The Student News Site of Saratoga High School

The Saratoga Falcon
Courtesy of LGSUHSD board The official map, decided during the April 14 public hearing.
School board finalizes district map for new trustee elections
June 1, 2025
Courtesy of Saratoga High School Junior Arjun Krish is one of 20 students in the country who have a shot at representing the US at the International Biology Olympiad.
Junior qualifies for International Biology Olympiad training camp at Harvard
May 27, 2025
French 1 classes are switching to the “Reporters Francophones” textbook for next year.
Language classes to try new textbook options next year
May 25, 2025
Seniors gather in the quad to celebrate their college decisions.
Seniors showcase post-grad plans on Commit Day
May 23, 2025
Choir and AP Music Theory teacher Beth Nitzan conducts a choir class during a rehearsal for their end-of-year concert on May 19.
Nitzan to leave school after four years in music department
May 21, 2025
Me conducting taste evaluations with two drinks at once.
The *actual* best boba places in the Bay
June 2, 2025
Courtesy of Aidan Smith Finn and Aidan pose together in the backyard for pictures before prom.
The Duality of Man: Aidan and Finn Smith
June 2, 2025
Keys works on an essay with an English 11 Honors student.
The first day of school in August requires months of planning for teachers
June 1, 2025
Hector and I pose with our first target after eliminating her in San Francisco.
Senior Mag 2025: We were eliminated in Senior Assassin — but that only made the game more fun
May 29, 2025
Seniors Annette Li and Kayla Nguyen anchor on an SHSTV broadcast.
Senior Mag ‘25: Duo evolves from GNNers to SHSTV head producers
May 27, 2025
(left to right) Audrey Wong, Summer Shen, Hannah Bui and Angela Tan prepare for a football game.
Senior Mag 2025: From Europe to the Bay, Flute seniors bonded over marching band
June 1, 2025
Courtesy of Annette Li We pose after our victory against Fremont High on April 30.
Senior Mag 2025: The chemistry and chaos of a 4-year badminton partnership
June 1, 2025
Junior Garrick Chau faces off sophomore William Dechlick and mental health therapist Victor Thompson in the Falcon Nest.
Foosball club brings in a professional to coach members skills
May 31, 2025
Many physical therapies consist of stretching and light exercises.
Student athletes navigate a long rehabilitation process after injuries
May 31, 2025
Courtesy of Lauren Nguyen Smiling proudly, the team stands together and celebrates their awards.
Dance team reflects on Nationals and what’s next
May 28, 2025
A wide variety of euphemisms impact perception in different ways.
Words that need to be heard: euphemisms are dangerous tools for desensitization
June 1, 2025
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Universities have no right to revoke diplomas for political speech
May 30, 2025
Courtesy of Charles Edward Miller People protesting against unlawful deportations.
Universities need to take action to prevent students from being deported by ICE
May 30, 2025
11th grade classes are full of interesting material.
100-word rant: teachers, five tests in two days is just cruel
May 29, 2025
Campaigning on popular social media apps such as Instagram shouldn’t be the norm.
For school leadership elections, candidates can rely too much on social media advertising
May 28, 2025
General Psychology teacher Hana Chen.
General Psychology class explores the field through projects
June 15, 2025
Courtesy of Nathan Shows The view from the dinner cruise on the Vltava.
The last class to remember being stranded in Prague, 2022
June 4, 2025
Courtesy of Rani Khanna Rani and Krishen in their childhood.
The Khanna twins: more like regular siblings than twins
June 4, 2025
Courtesy of Saratoga High School Grace Liu and Luke Zhang are the valedictorian and salutatorian of the senior class respectively.
Class of 2025 valedictorian and salutatorian announced
June 3, 2025
Courtesy of NBC Bay Area Saratoga High’s field shot from above.
Senior Mag: How anti-turf advocacy became my turf
June 3, 2025
Volume 58, Issue 5
Volume 58, Issue 5
July 10, 2025
Volume 59, Issue 1
Volume 59, Issue 1
July 10, 2025
Volume 59, Issue 2
Volume 59, Issue 2
July 10, 2025
Volume 58, Issue 10
Volume 58, Issue 10
July 10, 2025
Volume 58, Issue 11
Volume 58, Issue 11
July 10, 2025

The Saratoga Falcon

The Saratoga Falcon
All content by Nikhil Mathihalli
Assortments of college ranking list with factors such as acceptance rate, major, ranking and cost.

While flawed, college ranking systems remain necessary tools for constructing college lists

William Cao and Nikhil Mathihalli
Freshman Quinn Bossow’s SCVAL bracket and performance.

Multisport athletes draw on past experiences for an improved wrestling season

William Cao and Nikhil Mathihalli
Freshman Quinn Bossow works a kneebar ankle technique on Coach Paola Ramirez as Hayley Aguilar, sophomore Jayden Kwon and David Baek observe.

Wrestling head coach invites her past teammates to help team improve techniques

William Cao and Nikhil Mathihalli
Seniors Paul Hulme and Taylor Chu pose in front of the set-up balloon arc during the Homecoming football game against Cupertino on Sept. 22.

Royalty honored at halftime of Homecoming game along with fall teams

Nikhil Mathihalli
Class of 1998 shooting guard Luke Weger hits a clutch three-pointer with around four minutes left to extend the Falcons’ lead to 58-52.

