This article was originally published in the fall 2012 Harker Quarterly.
Harker’s campuses were a hubbub of summertime activity as the school opened its doors to the public, extending its huge variety of programs to local students, both Harker and non-Harker, and to students from around the globe.
This year saw a potpourri of summer programming options: from Camp+ for younger children, to the Summer Institute for middle and high school students, to a bevy of sports offerings, and the world renowned English Language Institute program.
In fact, for the last 50 years Harker has served as a recognized resource for a wide breadth of summer happenings. New this season was expanded programming for the sports camps. According to Kelly Espinosa, director of summer programs, Harker has always had tennis, soccer, swimming, and sports performance camps. But added this year were football, basketball, volleyball, and water polo camps.
Much thought went into the new sports camps, which integrated lower school and middle school athletics with upper school instructors to create a seamless path for athletes within their chosen sports. Moreover, sports camp participants taking a morning sports program had the option to enroll separately in another camp’s afternoon activity as well.
At Harker, known for its academic excellence, athletic camps were just one of the summer options. For K-6 students, Camp+ offered a full day of morning academics and afternoon activities. Located on Harker’s lower school campus, parents chose sessions by their preferred format, with full-day, partial-day and morning-only options. Students had the choice of enrolling in either Core Focus or LoL (Learning opportunities in Literature). Both programs concluded at 11:30 a.m. to make room for the afternoon activity program, which lasted until 3:30. Core Focus is a three- or four-week math and language arts-focused program. LoL is a two-week integrated curriculum centered on a literary theme. After-care was provided until 5:30, which included pool time, archery and a climbing wall, among other activities.
Meanwhile, The Harker School’s Summer Institute (SI) gave students from grades 6-12 the chance to earn credits, learn new skills and follow their passions. This year’s institute attracted 722 students, with many taking multiple courses. New offerings were art classes, including portfolio preparation in 2-D and 3-D drawing. The for-credit courses included a variety of classes in math, history and technology. Upper school enrichment courses spanned math, writing, art, history and driver’s education. Middle school enrichment was also offered, and included several core subjects as well as classes such as So You Think You Can Cook? and Champion Chess. All SI participants had access to the libraries, pools and a prepared lunch. In addition to sports offerings, Camp+ and SI, each year more than 100 international students – from elementary through high school – participate in Harker’s renowned english Language Institute (eLI) program. They come with the goal of improving their English speaking and writing skills but leave with a breathtaking exposure to cultural adventures as well.
It may be an old cliché, but when it comes to educating these foreign students, the world really is their classroom. Weekly field trips provide international students exposure to local points of interest such as the Golden Gate Bridge, beautiful California beaches, Northern California redwood forest and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The trips are incorporated into the curriculum and students use their travel experiences to create written and oral projects for presentation.
“Harker has been offering outstanding summer programs, held on the school’s safe, secure and centrally-located campuses, for more than 50 years. We have everything a camp consumer could want,” said Espinosa, noting that whether just out of preschool or about to enter their last year of high school, students of all ages and backgrounds can find their perfect summer program at Harker.
For more information on Harker’s summer offerings visit www.summer.harker.org.
Grade 5 and grade 12 students hit the turf at Davis Field on Sept. 20 for the first Eagle Buddies event of the year. After pairing up, the students separated into three groups, each taking part in one of three fun activities set up for the day.
One group of buddies had a blast playing a game in which they had to keep several balloons in the air. Each balloon had a topic written on it, such as role model, favorite animal or favorite superhero. At the end of the game, each pair of buddies caught one of the balloons and sat down to discuss what was written on the balloon. Over at the bleachers, buddies put their heads together to create stylish and intricate logos on their name tags. At another spot, buddies ran up and down the field in a classic three-legged race. Groups were rotated through the three areas to make sure every student had the chance to have fun with all the activities.
After the students had spent time at each activity, they all enjoyed conversation over a hamburger lunch on Davis Field.
Cole Smitherman, grade 5, and his buddy, Pranav Sharma, grade 12, had just met the day of the event but had corresponded by mail beforehand. They learned about each others’ favorite books during the balloon activity (Smitherman’s is “Harry Potter,” while Sharma’s is Albert Camus’ “The Stranger”). “It’s really cool just to be able to connect with someone who’s much younger than we are, and how we were once,” Sharma said.
