating snacks in the hall one time, and one of my friends starts stuffing as many grapes as she could in her mouth. It soon turned into a weird game of Chubby Bunny, but the laughter from that night remains one of the most memorable moments in my hall from freshman year.”
Many thanks to those in the Class of 2016 who responded to our survey! Those who included their names: Eesha Chona, Zarek Drozda, Cynthia Hao, Alex Henshall, Philip Krause, Chandler Nelson, Rajiv Sancheti, Ameek Singh, MC Smitherman, Alice Wu, Tong Wu, Richard Yi and Michael Zhao.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
By João-Pierre S. Ruth
Recently, a computer science instructor at Stanford asked students in an auditorium to raise their hands if they could program in four specific programming languages. Only two students knew all four – and both were Harker grads. This is not surprising to those familiar with Harker’s broad range of technology offerings, which start in kindergarten and drive students to increasingly challenge themselves.
This early inclusion of technology at Harker is part of an academic strategy that prepares students to use what they learn in computer science and programming outside of the classroom. The intensive instruction is designed as a marathon, rather than a sprint, and aims to teach students critical-thinking skills and how to continually use technology as a tool.
Liz Brumbaugh, Harker’s director of learning, innovation and design (LID) for preschool-grade 12, said by being device and platform agnostic, Harker is unique, as schools typically provide just one or two types of devices or platforms to teach technology. Harker’s approach gives students more comprehensive exposure when dealing with computer sciences. Learning to solve problems through programming, or even with Minecraft as the vehicle, is a useful tool. “You walk into any job and you have to be prepared to work with any type of device and use any type of program,” she said.
A comprehensive training regimen at Harker’s lower, middle and upper schools is designed to weave computer science seamlessly into the students’ everyday academic experience.
Getting Started at the Lower School
Students throughout the lower school use mobile devices: iPads for K-3 and Chromebooks from the third through fifth grades. “At every grade level, students are using technology as tools for learning activities,” said Lisa Diffenderfer, computer science department chair and K-5 LID director. This includes research, presentations and practicing specific skills taught in their core classes, she said.
Kindergartners attend computer science and skills courses starting the very first week of school. “They have a 42-minute computer science class once a week for the entire school year where they are introduced to and practice tech literacy skills, such as typing and creating digital artwork,” Diffenderfer said. Midway through the school year, she said, they begin to learn programming fundamentals such as sequencing, logic and problem-solving through an iPad app called Osmo Coding and its corresponding coding blocks.
In first grade, computer science classes are held three times per week in the third trimester of the year. This includes working with an iPad app to practice using algorithmic thinking. The frequency of computer curriculum increases at the lower school so that when students reach grade 5, they take computer science classes twice per week in the first trimester and five days per week in the third trimester. In the first half of that grade 5 course, Diffenderfer said, students use robotics as a path to practice programming concepts. Students use visual programming and Lego Mindstorms EV3 robots to work out solutions to different challenges such as how to program self-driving cars.
Building Up the Skill Set
Sam Linton, a computer science teacher at the middle school, said there are recurring themes throughout the required courses, such as design process and systems thinking presented in a variety of contexts. “In the middle school, we try to expose the students to a wide range of computer science topics, not just programming, in a fun and accessible way,” he said.
For students who intend to continue on in computer science at the upper school, the goal is to lay the conceptual groundwork to better prepare them, Linton said. “To this end, we give them exposure to computer programming languages ranging from Scratch to Python to Java, as well as concepts such as flowcharting.” There is also an elective Java course, which is a good introduction to and preparation for the more demanding approach at the upper school, he said.
Sharmila Misra, also a computer science teacher, said students in all three grade levels are required to take semester-long computer science classes; semester-long electives also are available for all grades. “The required computer science classes curriculum helps every student, both in STEM and STEAM, acquire the computer science concepts required before they leave for the upper school,” she said.
In the required computer science class, students are taught the design thinking process, which is similar to the software development life cycle. The process comprises user empathy, planning and design, making a prototype, taking feedback, improvising and testing to attain user satisfaction.
These classes are not always focused on syntax-based coding languages, Misra said; computer programming is a small subset of computer science. One reason for the ongoing focus on computer science concepts is that if the knowledge is not used after the semester, it may be forgotten, she said. However, if students are taught logical and analytical skills through systems thinking, computer architecture and flowcharts, they can continue to benefit from the curriculum.
