More than 3,500 Harker community members headed to the upper school campus this past Saturday for the second annual Harker Day. Families spent the day enjoying food, games, sports and live entertainment by Harker students.
The many games on offer included Skee-Ball, air hockey, foosball and electronic basketball. Elsewhere, younger students enjoyed pumpkin painting and an inflatable slide. Food trucks and Ms. Carly’s Café served patrons a wide variety of foods throughout the day, and animal rescue organizations brought in puppies, kittens and guinea pigs that were very popular with visitors of all ages. Meanwhile, Harker performing arts groups from the lower, middle and upper schools entertained large crowds at the Patil Theater.
Students also sold food and drinks at concession areas throughout the day to raise money for their classes. Senior Arissa Huda was one such student. “I love selling stuff,” she said. “I’ve actually made quite a bit of money for the senior class and for WiSTEM.”
Ally Lee, grade 12, a representative of Harker’s Art Club, helped organize and run the pumpkin decorating table and said she enjoyed “seeing a bunch of the alumni and teachers I’ve had.”
Loren Due ’85, one of many Harker graduates lounging at the special alumni area, said he enjoyed Harker Day because of how it “brings all the campuses together, especially with the sports and having the opportunity for the middle and upper school to participate on the same campus on the same day.”
Laena St. Jules ’04 remarked at how much the campus had changed since she graduated. “I really just am enjoying seeing how much everything has transformed, everything is building and growing in a very positive direction and offering students new things,” she said.
Several Harker sports teams were in competition during the day, and Eagle fans showed up to cheer on the boys and girls volleyball and water polo teams, as well as the grade 8 flag football team. Other sports activities included a morning tennis clinic and a water polo clinic in the afternoon.
Just before the start of Homecoming festivities, the 2022 Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony welcomed three alumni – Alex Abarca ’09, Daniza Rodriguez ’13 and Amanda (Polzin) Sullivan ’06 – and the entire 2007-08 girls varsity volleyball team into the Harker Athletic Hall of Fame.
As the varsity football Homecoming game against the Delta Charter Dragons approached, attendees moved to the bleachers at Davis Field to view the third-place tug-of-war contest between the juniors and seniors, which ended in a victory for the Class of 2024. The crowd also enjoyed pre-game appearances by Junior Cheerleaders and the Eaglets, as well as the Harker Choir’s rendition of The Harker School Song and the National Anthem.
The Eagles took control of the game early, surging to a 35-12 lead by halftime. This year’s halftime entertainment was provided by the Harker Cheer Quad and the Harker Dance Company, and the crowd was also treated to the finals of the tug-of-war contest, which saw the sophomores declared champions. Halftime festivities concluded with the crowning of seniors Atri Banerjee and Sawyer Lai as the 2022 Homecoming Royals. In the second half, the Eagles cruised to a 48-20 victory to improve their record to 5-1.
In October, three outstanding alumni — Alex Abarca ’09, Amanda (Polzin) Sullivan ’06 and Daniza Rodriguez ’13 — will be inducted into the Harker Athletic Hall of Fame, along with the entire roster of the 2007-08 girls varsity volleyball team, one of Harker Athletics’ greatest success stories. All of these athletes will be honored for their stellar athletic performance as well as their dedication to becoming well-rounded student athletes. The induction ceremony will be part of the annual Harker Day celebration, which will also include the Homecoming football game and the Family & Alumni Picnic.
An estimated 2,500 people visited the upper school campus on Oct. 9 for the inaugural Harker Day, which combined two Harker traditions – the Family & Alumni Picnic and Homecoming – into a full day of games, food, sports and more.
Attendees traversed the campus, playing a variety of games, including Dance Dance Revolution, air hockey and Skee-Ball. Ms. Carly’s Café, Yoshi and ABVE the Basics served many different kinds of food throughout the day and people packed the Patil Theater to watch performances from lower, middle and upper school performing arts groups. Mini Cat Town, a San Jose-based cat rescue organization, had one of the more popular attractions at the event, as guests flocked there to play with adorable kittens.
Students in attendance were glad to see the community reunite in person after so many months away. “I think the community bonding here is a really nice thing,” said Harshini Chaturdevala, grade 10. “Everyone from all the campuses getting together, it’s a really fun experience.”
Loren Due MS ’85, who lounged at the special alumni meetup area, enjoyed returning to Harker to see “all the teachers and students and staff. It’s great seeing all the activities here.” Due noted that he had seen how the original Family & Alumni Picnic evolved and looked forward to seeing what was in store for Harker Day. “It’s a good carryover from Howard Nichols’ original idea of bringing a community together,” he said.
In the afternoon, the Harker Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place, honoring Cole Davis ’10, Drew Goldstein ’13 and Jessica Khojasteh ’11 for their athletic achievements as well as the example they set in becoming global citizens.
In addition to the Homecoming football game, the JV and varsity boys water polo, JV and varsity girls volleyball and varsity girls water polo teams were also in competition, with fans showing their support. Varsity boys and girls water polo, JV boys water polo and JV girls volleyball all picked up wins, while varsity girls volleyball fell to Castilleja.
Toward the evening, guests moved to Davis Field for the start of the 2021 Homecoming festivities, including the tug-of-war contest between the freshman and the sophomores, which was won by the Class of 2024. After two intense quarters of football between the Eagles and visitors Marina High School, audiences enjoyed performances by the Harker cheer squad and the Harker Dance Company and watched the tug-of-war finals between the classes of 2022 and 2025, in which the seniors emerged victorious. The Homecoming game ended with the Eagles falling to Marina with a final score of 26-42.
As one Harker team celebrates a big win, several others look ahead to Harker Day, during which no fewer than six Harker teams will be competing.
In a highly anticipated contest, Harker girls tennis defeated Menlo 5-2 on Tuesday to improve to 5-0 in league play. The team will host Sacred Heart Prep on Tuesday.
Cross country headed to Half Moon Bay High School last Saturday for a successful meet that saw the boys varsity team finish sixth on the strength of runs by junior Rigo Gonzales (13:42) and sophomore Veyd Patil (13:22). The JV team, led by junior Dawson Chen’s 15:50 run, finished fifth. On the varsity girls squad, junior Kara Kister ran for a time of 16:00 to help her team place sixth. The grade 9 team finished in ninth place, with Harris Miller being the team’s top runner with a time of 15:02. Of particular note was sophomore Ethan Liu, who participated in his first-ever cross country race and finished in the top 50.
In an important league match, girls volleyball triumphed over Notre Dame-San Jose last Thursday, improving their record to 6-13.
Football lost a hard-fought game against Priory last Friday that ended in a 44-38 score and saw frequent lead changes. Currently 2-3, the Eagles look to even their record against Marina High at Saturday’s Homecoming game, which will be streamed live on Harker’s YouTube channel.
On Monday, girls golf lost to Los Altos 214-224 in a non-league match, in which senior Tina Xu shot an impressive 39. The team, still undefeated in league play at 7-0, will face another undefeated team, the 8-0 Castilleja, on Monday.
Varsity boys and girls water polo each lost close games to Gunn High on Monday. At press time, both teams still have winning records, with the boys sitting at second place in league play with a record of 6-2 and the girls currently ranking fourth with a record of 5-4. The girls host Castilleja on Thursday evening and Menlo-Atherton on Saturday. The boys, meanwhile, will play Palo Alto High at home on Saturday. Both Saturday games will be streamed live.
In addition to the already mentioned games, JV boys water polo’s matchup against Palo Alto High, JV and varsity volleyball’s games against Castilleja will also be streamed on YouTube. Be sure to catch the action if you’re unable to attend Harker Day!