Grace Hajjar, grade 5, has known her buddy, senior Amy Gendotti, since the Eagle Buddies program started in 2010. “When we first met, we were sort of shy and all, because we didn’t know what we liked,” Hajjar said. “So we got to know each other, and it’s been good.”
Gendotti said the program has been beneficial to her because, “I got to go to a lot of events I normally wouldn’t because I don’t have any younger siblings or anything.”
Middle School Softball
The team is off to a 3-1 start putting them in first place in league with 3-0 record. The team is led by the strong pitching of Meghan Robertson, grade 6, and timely hitting from Kristin LeBlanc, grade 7 and Marti Sutton, grade 8. Strong contributions have come from Lavinia Ding and Grace Park, both grade 8, and Tiffany Shou, grade 7. The team has received strong catching support from Anika Rajamani, grade 6, and some clutch play from Taylor Lam, also grade 6.
Girls Tennis
Girls tennis went 3-0 this week against CCS-quality opponents, wrapping up their strong showing with a dominant 7-0 victory on the road against archrival Sacred Heart Prep. Co-captain Jenny Chen, grade 12, faced off against Sacred Heart’s number one and walked away with the win in two sets 6-2, 6-2. Dora Tzeng, grade 11, extended her streak of outstanding play by blanking her opponent (6-0, 6-0) despite a lingering shoulder injury which forced her to serve underhand for the match. Daria Karakoulka, grade 12, won in straight sets, giving her an undefeated 8-0 record in September. On her way to a perfect month, Karakoulka lost nary a set.
In doubles matches, each of Harker’s teams captured victories as well – a meaningful rout against a foe in Sacred Heart whose doubles lineups had emerged as some of Harker’s strongest competition. Number one team Sat Prakash, grade 11, and Arden Hu, grade 10, won 6-4, 6-3. Number two team Izzy Gross, grade 9, and Sylvie Dobrota, grade 12, won 4-6, 6-1 (10-8). Finally, number three team Indica Sur, grade 12, and Ariana Shulman, grade 11, won 6-4, 6-4.
The team now stands at 5-0 and is 2-0 in the WBAL. Harker plays Notre Dame next Wednesday and then, on Thursday, has an important showdown with league co-leader Menlo at Blackford.
Girls Water Polo
Girls water polo pulled off a great win a couple of weeks ago against Santa Clara High School; check out the writeup in the Santa Clara Weekly.
This article was originally published in the fall 2012 Harker Quarterly.
Harker athletics started the 2012-13 year on a high note with wins in football, volleyball, tennis, water polo and cross country. As the fall sports season had just begun at press time, the most recent results were not available, but stay tuned to Harker News Online (news. harker.org) and keep an eye out for the winter 2012 issue of Harker Quarterly for the latest!
Varsity Football
The Eagles got off to 2-0 start after victories over Yerba Buena High School and Andrew Hill High School. “They executed very well,” said Ron Forbes, head coach. “When we got a big lead the boys didn’t play down – they did well for a young team.” Defensive play has been key, thanks in large part to defensive coordinator Mike Taribassi.
Boys Water Polo
Boys water polo started the season with an overall 4-2 record, going 2-1 in consecutive weekend tournaments, with victories over Harbor High, San Lorenzo Valley, Willow Glen and Santa Clara and losses to Monterey and Pioneer.
Girls Golf
Harker lost an early-September non-league match to Notre Dame-Belmont, but Kristine Lin, grade 11, led all golfers with a score of 38.
Girls Volleyball
Varsity began the season 2-1, after a five-set, exciting win over Priory, a victory over Fremont and a tough loss to a seventh-seeded Homestead. JV also started strong, going 3-0 with crushing defeats of Priory and Fremont and a close win over Homestead.
Cross Country
The runners’ season opened with a solid performance in a late-August scrimmage at Gunn High. Harker had first and sixth place finishes in the boys varsity race, and the girls had one runner in the top 10.
Girls Tennis
Harker had a great start on the courts in early September, decisively defeating Milpitas High and Fremont. The girls had a particularly strong showing against Fremont, winning every set.
