As people around the world follow their nation’s team in the World Cup, students from around the Bay Area are coming to Harker to spend time improving their own game. Harker’s summer soccer clinic offers athletes ages nine to 16 a chance to work on their skills under the supervision of some of the best coaches in the area.
The program is directed by upper school boys varsity soccer coach Shaun Tsakiris. Tsakiris played soccer at UCLA, where he was nominated MVP and was part of a team that won the national championship. He also played on the United States national under-17 and under-20 teams. After college he played professionally before a fight with cancer ended his career; he has now been coaching for over a decade. At each camp he is supported by three to five assistant coaches who have either played at a highly competitive level or are, as Tsakiris says, “very comfortable coaching.”
Each clinic runs one week from 9 a.m. to noon, and gives kids a chance to work on all aspects of the game. Tsakiris has worked hard to ensure that the athletes stay focused on soccer. He said the goal was to “have less of a day care and more of a soccer-specific camp. A lot of camps in the area seem to maybe not be as specific with soccer […] we wanted to get away from the idea of it just being a place [for] parents to drop their kids off and more of a soccer-oriented camp.”
The students, about 60 a week, are divided into groups based on age and playing ability, allowing them to work on skills in an environment that is competitive as well as fun. Each day is broken into sessions working on different skill sets such as passing, receiving, defense and shooting. The athletes end the day with a variety of games highlighting the skills they have learned.
The relatively new Davis Field is the site of the clinic and is a major draw for students, parents and coaches alike. Tsakiris had “heard a lot about Harker on an academic standard, but as far as their athletics they are really trying to turn it around and they’re really trying to make this an athletic place” too. According to him, Davis Field is a great example of this goal.
Students also get to use the new Singh Aquatic Center after practice as a fun way to cool down. This is another feature that sets Harker’s summer soccer camp apart from others offered in the area.
So far, most of the clinic’s participants have been in the 10- to 13-year-old range. This age group works well because the students are old enough to be athletically coordinated yet young enough not to have too many bad habits. Tsakiris says that for the August camp he is trying to encourage older students to sign up.
The highlight of the June camp came on Friday when Joe Cannon, goalkeeper for the San Jose Earthquakes, stopped by. He took the time to talk to the kids about soccer, sign autographs and present a banner to the player of the week. Alex Courdillon, Gr. 8, said about the visit, “It was a good experience to talk to a guy who plays professional soccer. You learn a little bit more about how you can prepare to become a great soccer player […] it’s really inspirational.”
When asked about his experiences with the clinic, Harker rising sophomore Michael Amick said, “I think it’s just a great program to […] improve your skills, [with a] great group of people to play with, good coaches, good overall experience and I’d definitely do it again.”
Tsakiris wants to extend an open invitation to anyone who wants to get involved in soccer this summer. The next session starts the first week of August. For more information go to our Summer Soccer Camps page!
Harker’s summer programs kicked off during the first week of June, offering a vast array of academic and recreational programs to students in grades K-12.
This year’s Summer Institute began June 7 and offers for-credit courses to Harker upper school students. The institute offers three-week and six-week courses that are equivalent to those taken during the academic year, and include classes in math, science, art and English.
Kamya Arora, who starts as a freshmen at Quarry Lane School in the fall, enrolled in a ceramics class at Saratoga for the summer. “It’s really fun, because we get a lot of materials that we can use so we’re not really limited by what we don’t have,” she said. “I find it really exhilirating to have a lot of projects.”
Another ceramics student, Stevenson High School rising sophomore Nurihan Park, said he likes the class “very much” because he and other students are afforded “a lot of freedom” to create.
A driver’s education course wrapped up June 14, while the Forensics Institute begins in August and will provide students with the opportunity to improve their competitive debating skills in events such as the public forum debate, Lincoln-Douglas debate and policy debate. New to the Forensics Institute this year is the Forensics Experience, where a week is devoted to training for the student congressional debate before moving on to individual events.
Harker’s Summer Camp for K-Gr. 8 students has also returned, providing a well-rounded combination of academics and recreational activities. At the camp, which began June 21, students spend the mornings learning subjects such as math, language arts and science. In the afternoons there is a wide variety of fun activities to enjoy, including sports, music, arts and dancing. Campers will get to go on field trips to several California landmarks.
