With activities beginning weeks prior to the main event, this year’s Homecoming on Nov. 12 was exciting and action-packed. As a close-knit K-12 community, Harker has a Homecoming celebration like no other. Students and faculty on all three campuses participated in spirit activities and competitions the week before the game, ensuring a fever pitch of excitement by game time.
Lower school students had dress-up days, culminating in green-and-white day on the Friday before the game, when the football players and cheerleaders visited the lower school for a huge rally.
Middle school students had costume and spirit competitions to get students excited. An assembly featuring upper school students helped to kick off Homecoming week.
At the upper school, spirit week included the traditional campus decorations, dress-up days and events at the pool. Each class competed to gain points by showing off their spirit, dressing up and helping decorate the campus according to this year’s theme of “imaginary places.” The freshmen chose the Land of Oz; sophomores, Mount Olympus; juniors, Treasure Island; and seniors, Hogwarts, from the “Harry Potter” series.
In preparation for game day, additional bleachers were erected to accommodate the crowd, public address equipment was checked and re-checked, placement for observers and the many participants on and near the field – alumni, cheerleaders, Eaglets, the Harker Jazz Band – was allocated. Students, faculty and staff vacated the parking lot right after classes ended, and tailgaters moved in alongside John and Christine Davis’ (Cole ’10) motor home to set up for the pre-game festivities.
A large and enthusiastic crowd of students, parents, staff and friends enjoyed the junior varsity game despite the 34-26 loss. Tailgate parties and traditional pre-game events, including a performance by the upper school Varsity Dance Troupe, the singing of the Harker anthem and national anthem by all combined choirs, and the upper school’s spirit competition tug-of-war semifinals, warmed up the crowd for the varsity game.
Tailgate parties allowed special groups like alumni, seniors and Eagle Buddies (see page 18) to congregate during the lulls in the on-field action. Joe Connolly, lower school dean of students, was proud of one activity that was new this year. As a part of the new Eagle Buddies program, “The third grade students were invited to a combined tailgate with their tenth grade buddy families,” said Connolly. This event, sure to become tradition, gave the Harker community yet another way to get closer together. Third grader Matthew Jin said his two favorite parts of Homecoming were, “going to the jump house and the slide and seeing my tenth grade buddy.”
Another popular spot was the alumni pavilion set up by Christina Yan, director of alumni relations. The alumni area included snacks as well as reserved bleacher seating. A wide range of alumni, from recent graduates to those who brought families of their own to the game, attended.
Like last year, the BEST staff from Bucknall and Blackford once again oversaw the bounce house and bounce slide on Rosenthal Field, giving the young and the young-at-heart alike some physical activity.
The Harker Jazz Band, directed by Chris Florio, played throughout the evening, using songs like “Iron Man” by Black Sabbath to pump up the crowd. The Varsity Dance Troupe, directed by Laura Rae, were transformed into Mad Hatters from the “Alice in Wonderland” movie during their pregame dance routine while the Eaglets and the junior cheerleaders joined the varsity cheer squad in rousing the fans throughout the game.
The upper school class spirit competitions continued with the pre-game tug-of-war. The seniors defeated the sophomores, and the juniors beat the freshmen, setting the stage for a showdown between the two oldest classes at halftime.
Amid the excitement, bright lights and fun, the Eagle football team prepared to face league opponent Valley Christian-Dublin. The home team came into the game missing several key starters who were sidelined by injuries. Nevertheless, the team hoped to add one more win to their 7-2 season, already a school record.
Game time under the Davis Field lights: Harker won the toss and Valley Christian took the kickoff. On their first play, Valley Christian ran for their first touchdown, adding two more touchdowns before the end of the first quarter. Harker senior Chris McCallaCreary scored, and classmate Greg Cox ran in the two-point conversion to put Harker on the board, but that was the end of Harker’s offensive success. Though the Eagles ended up losing the game, the boys put on a good show and can hold their heads high after their record-breaking season.
Speaking about the whole season, head coach Karriem Stinson said, “I am really proud of what this team has done. They are the tightest group I’ve ever been around, and I’m really proud to have coached them.”
His remarks were echoed by Jason Mendel, grade 12, who said that he “enjoyed the team’s 6-0 start and bonding with his teammates the most.”
Halftime brought the traditional presentation of the Homecoming court: freshmen Andrew Wang and Claudia Tischler; sophomores Rohit Agarwal and Tiphaine Delepine; juniors Jason Kuan and German exchange student Julia Lambertz; and seniors Amanda King, Brianna Tran, Ben Tien and Santosh Swaminathan. Seniors Greg Cox and Anisha Agarwal were crowned king and queen.