Scott Kley Contini, grade 6-8 LID director, said the programs at the middle school include Gamestar Mechanic, a platform that allows students to create online video games. This design class lets students develop games that can be exchanged with students in other countries. By using the online platform Pythonroom, students also can learn the fundamentals of computer programming and coding. Students then run their programs through online servers that allow for fast, personalized learning opportunities.
Putting the Knowledge to Work
Brumbaugh said that scaling up the challenges for students is important for helping them develop the logic-based, problem solving skill set that is unique to programming. “At the upper school, we have three different tracks in an introductory sense that students could take, plus there is a computer science graduation requirement,” she said.
Upper school students put their accumulated knowledge to the test as they work with more applied aspects of computer science, said Eric Nelson, upper school computer science department chair. “Once they get past preparing for the AP exam, they can take the advanced topics courses, which paradoxically tend to get back to the more fundamental aspects of things,” he said. This includes working with Java, a very high-level computing language full of protections and abstractions that insulate the programmer from the hardware. “Understanding what is under the hood is the difference between being a driver and being a mechanic,” Nelson said. Java teaches students how to drive when it comes to programming. The advanced topics offerings help them learn to be mechanics.
There is also a neural networks course in which students spend the semester creating a basic multilayer perceptron, a type of algorithm, which is the basis for all deep-learning systems. “The differences are in how they are wired, but the principles don’t change,” Nelson said. Through the curriculum, students get a deep understanding of how pattern classifiers work at the lowest levels rather than see them just as black boxes (a computing term for an object with mysterious workings).
Another course in artificial intelligence explores expert systems, which is something the public encounters any time they use a kiosk that asks questions about their preferences. This is a specialized technology, Nelson said, and professionals who build expert systems are pretty scarce. “Learning about and implementing the expert system life cycle will give them a potential edge if they encounter it,” he said.
Getting into the digital nitty-gritty, students in the computer architecture course learn to build a computer from the ground up, starting with NAND logic gates, which is the base element for all logic systems. “There is a local startup that is building educational tools for colleges and universities that teach just these concepts,” Nelson said. Taking the lessons to the next level starts to bring the components together.
In the compilers course, Nelson said, students get a full understanding of what happens to their code as it gets transformed into machine-readable form, what optimization really means and the traps it hides. The programming languages course introduces them to language paradigms other than Java. This requires them to think differently as they move from one language to another.
Two of the languages the students work with are Fortran and C, which Nelson said students are likely to encounter in industry or research. Upper school students also work with LabVIEW, which is the systems engineering software used to control the Large Hadron Collider at CERN (Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire – the European organization for nuclear research). The numerical methods course introduces students to what is happening behind the scenes in tools such as MATLAB and Mathematica, as well as many of the libraries they use as black boxes in Java and Python.
“All of this exposure is superimposed on a requirement to develop good coding practices and a ‘keen grasp of the obvious’ in terms of user interface design and functionality,” Nelson said. Through Harker’s intensive program, students can gain experience with computer science far earlier than their peers at other schools, said Nelson.
This naturally helps them stand out in their university courses and first employment opportunities in computer science, he added, relaying the Stanford University anecdote. When the computer science instructor asked who could program in Java, JavaScript, Python and Fortran, only the two Harker alumni knew all four.
“Both students were in my programming languages course last year,” Nelson said. The Stanford instructor went on to state that Fortran was a trick question, since freshmen were not expected to know Fortran. “Our students now stand out amongst a room full of the best and the brightest at Stanford,” Nelson said. Even if a Harker student does not intend to pursue a career in programming, the problem-solving and logic skills learned here “could be useful to solve any work-related challenge or challenges related to fixing bugs; troubleshooting itself is a detailed process that adults rely upon daily,” said Brumbaugh. If students want to explore computer sciences outside of the curriculum tracks they are on, they also can join extracurricular activities, such as the robotics team, Brumbaugh added. “Our students are going to be the ones who create what the next programming language is – the systems that make currently existing processes better.”
Contributor João-Pierre S. Ruth is based in the New York City area.
