David Eng

When senior Kevin Smith dropped to his knees in the waning seconds of an Oct. 22 football game versus Los Gatos, it was not a kneel of humility by the Falcon quarterback. Instead, he was taking a knee to run down the final 30 seconds of the game clock. With Saratoga’s 21-17 victory over Los Gatos, the Wildcats’ nearly three-decade dominance of the crosstown football rivalry had ended. Elated Falcon fans stormed the field to the fire-truck wail of the end-of-game buzzer.

Many a time, students at Saratoga High dismiss leadership opportunities in favor of a rigorous academic schedule and numerous other extracurricular activities. However, participating in class office, as these three alumni testify, bolsters a student’s high school experience and is truly rewarding later in life.

B+. The dreaded grade that strikes fear into the hearts of Chinese mothers, right?

Tragedy befell chemistry teacher Kathy Nakamatsu in 2002 when her then-husband Jayson Chang fell victim to multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells. She remained by his side during his final days, but eventually he passed away later that year. Suddenly estranged and emotionally calloused by this traumatic turn of events, Nakamatsu sought mediums by which to cope with her deep loss. One of these methods she found particularly therapeutic: the solace of writing.

Where’s Freddie Falcon? Tales of a missing mascot, Toga’s mascot missing in action, My quest began because the school’s most iconic sports fan of years past—scarlet-feathered mascot Freddie Falcon—seemed to be missing in action this year. He was AWOL from the football team’s thrilling 21-17 victory over Los Gatos on Oct. 22 and seemingly camera shy from all of this year’s spirit days. And so I set out to find Freddie, on a mission of grave importance to both the success of sports teams and my sense of investigative prowess.

Three years ago, Tim Lugo became head coach of a varsity football team that had just been moved up to the upper league after a strong showing in the CCS playoffs. Given the success of his predecessor Kurt Heinrich, who guided Saratoga to a 7-4 record during the 2007-2008 season, many football players and fans alike felt jilted by Heinrich’s firing.

Who said senior year was easy? As October rolls to a close and dreaded college application due dates draw closer, the life of a senior becomes increasingly hectic. But what is it about the college apps season that creates such a craze among seniors year after year?

Next year will be one of change and adjustment for drama students, as current English teacher Kerry Mohnike has volunteered to teach two classes of drama after Chris Mahle, who has led the program for four years, was not retained by the school. Many students were disappointed about news of Mahle's departure, which was revealed during a drama club lunch on April 6 by assistant principal Karen Hyde. Junior Hannah Harter said the news was "very upsetting" and was surprised to hear it.

It's almost that time of year again: summer vacation. But for the class of 2010, the month of June brings with it more than just waning days of a concluding school year. Parting words Graduation is around the corner and the ceremony is all in order. According to assistant principal Karen Hyde, the ceremony will be very similar to ones held in previous years. "Nothing new under the sun," said Hyde. "But let's hope it's sunny. It's going to be nice; it's not going to rain."

Record: overall: 10-20, league: 3-11 Highlight of Season: 8-3 victory over Monta Vista to stay in the upper league. After finishing 7th in the regular season standings, the Falcons needed to beat 6th-seeded Monta Vista in a best-of-three series to stay up in the De Anza League. After beating Monta Vista 9-7 in the series opener, Saratoga lost the second game 11-2 but finished off the Matadors with the third game win to solidify their spot in the De Anza league schedule next year.

Hoards of music enthusiasts lined up for an all-you-can-eat pancake buffet served by a team of breakfast chefs including principal Jeff Anderson and Saratoga mayor Chuck Page. Complemented by sausages, strawberries, milk and juice, the pancakes were outdone only by the music that filled the spring morning of May 2.

In Major League baseball, injuries are serious obstacles that clubs must learn to overcome. However, the plethora of minor league players ready to step up and the highly experienced team of medical personnel eases the painful injuries that so often rear their ugly heads. This year, the Falcons have learned that, in this respect, high school baseball is nothing like the Majors. At the high school level, where teams usually carry around 15 players, injuries can be extremely dangerous.

What's the point of high school? So often we roam the halls of the science wing pondering the significance of the anatomy of a frog in our own lives or leave the math quad wondering why we need to know how to graph a parabola. Why do we read "Of Mice and Men" in freshman year, and who cares about the causes of World War I? In short, these necessary high school lessons serve as building blocks for later in life, perhaps stepping stones for a future career. Just ask Lynn Chouw, a 2001 graduate and current aerospace engineer at Lockheed Martin.