Golfer McNealy’s Summer Highlights Include Top Eight Finish at USGA Tournament
Harker golf standout Maverick McNealy, grade 12, had an eventful summer highlighted by a top-eight finish at the prestigious USGA Junior Amateur Championship in July. McNealy faced Canada’s Matthew Scobie in the quarterfinal match, where he rallied back from four down after eight holes, winning three straight holes with birdies. On hole 18, McNealy earned a par to force the match to extra holes. Both players scored par on hole 19, but Scobie parred on the 20th hole to finally win the match.
“I was very, very happy with my first performance on an international stage,” McNealy said. “By making the top eight, I earned an exemption from qualifying for next year’s Junior Amateur at Martis Camp in Tahoe! Very exciting!”
McNealy’s second place finish earned him the final spot in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship by a single shot, becoming one of 150 golfers in the country younger than 18 to compete in the championship.
He wrapped up his summer in mid-August by making it to the quarterfinals of the Northern California Golf Association’s Amateur Match Play Championship. After winning his first two matches, he later fell behind by two with four holes remaining. He nearly rallied with two birdies to force a playoff, but hit the bunker in the sudden- death playoff, allowing his opponent to advance.
Earlier in August, McNealy won the Silver Creek Valley Junior, shooting 65-72. He scored birdie no fewer than seven times in the first round. “It felt good to finally win one, though my results in bigger events have been exciting,” he said.
Frosh Wins Nationals after taking Three Golds and a Silver on High Performance Camp Training Tour
Harker volleyball team member Shannon Richardson, grade 9, wrapped up a stellar July by winning the USA Beach Junior Volleyball Championships (National Division) age 14 and under category, with her partner, Alexandra Kim of Daly City. The event was held in Milwaukee. In the two days of play, Richardson and Kim went undefeated.
Richardson and Kim competed against 16 other teams from around the country for the title.
In her warm-up to nationals, Richardson had a great round in July, including four tournaments and a high performance camp and mini- tournament that was even tougher than the national event.
Her first event was July 14. Richardson and her partner for the trip competed in a California Beach Volleyball Association (CBVA) Cal Cup Qualifier in Pacific Palisades, earning first place in the age 14 and under category, qualifying them for the Sept. 2 championships in Manhattan Beach.
Next stop was the USA Junior Beach Volleyball High Performance Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista. There, Richardson participated in a mini-tournament; she was the only camper who did not lose a single match with any of her partners.
Immediately afterwards, Richardson moved on to the USA Junior Beach High Performance Championships at Hermosa Beach, July 19-21. Richardson’s team advanced to finals where they took the gold medal, beating the one team they had lost to in pool play.
Next, July 22, the pair went after the 16-and-under category in a CBVA tournament in Doheny, Calif., where they earned second place.
Richardson’s last outing in this trip was a CBVA Qualifier in Santa Barbara July 24, where Richardson and her partner took first place, beating the team they lost to in Doheny two days earlier. The Milwaukee triumph followed.
Richardson has played volleyball at Harker since grade 4 and clearly has a great future!
Cross Country Team Gains New Head Coach
New to the Harker athletics coaching staff this year is Scott Chisam, head coach of the Harker cross country team. Chisam’s past experience includes head coaching positions at UCLA and Stanford University. At UCLA, he coached the women’s track team to its first two NCAA championships. He was also the head coach of the United States team at the 1984 World Cross Country Championships, and has served as assistant coach to a number of high schools in the Central Coast Sec- tion of the California Interscholastic Federation.
In addition to his extensive athletics experience, Chisam is also a certified emergency medical responder and was a member of the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team. Chisam is sure to be a valuable asset to Harker’s fast-growing athletics program. Welcome!
Olympic Medalist Swimmers Speak to Harker Athletes
Harker athletes had the unique opportunity to meet two Olympian swimmers Sept. 6, when three- time gold medalist Ambrose “Rowdy” Gaines and silver and gold medalist Cullen Jones spoke to students at the Singh Aquatic Center at the upper school campus.
Gaines, who won his three gold medals at the 1984 summer games in Los Angeles, shared his story of perseverance and determination. He began swimming competitively at age 17 after being denied spots on his high school football, baseball, basketball, golf and tennis teams.
“I am living proof it’s never too late to achieve your dreams,” he said, reminding students that setbacks are a part of the journey, such as when he broke a world record in 1980, only to find out the next day that the United States would be boycotting that year’s Olympic games.
Undaunted, he pressed on, practicing rigorously six days a week, winning SEC and NCAA titles and qualifying for the 1984 games, where at age 25 he became the third-oldest Olympic swimmer to date to win a gold medal.