For kindergartners, the Kindercamp prepares students for the fall semester by teaching basic language and math skills. Students who stay for the afternoon play games, make crafts, hear stories and will also take field trips of their own.
Harker summer camp is offered in four-week and two-week sessions. The second four-week session runs July 19-Aug. 13, while the remaining two-week sessions run July 6-July 16 and July 19-July 30.
Finally, the English Language Institute (ELI), Harker’s intensive program for students who wish to improve their English speaking and writing skills, got under way in late June. Students are learning vocabulary, study skills, reading comprehension, grammar, writing and oral presentation. Students also get to practice their newfound skills by conversing with native English speakers. ELI has proven to be a valuable aid to international students hoping to gain admission to American boarding schools and English international schools. New to ELI this year is the Primary Program for beginning English speakers ages 6-8. The program is held at Bucknall and furnishes an environment designed specifically for the youngest participants in the program.
Summer athletic programs The Swim School, which began June 7 and runs until Aug. 6, is offering quality instruction to swimmers as young as 3 years old—watch for the whole story, soon!
Just in time for World Cup fever, Harker’s Soccer Clinics have returned to bring professional instruction to soccer lovers ages 5-16. Two options are being offered this year. The Training Clinic, for ages 10-16, and Just4Kicks for ages 5-12.
Tennis Camp, running through Aug. 6, features two programs, both headed by Craig Pasqua, Harker tennis coach and a certified professional with the United States Professional Tennis Association.
Coverage of this year’s summer programs will continue as the season progresses. Please visit the Summer @ Harker website for more information.
This year’s Harker Summer Aquatic Program promises to be a hit with both kids and parents alike. The offerings include swim lessons, free swim and a swim camp. About a third of the participants are Harker students, with the rest hearing about our program through Parents magazine and word of mouth.
The staff ranges from former collegiate water polo players and swimmers, to Harker alums and P.E. teachers. The camp’s director, Melissa Dondero, has been working with Harker summer programs since 1999 and has been in love with water almost her entire life. Her staff is made up of three swim teachers and one lifeguard, with two additional swim teachers in training. Dondero really “likes working with the staff we have … they are fantastic people.”
Swim lessons are 30 minutes and are scheduled a week at a time. Students can choose individual, semi-private or group lessons. The lessons aren’t all work though. Leonard Wong, Gr. 5, said that his favorite part is “having my free time and playing in the water.” He added that “swimming [lessons are] also good. My mom says I’m getting a lot of exercise.”
The swim camp is a two-week program aimed at middle school students and focuses on fitness and water safety. It includes physical training, classroom learning and skills instruction.
The physical training segment is comprised of a combination of fitness and strength training. These activities are done on the field as well as in the pool and help to promote exercise and overall physical fitness.
In the classroom the kids learn part of the American Red Cross GuardStart program, which focuses on topics such as responding in an emergency and the prevention of aquatic accidents. Dondero explained that the camp “covers CPR and first aid stuff that focuses on skills for kids rather than the general, more adult CPR classes.”
After doing a swim workout at the pool, students are given an opportunity to practice lifeguard skills. This helps them remember the skills they have learned.
The free swim portion of the program is offered to other groups of students using the upper school campus. The English Language Institute students, for example, are able to free swim at the pool as part of their program. Between 40 to 75 students take part. Kids participating in the soccer clinics are allowed to free swim in the afternoon as well.
There is also a group of students who come from the Bucknall campus to use the pool for water polo. Isis Chu, Gr. 6, explained that on a typical day, “We do some shots and drills and we swim back and forth.” When asked about her coach she exclaimed, “Mr. Ted [Ujifusa] is really awesome!”
When asked about her favorite part of the program Dondero said, “We run a very nurturing program where children progress at their own rate. There is no forcing of any kind of activity….we just want to see the swimmers have a ton of fun learning how to swim.” Prorams run through Aug. 6. See our Swimming Program page for details!
Reprinted from the Harker QuarterlyMarch 2010 issue
Lower & Middle School
Basketball
Coached by Greg Lawson, the Gr. 8 varsity A team improved defensively over the season, but had difficulty scoring. The team finished the season 3-7, with wins against Pinewood, Crystal Springs and Woodside Priory.
The seventh graders had much more depth than Gr. 8 – enough players to field three teams. The Gr. 7 varsity B1 team finished league play 7-0, making them league champs! The Gr. 7 varsity B2 team finished 3-4, and the Gr. 7 varsity B3 team finished 1-6.