At every level of baseball, from Little League to the Majors, pitching is considered to be the most important aspect of the game and the key to victory.

Question: What is the school's most dominant team or program? Among the many possible answers: the girls' tennis team, which won CCS this year and took second in Northern California; the boys' swimming team, which set a national relay record last spring, or the marching band, which ranks near the top of the state in its division. These are all good guesses. But another, lesser known group has set the standard for excellence on campus: the chess team, winner of five straight state championships.

As one famous poem goes, "water, water, everywhere." Well, in our nation's case, the phrase should be changed to "garbage, garbage, everywhere." According www.greenwaste.com, Americans will generate an astounding 222 million tons of waste this year. In other words, America's total yearly waste would fill a convoy of garbage trucks long enough to wrap around the earth six times and reach halfway to the moon.

Major League Baseball is a game of transactions. The constant waiving, releasing and signing of players and coaches epitomizes the continual change of team sports. This past off season, the Falcons' baseball program underwent some major changes of its own. Among the changes were a league promotion, new coaches and roster swaps. Movin' on up After posting a stellar 12-3 record last season in the lower El Camino Division, the young baseball program will face tougher competition this year in the upper De Anza Division.

Which technique can be used to determine the number of components in a plant pigment? This question from the 2009 Chemistry Olympiad Local Exam is something students may face in this year's local test, held on March 16. The 60 question, multiple choice exam is sponsored by the American Chemical Society and 20-25 Saratoga High students vie for two spots to compete locally.

Over February break, a week typically devoted to family outings, junior Will Tang spent time with his mother a little more unconventionally. "In the span of two hours, my mom turned me into a professional seamstress," said Tang. "I learned how to use a sewing machine and now I'm really good at it." No, Tang was not preparing for a stint as a fashion designer or anything of the sort. In fact, he and his mother were sewing together a mole to compete in chemistry teacher Kathy Nakamatsu's annual contest.

Queen to F-4. Checkmate. Saratoga High's top ranked chess team dominated the competition at the 2010 Santa Clara County High School Chess Championship held at Monta Vista High School on Feb. 6. The team took home four of the top five place trophies and once again solidified itself as a county chess powerhouse. Monta Vista had won the a league tournament two months ago, but this time around, the Saratoga tandem of senior Charles Sun and sophomore Evan Ye proved to be too much. They placed first and second, respectively.

You win some, you lose some. No one understands this more than the boys' basketball team, which saw its hopes of a CCS berth fade away in the waning seconds of a Feb. 12 game against rival Lynbrook Vikings. Entering the crucial game with a 4-6 record, the Falcons had hopes of defeating a Lynbrook team they had obliterated 61-38 on Dec. 18 and edged 76-61 more recently on Jan. 22.

With just under 30 seconds remaining in a crucial league matchup, raucous chants of "T-I-N-O! T-I-N-O!" echoed about the Cupertino High gymnasium on Jan. 29. But moments later, the only noise was the sound of Pioneer fans filing out the door in disappointment, as the visiting Falcons boys' basketball team managed a last-second victory against host Cupertino.

After a slow 1-7 start, the boys' basketball team finished the non-league season strong, posting a 3-1 record over the winter break. This four-game surge came at a good time for the Falcons, who rolled into their first league game versus Cupertino with some positive momentum. Saratoga's winning ways continued against the Cupertino Pioneers, as senior shooting guard Daniel Chou exploded for a career-high 27 points on six three-pointers while shooting an astounding 71 percent from the field.

At least 77 students will be out of state during the approaching ski week and the much awaited spring break, and 52 of them will be Spanish 2, 3, 4, and 5 students visiting Cuernavaca, Mexico, as part of the Spanish department's annual 10-day trip there. The other 25 students out on school business will be roaming the canyons of a national park in Monticello, Utah, as part of teacher Matt Torrens' "Wild West" trip.

For the second consecutive year, The Saratoga Falcon has joined 63 other high school papers nation-wide to be given a Crown Award from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. Last year, the Falcon's online and print editions each received a Gold Crown, the top award. On March 19, the editors-in-chief of the 2008-2009 newspaper, alumni Michael Chen and Dorey Schranz, will find out whether or not the newspaper that they were in charge of will win a Gold Crown once again.