After Gaines spoke, Jones took his turn to tell about his experience at the 2012 games in London, touching on his stay at the Olympic Village and his daily regimen, which consisted of a near-constant cycle of training and nutritional intake. Gaines was also at the London games, as the swimming commentator for NBC.
Aside from winning the silver and gold, highlights of the London games for Cullen also included meeting athletes such as NBA stars Dwyane Wade and LeBron James as well as tennis legend Serena Williams.
This article was originally published in the fall 2012 Harker Quarterly.
Harker’s wide variety of first-rate sports programs kept student athletes busy over the summer. The camps offered students the opportunity to learn a new sport or improve their skills in a sport they had already taken up.
The one-week water polo camp, directed by Ted Ujifusa, primarily stressed fundamental skills such as movement and passing. After gaining some experience with these skills, the students were later organized into groups to play games.
Meanwhile, Harker’s summer soccer program for students in grades 5-12 proved popular with both beginners and experienced players. Students worked on various skills at a number of stations devoted to each skill, including juggling, dribbling and one-on-one matchups. “We make it fun, but we make sure that it’s not just day care, that this is a soccer camp where kids are leaving knowing that they learned something,” said Harker soccer coach and program head Shaun Tsakiris.
Over at the Oakwood Tennis Center, tennis coach Craig Pasqua ran Harker’s comprehensive summer tennis programs for grades 2-11, the Harker Summer Tennis Camp (HSTC) and the Harker-Oakwood Tennis Training System (HOTTS). HSTC taught fundamental skills for new and developing players while also introducing the rotational approach favored by most of today’s professional players. For competitive players interested in the more advanced aspects of the sport, HOTTS prepared students for in-game situations and had them play interclub matches.
Butch Keller, upper school head, ran the summer basketball camp, which sought to equip grade 4-8 boys with the skills necessary to take the next step. “It’s all about things that they can do to improve their game at their age,” Keller said. As at other camps, stations were set up to help students work on individual skills. Students also learned things they could work on at home during TV commercial breaks.
For those not focusing on any particular sport, head football coach Ron Forbes’ sports performance camp for grades 6-12 helped students improve as overall athletes. Concepts such as resistive sprinting, overspeed sprinting and core strength were taught at the camp, which Forbes said had many students in grades 6-8 due to its focus on developing athletes instead of preparing for an upcoming season. “Most of these kids now, we’re not getting them ready for the season,” he said. “We’re helping develop them into athletes at a younger age.”
Girls Water Polo
Girls water polo went 3-0 at the Sequoia High Tournament last Saturday with wins over Notre Dame-Belmont, Aragon and Sequoia. Freshman Helena Dworak had 21 saves in goal over the three games and Keri Clifford, grade 12, scored 19 goals for the day.
Boys Water Polo
Boys water polo had an impressive victory over Santa Clara last week and take their 2-2 record to Lynbrook tomorrow. Both boys and girls teams host Cupertino Thursday.
Girls Volleyball
Girls volleyball went 5-0 Saturday to win the silver bracket at the Cupertino Tournament. The girls have improved to 10-1 on the season as they host King’s Academy tonight and Santa Clara tomorrow.
Football
Football dropped to 2-2 on the season with their loss at Mills High School Saturday. Senior JP Doherty caught two touchdown passes on offense and recovered a fumble on defense. Junior Sravan Rajathilak caught a touchdown pass for Harker’s first score of the game. Sophomore Keanu Forbes powered through the Mills defense to run for the first varsity touchdown of his career. Please support them Friday night, 6:30 at Cupertino High for the opening of league play.
Cross Country
Wish our cross country runners well this Saturday at Westmoor High.
Middle School
Girls Softball
Harker 7 – Menlo 0! Our dynamic duo of Meghan Robertson and Anika Rajamani, both grade 6, played a great game Sept. 18 against Menlo. Robertson pitched and brings great control and speed to the team; Rajamani is the catcher and is like a wall behind the plate, said Raul Rios, coach. “We had great defensive plays by Marti Sutton, grade 8, Taylor Lam, grade 6, and Grace Park, grade 8. We have a very young but strong team this year; if they stay together and keep playing they are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming years.” The team is now 2-0.