Of his time with the court Swaminathan remarked that his favorite experience came before the Homecoming dance. “I really enjoyed our dinner at Left Bank and the banana split at Ben and Jerry’s afterwards. Life is good when you’re a prince.”
In the tug-of-war finals, the juniors squared off against the seniors in what was to be a battle of epic proportions. While the juniors were declared the winners at the time, controversy later arose about the number of students on the juniors’ end of the rope and, at press time, negotiations on how to resolve the winner were continuing!
“Overall, school spirit was amazing!” said Kerry Enzensperger, student activities coordinator. “Classes took it upon themselves to decorate Shah, Dobbins and Main Hall; I would like to thank the class spirit officers for all their hard work!”
Vladimir Sepetov, grade 12, felt the same, saying, “Homecoming was awesome this year … I think there was good school spirit overall. Everyone really brought their A-game.”
Ultimately, Homecoming is about coming together as a community and celebrating the school. While the game may not have turned out as we would have liked (56-8 for Valley Christian), the whole community had a great time together and is surely looking forward to next year!
This story first appeared in the Winter edition of the Harker Quarterly.
Usua Amanam ’09 was not thinking about playing Division 1 college football while in middle school at Harker, but he learned a lot back then that is helping him to be successful today. Now he is a scholar athlete at Stanford University competing for time in the running back spot and majoring in energy resources engineering.
One of the most challenging aspects for student athletes at a school like Stanford is managing their time effectively. These students have not only the usual responsibilities of classes, homework and tests but additional practices, workouts, games and travel to manage.
Amanam admits that time management is one of the more challenging aspects of his life right now but says that as an athlete, he gets lots of help from tutors, academic advisors and teammates who want him to be successful. Amanam said, “It took me a while to learn how to balance everything, especially my first year, but it has gotten easier [and now] I couldn’t imagine being at a better place.”
Amanam fondly remembers playing on Harker basketball teams and the friends he made while attending the school. He remarked that some of his best friends, with whom he still stays in touch, are those he met at Harker.
Amanam also had a few pieces of advice for all the budding student athletes out there. He said that it is important to remember that not everything will come easily and that you have to work for every little bit. His dad taught him that you can never be satisfied and that constantly striving to improve is the key to success.
Of his current situation Amanam said, “I’ve been blessed and I really appreciate everyone who helped me get to where I am … it has been a really humbling experience.”
After finishing as the league champions with a perfect 6-0 season, the grade 5 boys JVB1 basketball team lost a tough game to a strong St. Matthews team in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL) championship game on Dec. 13, coming up just one point short in the 32-31 contest. The following student athletes and coach Steve Carroll are to be congratulated on their great season and inspired play: Vince Vu, Eric Andrus, Kunal Bhatia, Zack Fitzgerald, Arindam Ghosh, Michael Kwan, Michael Sikand, Shikhar Solanki, Aadith Srinivasan, Siddhart Chari and Brando Pakel.
Another lower school basketball team, the grade 4 boys JVC team, also went 6-0 and are the season’s WBAL champions, marking the first time since joining the WBAL that a Harker grade 4 team has won a championship. Congratulations to the team, coached by Jim McGovern: Viren Abhyankar, Jarett Anderson, Zack Baz, Chris Gong, Zach Hoffman, Hasan Jamal, Krish Kapadia, Charles Molin, Jason Peetz, Andrew Skrobak, Trevor Thompson and Jackson Williams.
On a balmy Friday evening in mid-November, Harker’s Saratoga campus and Davis Field were lit up for Homecoming and filled with color, pomp and excitement. Despite riding high on a 7-2 record going in and giving their best efforts, the Harker Eagles, plagued by injuries to starters, had their worst outing all season in the actual game, losing 57-8, but the crowd supported their team all the way.
As a K-12 school, Harker’s annual Homecoming is unique and involves the entire community. Spirit week led up to the game and featured hijinks on all three campuses including rallies and visits by varsity players to the lower school, the classic dress-up days at the middle school and a full schedule at the upper school starting with the painting of the class eagles and culminating in the tug-of-war tug-off at halftime.
At game time, under the Davis Field lights, Harker won the toss and Valley Christian-Dublin took the kickoff. On the first play VC-D ran for their first touchdown, adding two more TDs before the end of the first quarter. Harker’s Chris McCallaCreary, grade 12, scored and classmate Greg Cox ran in the two-point conversion to put Harker on the board, but that was the end of Harker’s offensive success. Speaking about the whole season, coach Karriem Stinson said, “I am really proud of what this team has done. They are the tightest group I’ve ever been around and I’m really proud to have coached them.”