The Mercury News posted a very nice article noting a girl from Gunn High School has started an outreach effort with Veterans and students from Harker and other schools are also now participating.
The Mercury News posted a very nice article noting a girl from Gunn High School has started an outreach effort with Veterans and students from Harker and other schools are also now participating.
The Mercury News posted a very nice article noting a girl from Gunn High School has started an outreach effort with Veterans and students from Harker and other schools are also now participating.
Last week, the girls soccer team opened its season with a 0-2 loss to Independence and a 0-3 loss to Half Moon Bay. This week, the Eagles travel to North Monterey County High on Wednesday before hosting O’Connell High on Friday.
Boys Soccer
The boys soccer team opened its season with a bang as it defeated Mills 7-0. Later in the week, the Eagles played to a 1-1 tie with Wilcox. This week, the boys host Saratoga on Wednesday and travel to Leigh on Friday.
Girls Basketball
Last week, the girls basketball team traveled to the Pescadero Tournament, where it went 2-1. In their opening matchup with host Pescadero, the Eagles defeated the Vikings 73-22 behind 20 points from Satchi Thockchom, grade 12. The Eagles lost a close 48-50 matchup with Alma Heights Christian in the second round, with Akhila Ramgiri, grade 11, scoring 22 points. In their final game, the girls defeated Point Arena 60-45, with Ramgiri leading the way again with 17 points. This Wednesday, the Eagles travel to the Santa Clara Tournament to take on Edison High.
Boys Basketball
The boys basketball team opened up the regular season with a 2-1 showing at the James Lick Tournament last week. In the opening game, the Eagles were defeated by Wilcox 72-56, with Eric Jeong, grade 12, leading the offense with 14 points. Richard Wang, grade 11, led the team with 11 points as the Eagles defeated Hill 53-42 in their second game. Finally, the Eagles defeated host James Lick 78-56 on Saturday night. This Thursday, the boys play North Monterey County in the opening round of the Lynbrook Winter Classic
Fall Season All-League
The Harker Eagles had a great fall season and were well represented in the WBAL All-League teams. For cross country, Anna Weirich, grade 9, was awarded first team honors, with Lilia Gonzales, grade 11, and Ryan Adolf, grade 11, receiving honorable mentions. The girls golf team made a huge impact on the All-League teams as Katherine Zhu, grade 12, Katelyn Vo, grade 10, and Natalie Vo, grade 9, were all named to the first team; Olivia Guo, grade 9, was given second team honors; and Alisa Su, grade 12, Larissa Tyagi, grade 10, and Vanessa Tyagi, grade 12, each earned honorable mentions.
In girls tennis, Gina Partridge, grade 10, and Santu Tirumala, grade 9, were named to the first team, with Rachel Broweleit, grade 10, and Srivani Vegesna, grade 10, earning second team honors, and Kathleen Cheng, grade 12, receiving an honorable mention.
The girls volleyball team had two seniors earn All-League honors with Lauren Napier, grade 12, receiving a second team nod and Isabella Spradlin, grade 12, landing an honorable mention.
In the pool, Meghana Karinthi, grade 12, and Abigail Wisdom, grade 11, each earned a first team honors and Claudia Opris, grade 11, earned an honorable mention in girls water polo. On the boys side, Aadith Srinivasan, grade 12, received a first team honor, while Bobby Bloomquist, grade 11, made the second team and Matthew Hajjar, grade 11, was an honorable mention.
Alumni
Congratulations to Joelle Anderson ’17 on being named to the All-West Region second team after an impressive freshman year with a Pepperdine soccer team that finished the season ranked No. 12 in the country. Check out the full story here:
Four Harker students qualified for the American Choral Directors Association California All-State Choir, which will perform in San Jose Feb. 15-18. To be selected for the All-State Choir, the students had to audition, qualify and attend the ACDA Regional Honor Choir. Their regional audition scores were used to determine their eligibility for All-State. Musicians will be placed in mixed, men’s, or women’s choruses with approximately 120 singers in each ensemble. Please congratulate Joel Morel, grade 10, tenor, Camerata; Vaishnavi Murari, grade 9, alto, Bel Canto; Karli Sharp, grade 11, soprano, Cantilena; and Meilin Yen, grade 9, soprano, Bel Canto, when you see them!