Steve Chang partakes in nearly every activity one would expect of a 17-year-old with the exception of one—high school. No, Chang is not a high school dropout, nor is he an early graduate. While many of his former classmates roam the halls of Saratoga High as seniors, Chang takes classes at West Valley Community College as part of their Middle College program. This branch of schooling deviates from the typical path students follow to higher education but offers several attractive benefits.

The boys' basketball team kicked off its season with a fourth-place finish at the Westmont Invitational during the week of Dec. 1-4. "The team is doing all right," said junior forward Kent Paisley. "We're a young group of kids and we're learning our way through varsity." For the Falcons, the week began with an electrifying 54-50 win over the Prospect Panthers, keyed by junior point guard Alex Chan's clutch one-and-one free throws to put the game away.

It's not every year that a freshman gets to play on a varsity squad. This year there are two freshmen on the boys' basketball team: forwards Stevie Berman and Kyle Dozier. Neither expected to play at the top level, but both ended up donning varsity jerseys. "I got moved up in the summer [league], but I didn't think I would make it," said the 6'1" Berman, who has been playing basketball since third grade. Coach Trevor Naas decided to include the boys on varsity after seeing them play over the summer and during tryouts.

When the fall sports season kicked off in early September, second-year football coach Tim Lugo had a vision for his team to play through Thanksgiving. Three months later, his vision was realized. The Falcons earned a chance to play the afternoon ensuing Turkey Day with a hard-fought first-round 30-20 victory over Burlingame the week prior. They were slotted to play the No. 2 seeded Seaside Spartans at Westmont High.

As the 2009-10 winter sports season kicks off, the boys' basketball team has high aims, despite having only four returning seniors. The Falcons will look to improve on last season's 11-15 overall record (4-7 league finish) under the direction of second-year varsity coach Trevor Naas. They also have hopes of trumping last year's first-round CCS playoff exit. To achieve these goals, they will strongly rely on three of their seniors for leadership on the court.

As I trudged about the room contemplating my next pursuit, I innately plopped down on the couch, reached out for the black button-laden remote control, fired up the flat panel screen and sat there mesmerized. In the ever-expanding age of technological advances, one generation-spanning activity has captured the eyes, and minds, of nearly every American—the TV. In my case, it's nearly an addiction.

Coming off of Homecoming week's 48-13 drubbing of Cupertino High, Saratoga football entered Friday night's game against the Homestead Mutstangs poised to secure a spot in the CCS playoffs. With a win the Falcons could guarantee a playoff bid, in addition to knocking Homestead out of contention. Entering the contest with a 4-5 record, a win could also boost their regular season winning percentage to an even .500.

Drugs. Weapons. Harrassment. It's not a good thing to be sitting in assistant principal Joe Bosco's office for any of these disciplinary reasons. The administrator may given a student minor penalties like a suspension, but in some cases, he is not as lenient. He has the power to recommend expulsion. But what really happens when he opts to enforce these extreme measures, whether it be a suspension or expulsion, and just how effective are these methods in stopping teens from causing trouble?

The 2009 Homecoming week will certainly be one remembered for changes, as it came to a close with a senior quad day, a football game and an unusually clean dance in the gym the following night, Nov. 7.

As Homecoming week continued, juniors pulled off their own rendition of the Pixar movie, "Finding Nemo,"on Junior Quad Day, Thursday, Nov. 5.

Homecoming festivities started at long last, with the freshman quad day performance on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Anticipation gathered among the enormous crowd assembled in a semi-circle formation around the quad steps, as performers were nowhere to be found for nearly 10 minutes. Finally, a group of 12 freshmen wearing color-coordinated green shirts hopped onto the scene, dancing to the familiar tune of "Disturbia." A break-dance battle, featuring Brian Minsoo Kim and Powell Huang, followed the choreographed routine.

A slight wave of disappointment struck the quad as sophomores exited the stage of their quad day performance on Wednesday, Nov. 4. The problems began before the act even started, stemming from a late start. Hundreds of students quickly arranged themselves in the familiar semi-circle huddle formation at the start of lunch period. However, nothing actually happened until nearly 15 minutes after the bell.

Twenty-nine years and no regular season wins. This is the storyline as the Falcon football team heads into hostile territory for its matchup against cross-district rival Los Gatos on Friday, Oct. 23, at Helm Field. Last year, the team lost 10-7 on a field goal with 23 seconds left. This year, however, the Falcons are determined to end the infamous streak and embarrass the Wildcats in their Homecoming game. "We came really close last year. I think this is the year," said senior defensive end Adam Oreglia.