Off the field, however, the fun preceded the games (JV lost, as well, after a tough fight) and kept going throughout, including multiple cheers by the Eaglets, the littlest Eagles; musical blasts, including “Iron Man” by Black Sabbath, from the Harker Jazz Band; constant spirit-building from the Harker cheer squad; and a mid-field routine by the Varsity dancers as Mad Hatters performing to a song inspired by the Alice Wonderland movie, under Laura Rae, director of the upper school dance program.
Away from the field, groups were congregating at their rallying points, including a great turnout in the alumni area under their own pavilion on the northeast corner of the field near Singh Aquatic Center. The senior class and Eagle Buddies had food and fun gatherings in the parking lot between Rosenthal Field and the main academic building, bounce houses were on Rosenthal Field and there were various food booths, including one (funnel cakes) staffed by performing arts students and parents to raise funds for a trip to the Fringe Festival next fall.
Just prior to the game the Eaglets did their now-traditional fly-through, then lined up with the older cheerleaders to form a passage for the varsity team to take the field. The halftime tug-of-war result is in doubt as one team had too many players on the rope, but a decision will be forthcoming or a rematch will be held!
The homecoming court was also introduced at halftime and was made up of freshmen Andrew Wang and Claudia Tischler, sophomores Rohit Agarwal and Tiphaine Delepine, juniors Jason Kuan and German exchange student Julia Lambertz; and seniors Amanda King, Brianna Tran, Ben Tien and Santosh Swaminathan, with Greg Cox and Anisha Agarwal, also of the Class of 2011, named king and queen.
“Juniors turned Shah into a pirate-themed still-life portrait complete with Davy Jones and treasure chests filled with doubloons,” said Jason Berry, English teacher and assistant spirit coordinator. “Seniors decorated the campus with clever references to Harry Potter (the 2011 class theme for Homecoming). To close the week’s spirited activities, the senior class hosted the Homecoming dance, cleverly interweaving the classes’ themes with cute decorations and streamers, turning Nichols into a veritable dance hall menagerie,” said Berry.
“Overall school spirit was amazing!” said Kerry Enzensperger, student activities coordinator. “Classes took it upon themselves to decorate Shah, Dobbins and Main Hall; I would like to thank the class spirit officers for all their hard work!”
Photos for the slide show were provided by Ashley Batz, Winged Post/Talon photographers and Robert Boucher.
Cross Country
Harker hosted the annual middle school cross country meet at Blackford in late October. Rather than six races, one each for boys and girls of each grade level, this race is similar to the league finals race in that there are just two races, boys and girls. Harker performed very well this year, with nine runners placing in the top ten. In the girls race, eighth graders Alyssa Amick, Gabi Gupta and Diba Massihpour took places two through four, respectively, while seventh graders Alex Dellar and Mary Najibi took seventh and ninth. In the boys race, our eighth graders had an impressive showing. Thomas Doyle took first with Corey Gonzales close behind at third. Rounding out the placers were Nikhil Kishor, sixth, and Vedant Thyagaraj, eighth.
The team then traveled to Shoreline to compete in the league race. For this race the team score is calculated by adding up the places of the top five finishers on each team. At press time final places and times were not available, but check back soon for the results.
Football
Varsity A football finished off their season on a solid note winning their last three games. They soundly defeated nonleague opponent Valley Christian 28-8 in their second match-up of the season (the Eagles had won their first match with V.C., but in a much more closely contested game). The Eagles then played their final home game against Pinewood in which they triumphed 25-20. The final Varsity A game of the season was a defensive showdown at Crystal Springs. While their first game against Crystal Spring was an offensive shootout, with Harker coming out on top 40-27, this game was decided by only three points, with Harker emerging victorious 12-9. This gave them a league record of 5-4-1.
Varsity B entered the last week of their season with an impressive league record of 5-0, coming off big league wins over Keys and St. Matthews, 18-6 and 40-19, respectively. Their opponent was the also undefeated King’s Academy squad and the winner would in all likelihood be crowned league champion. Unfortunately, the King’s team prevailed 19-0 in the defensive battle that ensued. In their final game of the season the Eagles were forfeited to by Priory, giving them a league record of 6-1 for the season and putting them in uncontested second place.
Junior Varsity A football was handed their first loss of the season against Sacred Heart Middle School. The Eagles were not able to put points on the board and were shut out 20-0. The boys came back strong with big victories over Pinewood, 32-6, and Valley Christian, 20-6, to finish with an overall record of 7-1.