The Gr. 6 boys junior varsity A team overcame the setbacks of injured players through good student leadership, finishing strong in league play. Coach Walid Fahmy said, “Look out for these boys as they move on to seventh grade!” The boys ended the season 2-7.
Coach Mousa Katwan credits the camaraderie of the Gr. 5 JV B1 team for a strong finish. “Strong play down low from Alex Mo gave us an advantage on offense, while the strength and heart of Nicolas Bean on defense stopped opposing teams’ efforts. Overall the boys learned a lot and grew together while having fun,” Katwan said. The team ended the season with a 4-5 record.
Coaches Tobias Wade and David Ramos both enjoyed the season with the Gr. 5 B2 team. Wade reported, “Our boys practiced and played hard, and it was a learning experience for them.” Everyone improved throughout the whole season and the team ended with a 2-7 record.
The Gr. 4 JV C team had only two days of practice before the team’s first game but, reported coach and lower school P.E. teacher Jim McGovern, “The boys jelled quickly and worked on playing an exciting fast-break style of basketball.” Although their season record was 3-5, the boys were very close to flipping those numbers as two losses were only by one point each. McGovern added, “I look forward to the continued effort and love for the game by this group of players.”
The girls Gr. 4-5 basketball team had a fantastic season. The JV B1 team, who finished one game shy of a perfect season before tournament play, led the charge and the JV B2 team truly enjoyed the spirit of competition and the fun they had with their teammates. Finally, the JV C team also enjoyed spirited competitions and the thrill of victory following exciting back-to-back wins.
Soccer
The junior varsity B boys soccer team also had a fantastic season, with exciting victories against Crystal Springs, Pinewood and St. Joseph’s Sacred Heart. At press time, the team was 4-1 in league and in second place in the standings. The team was led by Nikolas Weisbloom, Kedar Gupta and Joseph Krackeler, all Gr. 5.
The intramural boys Gr. 4-5 soccer team also learned a lot about soccer and had a lot of fun with their teammates and coach Jim McGovern. The team was led by Nirban Bhatia, Rohit Shah and Shaya Zarkesh, all Gr. 4
Girls varsity A soccer had an exciting season, coach Chrissy Chang reported. “We faced many tough opponents but were still able to put the ball in the back of the net, and every player contributed to our awesome soccer season.” The team had individuals who played outstanding offense and defense, and they ended the season 2-5.
Coach Justin “Sully” Sullivan was impressed with the vast improvement of the girls Gr. 7 varsity B team, which showed in their strong finishes of their final four games, where they won two of the four and nearly earned a draw in another. Excellent goaltending was an important part of the team’s improvement and Sullivan complimented several players with particularly strong play and excellent hustle. The season ended 2-5, and with several players returning, next year’s soccer season looks to be an exciting one.
Despite the 1-5 season record of the Gr. 6 JV A team, coach Cyrus Merrill was impressed with the strength and growth of his team. “The ladies played even with a number of the teams in the league and surprised many of them with early goals and strong play,” he commented. The girls enjoyed practicing next to the upper school girls soccer team at Blackford this season.
The Gr. 5 JV B team finished 5-0-1 to take the leag ue championship, making it back-to-back league championships for the Gr. 5 girls softball and soccer teams this year. Coach Casey Henderson credited fearless goalkeeping and added, “The girls demonstrated a wide variety of skills and enthusiasm during the season.”
Upper School
Basketball
The varsity boys basketball team had a strong season that included a historic win against Sacred Heart Prep in Prep’s gym. They ended the regular season with a remarkable 20-4 overall record and 12-2 league record, securing second place in the league. In CCS play, the boys played Stevenson at the Blackford gym after securing the sixth seed but lost to Santa Cruz 56-44 in the CCS quarterfinals.
The JV boys ended their season as WBAL champions! The team had a 20-2 overall record and was 11-1 in league.
Girls basketball ended their season with an overtime loss to playoff-bound King’s Academy and a loss at Mercy- Burlingame over the break. The girls were very competitive in every game this season and were actually one non-league win away from qualifying for CCS. They ended the season 7-14.
Soccer
Boys soccer had a great season, coming close to making it to CCS. They faced Menlo School in the league finals where they lost 2-1, just missing CCS qualification. For a squad that started as many as eight freshmen per game, it was a remarkable season, which ended 8-8-2 overall.