Upper School
Varsity Football
Varsity football now stands at 2-1, having won Sept. 7 and lost Sept. 14. First, the gridiron guys took down Andrew Hill High School 23-16. One highlight was senior Deniz Celik’s 32-yard field goal which, coupled with quarterback senior Spenser Quash’s pair of second-half touchdown passes kept Harker in the lead to help survive a late Andrew Hill drive. Trailing 16-11 in the third quarter, Quash connected with Adarsh Battu, grade 11, on a 10-yard score to put the Eagles ahead 17-16. Another TD pass, on a screen to Ryan Mui, grade 12, provided insurance and Harker needed every bit of it. The game ended with Hill inside the Harker five-yard line, so a bit closer than desired!
The following week, Sept 14. against San Jose High School, with the score 8-8 late in the fourth quarter, SJHS’ Bulldogs drove the ball 60 yards and kicked a field goal with only seconds remaining to seal the 11-8 victory. Robert Deng, grade 12, scored a one-yard touchdown pass from Quash and Keanu Forbes, grade 10, scored the two-point conversion for the Eagles. The 2-1 Eagles are away at Mills High School Saturday afternoon this week.
Girls Tennis
Girls tennis didn’t lose a set in the Sept. 6 7-0 rout of Fremont, played on Fremont’s home courts. Sophomore Arden Hu, playing #4 singles, had the closest match, and was pushed to a first set tiebreaker before prevailing 7-6, 6-0, making the team 2-0. Then, over the weekend, varsity girls had an excellent performance at the Santa Catalina tournament, winning second place out of 16 teams. The standings were very close, with the team just one win away from tying for first place.
Daria Karakoulka, grade 12, was the #3 singles champion and did not drop a single set throughout the tournament. Number 2 doubles team Chau Nguyen, grade 12, and Izzy Gross, grade 9, won first place and remain undefeated this season with six wins. Katia Mironova, grade 11, was a finalist at #4 singles, and Indica Sur, grade 12, and Ariana Shulman, grade 11, were finalists at #3 doubles. Jenny Chen, grade 12, reached the semifinals at #1 singles, and #1 doubles team Sylvie Dobrota, grade 12, and Hu made it to the quarterfinals. Adding to the team’s total, Sahithya Prakash, grade 11, also reached consolation finals at #2 singles. The girls open league play next week.
Girls Volleyball
Girls volleyball lost to a strong Homestead High team Sept. 12, but rebounded against Fremont two days later in a three-game sweep. Shreya Dixit, grade 10, led the team with 12 kills to make the team 2-1. Sept. 13, the team defeated Saratoga High three games to one to improve to 3-1 on the season. Divya Kalidindi, grade 11, and Dixit had 11 kills each. Sept. 17 the girls hosted Immaculate Conception Academy. They face Pinewood High School tonight so come on out and cheer!
Boys Water Polo
Varsity lost the first game of the Wilcox Tournament Sept. 8-9 against Pioneer, but had solid victories over Willow Glen and Santa Clara 18-10 and 15-10, respectively. Karan Das-Grande, grade 12, scored 11 goals over the three games; Ryan Hume, grade 12, got 10; Eric Holt, grade 10, and Gilad Nilo, grade 12, had six each; Stephan Pellissier, grade 11, had four; and Albert Chu, grade 11, put one in.
The boys went on to a solid 8-6 victory over Fremont Sept. 13 to improve to 5-3 on the season. Hume had three goals, Holt added two. Sean Pan, grade 11, was stellar in goal. On Sept. 18, the boys beat Santa Clara High School 18-11 and they host Wilcox High Thurs., Sept. 20.
Girls Water Polo
Girls water polo opened the season last week with a pair of victories over league opponents. On Sept 11, they defeated Saratoga 9-7; and two days later they worked over Fremont 8-5. Senior Keri Clifford, grade 12, led the way with eight goals over the two games. Sierra Lincoln, grade 12, had 13 saves in goal against Saratoga. The girls then went 2-2 in the Wilcox Lady Chargers seventh annual Girls Varsity Water Polo Tournament over the weekend. In that tournament, Clifford had eight goals in three games, and freshman Helena Dworak had seven saves in a very close loss to Lynbrook.
Scores
Harker-7, SCHS-10, with goals by Anushka Das, grade 10; Clifford, Daphne Millard, grade 12; Anna Levine, grade 12 ( three); and Sonia Sidhu. Eight blocks by Lincoln.