Softball
Softball was also handed their first defeat in a close game against Crystal Springs. The Eagles were missing Regan Heslop, grade 7, who has been a key part of the team offensively and defensively. Even short-handed the girls almost managed to pull off a victory, eventually losing the close match 5-7. However, the team showed its tenacity by coming back two days later and soundly defeating Valley Christian 7-0. In their final game of the season the Eagles played league opponent King’s Academy. The game turned out to be a nail-biter, with Harker coming out on top 6-5. The girls finished the season with an impressive overall record of 7-1, which earned them second place in their league.
Swimming
Swim had their league meet as well last week, but at press time results were not available. Check back soon for updates.
Football
The Eagles picked up another victory last weekend, moving them to an impressive 7-1 on this season and making them the winningest team in school history. The Eagles defeated league opponent St. Elizabeth 40-29 Friday night. Once again senior quarterback Rishi Bhatia led the offense, throwing for three touchdowns and running for one. Other Eagles touchdowns were scored by seniors Greg Cox, Chris McCallaCreary and Gautam Krishnamurthi and Daanish Jamal, grade 11. Not content to limit his contributions to one side of the ball Cox was outstanding on defense as well posting 15 tackles. This victory gives them a 2-1 league record, moving them into third place in league behind Salesian and Berean Christian. The boys will have a chance to improve their position even more when they play Berean this week.
Golf
The girls finished their season with matches against Mercy Burlingame and Sacred Heart last week. They split the matches with a decisive victory over Mercy and a close loss to Sacred Heart. Their performance over the season earned them third place in league with a record of 6-4. Kristine Lin, grade 9 and Patricia Huang, grade 10, both qualified for CCS and will compete this week.
Tennis
The girls finished out the last four games of their season 2-2. They lost to highly ranked Saratoga two weeks ago but rebounded with 6-1 victories over both Notre Dame and Castilleja. Unfortunately, they lost their final match to a tough Menlo squad. However, their overall performance was exceptional, with their 7-3 league record earning them second place. In the CCS contest Jenny Chen, grade 10, advanced in singles and the doubles team of Daria Karakoulka, grade 10 and Swetha Bharadwaj, grade 9, advanced to the next round.
Water Polo
The teams honored their seniors at their home game last week against Santa Clara. Both teams came out on top, with the boys winning 10-7 and the girls 10-9. The girls said goodbye to seniors Niva Bigler, Miranda Gorman, Dawn Queen, Priya Sahdev and Cynthia Shwe. The boys team wished farewell to their seniors Rex Chen, Justin Murtiff, Chris Ng, Baran Ozdemir, Derek Quach, Jerry Sun, Michael Tsai and Gabriel Yanovsky.
The girls won all three of their tournament games over the weekend at Lincoln High, defeating Lincoln 14-7, Evergreen Valley 16-8 and Mt. Pleasant 17-6. The boys went 1-2 at their tournament defeating Palma and losing to Palo Alto and Homestead.
Both teams are competing in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League tournament in early November.
Cross Country
The cross country teams have their league final races this week at Crystal Springs.
Volleyball
The girls continue to compete with some of the toughest teams in Northern California. Their final two home games are this week against Mercy Burlingame and Notre Dame. The game against Notre Dame is senior night so please come out and show your support.
Harker’s 2010 Homecoming, the second at Davis Field, is Fri., Nov. 12, against Valley Christian of Dublin, and preparations have begun. Balloting for the Homecoming king and queen took place at the end of October but a score of tough backstairs jobs are underway. A few days before game day, additional bleachers will be erected to accommodate the crowd, public address equipment will be checked and re-checked, placement for others on and near the field – alumni, cheerleaders, Eaglets (the littlest Eagles), the jazz band – will have been allocated and the groups notified.
Parking, always tricky at big events, is being carefully regulated. Parking information is posted on the Harker website. Please note the main parking lot will be closed to all but those with appropriate placards and everyone should park at Blackford and take the shuttle to Saratoga. Student pick-up on game day will be only at the rear loading zone.
Up front, things are equally organized. In front of Main, the Davis family’s motor home will again host guests of honor while a few yards away, on Rosenthal Field, tailgaters will deploy and bounce houses will go up. Alumni will have a special area to congregate, dodge the crowd and see friends.The real action starts at 4 p.m., when the JV team takes the field. Barbeque will be available for purchase starting at 5 and the ever-popular Carley’s Café food trailer opens at 6 p.m.