Girls soccer ended their season with a loss to Mercy- San Francisco 2-1. This committed group of young ladies ended the season 2-5-3 in league play, was competitive in every match, and showed improvement throughout the season.
Wrestling
Although wrestling meets are team events, individuals, rather than teams, proceed to league championships and CCS finals. This year three wrestlers made it to CCS finals and one, Santosh Swaminathan, Gr. 11, made Harker history by taking fifth place in the 103-pound weight class, the first Harker wrestler to medal at CCS.
The response to the devastating earthquake in Haiti tops the list of Harker’s recent outreach efforts. Students, teachers and parents joined forces at all three campuses to fund ongoing efforts to provide food, medical supplies and shelter to the victims of the January temblor in Port au Prince, the tiny country’s densely populated capitol.
The Bucknall Student Council and the Gr. 4-5 Spirit and Service Club helped organize a hot chocolate and donuthole drive in January, earning over $3,000. Several lower school teachers and staff donated funds to offset the costs of food and drink to further enhance profit margin.
“Our student body truly outdid itself with its generosity and concern displayed throughout our fundraising effort,” said Kristin Giammona, elementary division head Gr. 4-5. “It is heartwarming to witness and be a part of such an outpouring of care and monetary support.”
Similarly, middle school students participated in Coin Wars, a friendly grade-level competition to make a difference. The organizers asked students to donate pennies and nickels for Haitian relief. The class with the largest number of one- and five-cent coins in their collection earned the most points. The effort, won by the class of 2015, raised a total of $3,100 in ten days.
Although they planned their fundraising and blood drive months in advance, members of the upper school Red Cross Club adapted their efforts to benefit Haitian relief. The annual blood drive collected over 80 donations from eligible students, faculty, staff and parents. While donations will likely be used locally, the collection helps offset blood donations elsewhere that will be sent to Port au Prince.
In another Red Cross effort, students emptied their pockets of change in a competition to slime the class dean and class presidents at the weekly school meeting, prompting generous contributions. The mounting piles of coin attracted daily attention in Manzanita Hall, and playful challenges by the deans and presidents to stuff the jars of their competitors added spice to the contest.
In the end, the sophomores were victorious, resulting in class dean Matt Harley and class president Revanth Kosaraju suffering a sliming worth $1,137. In total, the slime contest earned $1,983, an amount complemented by bake sales and pretzel-grams which earned $274 for a total of $2,267.
“We thought that it would be great to offer the Harker community an opportunity to assist Red Cross Haiti relief efforts during our week,” said Red Cross Club president Alex Han, Gr. 12. “We put our best efforts into raising awareness for the cause and making our fundraisers original and exciting, whether through selling handmade pretzel-grams or having a dean and class president get slimed.”
In late February 18 upper school students spent half a day removing non-native plants from the Arastradero Preserve as part of a project by Acterra, an environmental nonprofit in Palo Alto. “The weather held and everyone enjoyed working together; we got a lot done,” said Kerry Enzensperger, director of upper school community service. Harker students were involved in a variety of other activates geared toward helping the community as well.
Gr. 3 students collected new pajamas and books for needy children in the U.S. and elsewhere. Over 330 pairs of pajamas and 677 books were collected. “All of the third graders were encouraged to participate by bringing in books or pajamas,” said Joe Connolly, dean of students K-Gr. 5. “We had two third graders present the donations to Pallie Zambrano, co-president of the Northern California Chapter of The Pajama Program.”
On Martin Luther King Day, an official Congressional Day of Service, Colin Goodwin, Gr. 4 English teacher, organized a group of about 30 Gr. 4-5 students and parents to work with Save the Bay, planting native trees and grasses at the Eden Landing Ecological Preserve in Hayward. “On our day of service we planted something like 300 plants,” said Goodwin. “This was my first year organizing this project, and I hope to do the project again next year .”
Upper school Key Club members organized a drive for denim in January, collecting lightly-used jeans for homeless teenagers worldwide.
The class of 2011 held its annual toiletries drive, collecting hundreds of personal hygiene items for distribution at local homeless shelters. Similar efforts are mounted by lower school English teacher Pat Walsh and middle school librarian Bernie Morrissey on their campuses.
Lower school students authored and sent valentines to U.S. marines serving in Afghanistan.