Harker-5, Fremont-2 with goals by Clifford (two), Yanovsky and Levine (two); Lincoln, five blocks.
Harker-8, Lynbrook-10, with goals by Clifford (five), Levine (two) and Sidhu; seven blocks by Helena Dworak, grade 9.
Harker-5, Saratoga-0: Saratoga forfeit.
On Sept. 18, the girls beat Santa Clara High School 8-7 and they face Mountain View High School Thurs., Sept. 20.
Girls Golf
Girls golf lost to Notre Dame-Belmont Sept. 7 at Los Lagos in a non-league matchup 240-231. Kristine Lin, grade 11, led all golfers with a 38. They beat Menlo School Sept. 17 221-232 and Lin earned medalist honors, shooting four over par 38. Senior Jessica Son’s timely career best 42 helped the team notch this very important win. Also contributing her personal best was junior Connie Li with a 50. Freshman Daphne Liang debuted with a steady 47 while senior Patricia Huang shot a 44. Late breaking news: Triumph over Sacred Heart Prep Sept. 18, in a close one, 223-227.
Cross Country
Cross country competed at Toro Park in Salinas Sept. 15, and sophomore Corey Gonzales placed 17th in the varsity boys race. His time of 17:07 is a personal best by 30 seconds on the Toro course; the time is second on the all-time Harker list, and also sets a sophomore school record, breaking the old one by two minutes. Freshman Mary Najibi placed ninth in the frosh-soph race, leading her team to a fourth place finish. Najibi’s time of 22:49 is the third all-time freshman time. Another freshman, Connor O’Neill, ran a 19:55, which is the second fastest freshman time in Harker history.
Harker athletes had the unique opportunity to meet two Olympic gold medalist swimmers on Friday, when three-time gold medalist Ambrose “Rowdy” Gaines and silver and gold medalist Cullen Jones spoke to students at the Singh Aquatic Center at the upper school campus just before a USA Swimming Foundation event held at Nichols Hall.
Gaines, who won three gold medals at the 1984 summer games in Los Angeles and now works in television as a swimming commentator, shared his story of perseverance and determination. He began swimming competitively at age 17 after being denied spots on his high school football, baseball, basketball, golf and tennis teams.
“I am living proof it’s never too late to achieve your dreams,” he said, reminding students that setbacks are a part of the journey, such as when he broke a world record in 1980, only to find out the next day that the United States would be boycotting that year’s Olympic games.
Undaunted, he pressed on, practicing rigorously six days a week, winning SEC and NCAA titles and qualifying for the 1984 games, where at age 25 he became the third-oldest Olympic swimmer to date to win a gold medal.
After Gaines spoke, Jones took his turn to speak to the students about his experience at the 2012 games in London, touching on his experience staying at the Olympic Village and his daily regimen, which consisted of a near-constant cycle of training and nutritional intake.
Aside from winning the silver and gold, highlights of the London games for Cullen also included meeting athletes such as NBA stars Dwyane Wade and LeBron James as well as tennis legend Serena Williams.
Harker teams are reporting in and the news is all good!
Football
The Eagles dominated Yerba Buena High School Aug. 31, winning 49-0 on Davis Field. “They worked hard and looked sharp,” said Dan Molin, athletic director.
“They executed very well,” agreed Ron Forbes, head coach. “When we got a big lead the boys didn’t play down — they did well for a young team. I liked that we had seven touchdowns scored by six different players.” Forbes added a shout out to the defensive squad, noting, “Last year, we had 56 points scored against us in each of three games in a row so kudos to the defense and defensive coordinator, Mike Taribassi,” for the shutout. Tonight, they play Andrew Hill High School.
Boys Water Polo
The team went 2-1 at the Hollister Tournament Saturday with a 14-3 victory over Harbor, a 10-4 victory over San Lorenzo Valley High School, and a 11-5 loss to Monterey. Ryan Hume, grade 12, led all Harker scorers with 14 goals over the three games; Eric Holt, grade 10, and Karan Das-Grande, grade 12, added four each throughout the day. They participate in the Wilcox Tournament this weekend.
Girls Volleyball
Varsity is 2-1, after a five-set, exciting win over Priory, a victory over Fremont and a tough loss to seventh-seeded Homestead. The key players so far have been Mercedes Chien, grade 11, on defense and Shreya Dixit, grade 10, Divya Kalidindi, grade 11, and Shannon Richardson, grade 9, on offense,” said Theresa “Smitty” Smith, head coach.