Last season, the Saratoga High football program was out to prove that they belonged in the De Anza league, one regarded as the most competitive in the area. Although many fans doubted that the Falcons would be able to contend in this tough division, the squad showed these skeptics otherwise with their 4-6 record. This season, second-year head coach Tim Lugo wants to advance to the CCS playoffs. "At the start of every season, we set a new goal for ourselves," said Lugo. "Last year, it was establishing ourselves in the [De Anza] league. This year, it's making CCS."

Like many other seniors, Rishabh Jethanandani has only one thing on his mind these days—what school will be the best fit for him. One school he’s considering is Columbia University. To find out more about the school’s general environment and academics, he attended a talk given by a Columbia admissions officer on Oct 1, taking advantage of one of the school’s most informative resources: the College and Career Center (CCC), located near the main office in room X01. The CCC is making renewed efforts this year to publicize its resources and help students take advantage of them.

"It's a choice," sophomore Natalie Berg said with conviction, referring to her vegan diet. By conforming to a vegan diet, Berg originally intended to display her disapproval of the cruel treatment of animals in food production. However, over the past few years, she has also observed another benefit of her lifestyle choice: healthier eating. In addition to eating more vegetables and regulating her protein and vitamin intake, Berg has also found herself scanning nutrition facts for ingredients and health contents.

Stripes, bows and Under Armour all have a strange connection—they are sources of quirky sports uniform restrictions. Wide stripes banned in field hockey uniforms The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) recently announced the release of a new field hockey rule regarding the width of an in-seam stripe, one of the factors involved in the school's purchasing of new uniforms for the current season.

When the National Federation of State High School Associations' (NFHS) released this year's state cross country meet policies and procedures, many runners across the nation felt confused. This is because the recently enacted set of rules restricts the wearing of jewelry or headbands by any contestant at any meet.

The Saratoga High football team emerged victorious at Friday’s non-league contest in hostile ground, easily defeating host Westmont Warriors 52-27. The Falcons displayed particular resilience, recovering from the previous week’s heartbreaking loss to Santa Teresa. Their first game featured a second-half defensive letdown, but in this game Saratoga kept its foot on the accelerator for the entire four quarters.

Over a busy summer that witnessed the speedy construction of the new "Court of Dreams" outdoor basketball and volleyball facility, a more subtle, perhaps lesser known project also took place at Saratoga High—the resurfacing of the tennis courts.

Saratoga's first loss of the season was a tale of two halves as the Falcons dropped their opening game 42-36 to visiting Santa Teresa High. It hardly seemed like the atmosphere that would yield a Saratoga loss, with the support of a spirited, football-starved crowd spanning the length of the Benny Pierce home bleachers, not to mention being backed by a massive band and a team of spunky cheerleaders.

Saratoga's first loss of the season was a tale of two halves as the Falcons dropped their opening game 42-36 to visiting Santa Teresa High. It hardly seemed like the atmosphere that would yield a Saratoga loss, with the support of a spirited, football-starved crowd spanning the length of the Benny Pierce home bleachers, not to mention being backed by a massive band and a team of spunky cheerleaders.

Saratoga's first loss of the season was a tale of two halves as the Falcons dropped their opening game 42-36 to visiting Santa Teresa High. It hardly seemed like the atmosphere that would yield a Saratoga loss, with the support of a spirited, football-starved crowd spanning the length of the Benny Pierce home bleachers, not to mention being backed by a massive band and a team of spunky cheerleaders.

“Oh, you gotta’ be kidding me!” girls’ basketball coach Mike Davey shouted as his floater ricocheted off a netless hoop inside Saratoga High’s new “Court of Dreams.” Construction of the Sports Courts was completed over the busy summer under the supervision of Davey, assistant principal Joe Bosco, principal Jeff Anderson and superintendent Cary Matsuoka. During that time, a barren strip of dirt and gravel became a state-of-the-art outdoor basketball and volleyball court.

A surprisingly large crowd which nearly filled both sets of bleachers turned up at Benny Pierce Field to watch the Saratoga High football team host a three-way scrimmage against Valley Christian and Leigh high schools Friday, Aug. 28. There were no drives, as each offense unit took a single snap from the 50-yard line before switching off. Each defensive unit stayed on for five plays, matching up against both teams. Although merely a test session to work out the kinks for their game, the scrimmage featured the atmosphere of a normal game with raucous cheering.