Members of the middle school Peace2Peace Club will transform donations of lightly used toys, electronics and games into funds for daycare in India via a garage sale over spring break. The program allows older siblings who would otherwise be forced to stay home, to attend school regularly.
Upper school girls and boys soccer teams raised over $3,000 through T-shirt sales and donations for cancer research at their January doubleheader.
The middle school Service Club gathered new and gently used winter coats to benefit the local organization InnVision (www.innvision.org), which helps Bay Area families and individuals who are homeless or struggling financially.
Math instructor Peggy Crisler challenged middle school advisories to provide Christmas gifts for families through Kidango, a Bay Area nonprofit child development agency.
San Jose Mercury News– May 21, 2010: Alumnus Jason Martin ’07 was mentioned in an article about the San Jose State baseball team. At the time the story appeared, Martin had a .375 batting average, a team best and a remarkable feat considering he broke his hand last fall.
San Jose Mercury News – May 19, 2010: The following graduates were mentioned for making commitments to play sports at the following colleges: Greg Plauck (Santa Clara University baseball), Cole Davis (Stanford swimming), Arthi Padmanabhan (Pomona-Pitzer tennis), Amy Rorabaugh (Lake Forest College volleyball), Colby Rapson (UC Berkeley crew), Ryan Cali (University of Redlands basketball), Michael Clifford (UC Davis volleyball), Kelly Chen (Claremont-McKenna tennis) and Vivian Wong (Carnegie-Mellon swimming).
With the school year winding down, the last of the spring sports said goodbye to their seniors. Some of these athletes have played a pivotal role on their teams for four years and we wish them the best of luck in college.
The golf team bid farewell to four seniors at their end-of-the-year banquet. James Feng, Jeremy Whang, Vinay Kumar and Yash Khandwala will all be missed on and off the field.
In this round of goodbyes track & field sent off the most seniors with eight. They were Aadithya Prakash, Brandon Dai, Christine Trinh, Patrick Campbell, Tara Hansen, Thomas Enzminger, Tiffany Kyi and Scott Underwood.
Boys baseball gave their best wishes to Alex Ringold, Greg Plauck, Patrick Smith, Ryan Cali and Stefan Eckhardt. Plauck will be joining fellow alumnus Jason Martin as a collegiate baseball player. Martin plays at San Jose State while Plauck will be playing at Santa Clara University.
Softball lost six seniors this year, bidding adieu to Arthi Padmanabhan, Kacie Kaneyuki, Priya Sathaye, Shanthi Rajagopalan, Shizuka Tiernan and Zaynah Sadiq.
As spring sports came to a close, we had several upper school teams and many athletes turn in impressive end-of-season showings.
Golf
Maverick McNealy, Gr. 9, shot a 73 for a top 10 finish at the CCS Golf Tournament! He was one shot short of qualifying for the NorCal Tournament but is first alternate in case one of the four qualifiers can’t participate. He did a great job and his is the best-ever finish for a Harker player.
For more details, see www.cifccs.org/playoffs/results/09-10/bgolfccs10.html
Swimming
At the league championships held on campus at the Singh Aquatic Center, several records were set, including a school and WBAL record time of 1:50.15 in the girls 200 medley relay. The winning team was made up of Katie Siegel, Gr. 10, Tina Ma, Gr. 12, Vivian Wong, Gr. 12, and Jessica Khojasteh, Gr. 11. WBAL records were also broken in the girls 200 IM by J. Khojasteh, in 2:06.04; the girls 100 back by Siegel in 58.34; the girls 100 breast by V. Wong, in 1:06.41; the boys 200 medley relay by Kevin Khojasteh, Gr. 10, Michael Clifford, Gr. 12, Daryl Neubieser, Gr. 10, and Cole Davis, Gr. 12, with a time of 1:40.13; and the boys breast by K. Khojasteh in :59.99. Additional school records were set by Neubieser in the boys 200 (1:46.90) and 500 free (4:50.35), and in the boys 200 IM by K. Khojasteh (1:56.70).
Event winners at the championships included J. Khojasteh (200 IM, 100 free); Siegel (100 back); V. Wong (100 breast); girls 200 medley relay (Siegel, Ma, V. Wong, J. Khojasteh); K. Khojasteh (100 breast); Davis (50 free); and the boys 200 medley relay (K. Khojasteh, Clifford, Neubieser, Davis).