JV is 3-0 with crushing defeats of Priory and Fremont and a close win over Homestead. “Key players so far have been Selin Ekici, grade 9, at setter, and Hannah Bollar, grade 10, Tasia Belton, grade 9, and Sheridan Tobin, grade 10, on offense,” Smitty added. Next up, Saratoga High School!
Cross Country
The first competition was against Gunn High School and though full results haven’t been reported, the San Jose Mercury News listed Corey Gonzales, grade 10, as having won the 2.5-mile course in 11:36 in their Highlight Reel column yesterday.
Girls Tennis
The 2012-13 girls tennis team opened their season this week with two victories. In their opener, the team traveled to Milpitas and defeated a strong Milpitas squad 5-2. The team was lead by junior Katia Mironova and sophomore Arden Hu at #1 doubles, who bageled their opponents, 6-0, 6-0. In their second match, the team defeated Fremont 7-0. In their victory, the girls failed to drop a set. Next week, the girls travel to Monterey to defend their championship at the Santa Catalina Invitational Tournament.
Alumni Sports
Tanya Schmidt ’08 is a top 30 finalist for the 2012 NCAA Woman of the Year Award. Finalists were selected from 429 nominees from Division I, II and III. Those nominated must have “demonstrated academic and athletics excellence and engaged in community service and leadership opportunities,” according to the NCAA website.
Usua Amanam ’09 has found a new niche on the Stanford University football team, switching from running back to defensive back. Amanam attended middle school at Harker and high school at Bellermine. Read about it in the San Jose Mercury News!
Fencing
Jerrica Liao, grade 7, is now ranked second in the U.S. in women’s foil age 12 and under and is ranked 16th in the U.S. in age 14 and under, following stellar results at the U.S. Fencing National Championships in Anaheim in July.
On July 3, in the Y-14 event with 123 fencers, Liao started out going 3-2 in pools and seeding 56. She won her first elimination bout handily 15-6, then weathered a very tough bout against the 25th seed, winning on time 6-5 (Y14 and older fencers fence to 15 touches or for nine minutes), an exhausting way to win! Then Liao ran into some luck. She would normally have faced the number one seed, but that girl had been eliminated and her path hijacked by the 33rd seed, who lost to the 48th seed — and that’s who Liao (seeded originally 58th) faced in the quarter finals. Liao triumphed 8-3, then hit a hard spot, facing the number four seed, to who she succumbed, finishing in third place, for an outstanding result in a bracket above her age group. This finish upped Liao’s competitive rating from E12 to a B12, putting her among the top fencers in her age bracket.
The next day, July 4, Liao fenced in the Y-12 bracket finishing 18th of 135. She seeded third out of pools, winning all her bouts and being touched only three times while delivering 29 touches, to give her a +26 indicator. She won her first two matches easily, then ran into a toughie in the table of 32: Y-12 fencers fence for best of three five-touch bouts and Liao lost the first bout 2-1, won the second 5-1 and lost the third 2-1 to finish 18th and locking her into the number two spot in the country.
Squash
This summer Sunya Siddiqu, grade 6, played a lot of squash, coming in first and taking two seconds in three August competitions. She is ranked 14th in the U.S. in her bracket, girls under age 11.
In late August, Siddiqu competed in the San Diego Gold tournament in the girls under 11 (GU11) singles category and won all three matches to come in first. With six participants, players compete in boxes: three participants in each box do a round robin, then the top two finishers play for the championship. Siddiqu won her box, then lost to the other top finisher to take second.
In early August, Siddiqu competed in the Decathlon Junior Open Junior Silver. Siddiqu won her boxes in both the GU11 and GU13 events, but lost in the final to take second in both events.
Basketball
Benjamin Soraire and Levi Sutton, both grade 4, played in the Silicon Valley National Junior Basketball summer season and the boys met when their respective teams played each other in the championship game. The Bulldogs (Soraire’s team) and the Ballers (Sutton’s team) set a new record with the championship game going into five overtime periods and, finally, to sudden death play. In a tough struggle for the win, the Ballers sank one for the win. Both boys plan to play for Harker this year. Congratulations to both boys for their efforts this summer!