Before the game starts, though, will come the semifinal round of the traditional tug-of-war contest, along with a dash of entertainment by the Varsity Dance Troupe and the Harker Jazz band.
Prior to the Big Game, Junior Cheerleaders take over the field, followed by the unforgettable Eaglets Fly-Through, and the national and Harker anthems will be sung by all the Harker choirs combined. At halftime the Homecoming court will be presented, with the king and queen announced at the Homecoming dance on Saturday evening. Get your tickets now, because this is sure to be a real extravaganza!
San Jose Mercury News, October 6, 2010 — Gautam Krishnamurthi, grade 12, is recognized in the “Highlight Reel” for his four interceptions against the California School for the Deaf.
San Jose Mercury News, October 13, 2010 — Quarterback Rishi Bhatia, grade 12, is was named one of two “Athletes of the Week” for his four touchdowns against Capuchino and for being a key player in Harker varsity football’s 6-0 start.
Football
Congratulations to Rishi Bhatia, grade 12, for being named Mercury News Male Athlete of the Week for his stellar performance in the Eagles’ game against Capuchino High School. The full story can be read here.
Harker suffered its first loss of the year to powerhouse Salesian 56-18. The full story is in the Contra Costa Times. The team is now 1-1 in league and has its next game against league opponent St Elizabeth. St Elizabeth is 0-1 in league after a loss to Berean Christian.
Cross Country
The Eagles traveled to their second league race of the year at Shoreline and both the girls and boys did impressively. Ragini Bhattacharya, grade 10, placed third overall with freshman Claudia Tischler coming in right behind her at fifth. The girls are currently tied for second in league. Not to be outdone, the boys took third in the event. Proteek Biswas, grade 11, placed 10th followed immediately by Adarsh Ranganathan, grade 12. They are currently tied for third in league.
Golf
The girls are on a hot streak right now with two big wins last week against Notre Dame and Menlo. They are currently 5-3 and third in league. Having season lows last week were: Kristine Lin, grade 9; Jessica Son, grade 10; Nina Sabharwal, grade 10; and Patricia Huang, grade 10, who shot an impressive 34 against Menlo. The Eagles face Mercy-Burlingame and Sacred Heart this week.
Tennis
The Eagles lost to a tough Menlo squad last week but responded to the defeat well with wins against Fremont and Pinewood later in the week. This week they lost a close match, 3-4, to Sacred Heart Preparatory. They are currently 9-4 overall and an impressive 5-2 in league and have a big match against highly-ranked Saratoga this week.
Water Polo
The girls had an impressive 10-4 victory over Mountain View last week, avenging an earlier first-round loss. Cynthia Shwe, grade 12, led the team with five goals and was supported by Keri Clifford, grade 10, with four and Niva Bigler, grade 12, with one. Sierra Lincoln, grade 10, was stellar in goal with 10 saves.
The boys had two tough losses last week against Wilcox, currently number one in league, and Saratoga. Chris Ng, grade 12; Rex Chen, grade 12; Ryan Hume, grade 10; Gabe Yanovsky, grade 12; and Karan Das-Grande, grade 10, all had goals against Wilcox. Both the girls and boys travel to Cupertino and Lynbrook this week for league matches.
Volleyball
The girls continue to face tough opponents in one of the most competitive leagues in Northern California. Their overall record remains strong at 13-7 even after tough losses to Menlo, Mercy-Burlingame and Notre Dame. The Eagles aren’t making it easy on anyone, taking Menlo and Notre Dame to five games and Mercy to four. They will look to get out of their current slump in their game against Castilleja this week.
This semester, Julia Lambertz of Germany is not only attending Harker as a junior, she is playing on the girls volleyball team, too. Julia discovered Harker through the organization international Experience (iE), which coordinates exchanges between high schools.
Lambertz has been busy with her volleyball and class schedule (which includes Spanish, psychology, sculpture and U.S. history), plus there have been a number of outings with the family of her host student, Neda Ghaffarian, grade 11. So far, they have toured San Francisco, Monterey and Santa Cruz, with possible plans to visit Los Angeles for Thanksgiving and a vacation at Lake Tahoe during Christmas. Lambertz also visited kindergarten classes to give students a brief lesson on the German language and culture.
Since arriving at Harker, Lambertz has noticed several differences between the lifestyles of students in the U.S. and Germany. “There are no spirit events in my German school and the school is not like a big community there,” she said. In addition, high school students in Germany don’t take finals at the end of the semester. Instead, they take exams at the end of their high school careers that cover the previous 13 years of study. Students also favor biking, walking or public transit instead of driving.