Individual CCS qualifiers were V. Wong, Ma, J. Khojasteh, Siegel, Lucy Cheng, Gr. 10, Tiffany Wong, Gr. 10, Davis, Clifford, K. Khojasteh and Neubieser. In the relays, all of the above students qualified, as well as Jeanette Chin, Gr. 12, Rachelle Koch, Gr. 10, Amie Chien, Gr. 9, Stefan Schwartz, Gr. 12, Darren Syu, Gr. 12, Chris Ng, Gr. 11, and Hassaan Ebrahim, Gr. 11.
At the CCS finals, the boys swim team not only was named CCS Scholastic Team Champions, they alsoplaced fourth overall (behind Bellarmine, Valley Christian and Sacred Heart Prep). The girls swim team placed eighth. Both results were the best placing ever for Harker. Before four years ago Harker had never scored a single point at CCS!
The highlight among highlights in the meet for Harker was J. Khojasteh (also Harker’s female athlete of the year) winning the first ever CCS title in any sport of any kind for Harker. In the most exciting race of the day, the 200 individual medley, Khojasteh touch tied for second after the butterfly leg, .44 behind the leader. After the backstroke, her “weakest” stroke, the race was still very close with Khojasteh in third, just .79 behind. She had a phenomenal breaststroke leg moving back up to second, but was still .21 behind. With a three-way battle in the freestyle, Khojasteh managed to get to the finish first, winning in 2:03.11. The top three girls were within one second of each other the entire race.
Other Harker top eight finishes of the meet included the girls 200 medley relay of Siegel, Ma, V. Wong and J. Khojasteh, which finished sixth; the boys 200 medley relay of K. Khojasteh, Clifford, Neubieser and Davis finishing second; along with several individual winners. K. Khojasteh took second in the 100 breaststroke and fourth in the 200 IM; Davis placed second in both the 50 and 100 freestyle; Neubieser came in eighth in the 50 freestyle; the boys 400 free relay of Neubiser, Davis, Khojasteh and Schwartz finished eighth; and V. Wong placed sixth in the 100 breaststroke.
All-American times were achieved this year by the girls 200 medley relay team of Siegel, Ma, V. Wong and J. Khojasteh; J. Khojasteh in the 200 IM and 100 freestyle; Siegel in the 100 backstroke; Davis in the 50 and 100 freestyle; and K. Khojasteh in the 200 IM and 100 breaststroke.
Congratulations to Isabelle Connell, Gr. 9, Michael Chen, Gr. 9, Thomas Enzminger, Gr. 12, and Scott Underwood, Gr. 12, for representing Harker at the CCS Track & Field Prelims at Gilroy High. Connell placed 13th overall in the 800m run, and Chen was the only freshman in CCS to participate in the shot put.
Results: http://www.cifccs.org/playoffs/results/09-10/track%20semifinal%20track%20results.pdf Athletics Awards At the end of year sports banquet, awards were presented for the 2009-2010 sports year. The female athlete of the year was Jessica Khojasteh and the male athlete of the year was Cole Davis. The award for female scholar athlete of the year went to Christina Ma and the male scholar athlete of the year to Stefan Eckhardt. Senior coaches awards were presented to Kelly Chen, Shanthi Rajagopalan, Kelsey Hilbrich, Tiffany Kyi, Manasa Reddy, Vivian Wong, Michael Clifford, Lung Ying-Yu, Mark Roh, Eugene Huang, Aadithya Prakash, Greg Plauck, Ryan Cali and Patrick Smith. This talented group of athletes will be missed next year!
Track and Field league finals took place last week and Harker has three league title holders, all seniors. Tiffany Kyi took first in the long jump; Thomas Enzminger threw for first in the discus and Aadithya Prakash also took first in the 3200. All three are league champions and have qualified for CCS trials. Watch for a complete sports update in the next week as spring sports wrap up league play.
Sabreur Eric Pei, Gr. 5, took the silver medal in April in Virginia Beach, Va., at the North American Circuit event in the Youth-10 boys sabre category, placing him second in points in the U.S.. Pei will next fence in Summer Nationals in Atlanta in July. At the Virgina Beach tournament, Pei won five out of six pool bouts and seeded fourth into the elimination table, then fought his way through three elimination bouts to reach the gold medal match. Pei trains at The Fencing Center of San Jose and Halberstadt Fencers Club, San Francisco; his main coach is Rob Handelman at Halberstadt.