25 years later: SHS’s version of a staggering March Madness upset

Nikhil Mathihalli and Howard Shu
A-team members senior Adam Xu, senior Nilay Mishra, junior Advaith Avadhanam and senior Anthony Wang listen attentively as the round’s questions are being read.

Science Bowl team places first at regionals, heads to nationals

Nikhil Mathihalli and Anthony Wang
 Coach Taylor Wilson and senior captain Sohum Bhan instruct a series of wrestling moves to the rest of the team.

5-member wrestling team hopes to increase size in future

Nikhil Mathihalli
Junior Avik Belenje and freshman Ishir Gupta play a doubles match together during a practice on Feb. 9.

Season preview: Badminton returns to rebuilding after 2022 postseason success

Nikhil Mathihalli and William Norwood
Senior guard Julian Berklowitz-Sklar gets ready for a defensive possession late in the team’s game against Los Gatos on Feb. 8.

Wildcats deal blow to Falcons’ CCS chances

Neal Malhotra, Nikhil Mathihalli, and Andy Zhu
Senior Ojas Somani teaches the All-Males Dance (AMD) to members in preparation for their upcoming performance in BNB.

Bombay in the Bay video process aims to recognize long-time senior participants

Nikhil Mathihalli
Members of MSET Fish discuss possible robotics designs during the season kickoff day on Jan. 9.

MSET Fish work to build new robot for ‘Charged Up’ FRC season

Nikhil Mathihalli
The waves crashing at the beautiful Carmel Beach.

February Break travel guide: 48 hours in Carmel-by-the-Sea

Neal Malhotra and Nikhil Mathihalli
Juniors Emily Ta and Josh Ta with their family and friends at the 49ers home playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys on Jan. 22. 

Students disappointed with another 49ers NFC Championship loss

Nikhil Mathihalli and Kavya Patel
The beaches at Cambria are beautiful places to enjoy with your family and fuzzy friends.

Enjoy a sandy winter break vacation in relaxing Cambria

Neal Malhotra and Nikhil Mathihalli
Members of winter percussion warm up and get ready in the “lot” — the location outside the performance venue — during the Northern California Percussion Alliance (NCPA) Championships at American Canyon High.

80 students join winter percussion

Nikhil Mathihalli
The Coca-Cola Scholars Program gives a $20,000 academic scholarship for 150 students each year.

2 seniors advance in Coca-Cola Scholars program

Nikhil Mathihalli
Quiz Bowl Club officers teach techniques and train the team members by answering quick questions during their lunch meetings. 

Quiz Bowl wins first two tournaments, qualifies for national tournament

Nikhil Mathihalli, Aiden Ye, and Zack Zhang
The theme for this year’s Winter Formal is “Met Gala Afterparty.” The dance will take place on Dec. 10 at Great America from 7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Huge turnout expected for Winter formal at Great America

Nikhil Mathihalli
Autumn is my favorite season of the year. The weather is perfect, and time with family is memorable.

It’s autumn and time to celebrate

Nikhil Mathihalli
Juniors celebrate their quad day performance on Sept. 22.

The juniors had the best quad-day performance

Neal Malhotra and Nikhil Mathihalli
Substitute Chris Rasmussen, who teaches U.S. history and History in Film, works with a student during fourth period on Oct. 19.

Subs fill in for history and math teachers on leave

Nikhil Mathihalli, Nilay Mishra, and Jonathan Si
The Soundings magazine staff meets during an Oct. 19 tutorial in English teacher Amy Keys’s room.

Soundings literary magazine to have two issues, seeks to gain wider participation

Nikhil Mathihalli
There is no place better than Reddit to waste your time.

Top 10 subreddits

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye
History of the case fatality rate of COVID-19.

We wish COVID was over; it’s not

Nikhil Mathihalli and Anthony Wang
Class of 2015 alumna Sabrina Chen with members of the 2015 Falcon staff and journalism adviser Michael Tyler.

Class of ‘15 valedictorian recalls high school memories — and her Falcon love story

Nikhil Mathihalli
Laws, who started at the schools in 2021 with English 9 and 10, is now the adviser for the Talisman.

English teacher Megan Laws steps up as new yearbook adviser

Neal Malhotra and Nikhil Mathihalli
28 in the Class of 2023 announced as National Merit Semifinalists

28 in the Class of 2023 announced as National Merit Semifinalists

Nikhil Mathihalli
‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ highlights everything wrong with the Marvel Cinematic Universe

‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ highlights everything wrong with the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Nikhil Mathihalli
73 questions: conversations with the school community

73 questions: conversations with the school community

Lena Aribi, Meher Bhatnagar, Christina Chang, Lynn Dai, Victoria Hu, Hannah Lee, Jonny Luo, Shannon Ma, Nikhil Mathihalli, and Sarah Zhou
Sophomore Owen Liang answers questions for a scouter from another FRC team during the FRC World Championship

Robotics teams clash against the world’s best teams in Houston

Nikhil Mathihalli and Daniel Wu
Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye

Pickett retires after 9 years of teaching math at the school

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye

Top 10 Michaels

Nikhil Mathihalli and Arnav Swamy
The Quiz Bowl competitive team plays at Cal Cup 4 on March 27 at Bellarmine High.

STEM competitions spotlight top achievers

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
The Tamasha dance team performs at their BnB performance on Feb. 19

Tamasha highlights Bollywood culture at the school

Lynn Dai and Nikhil Mathihalli

Banner year for robotics: Both major teams to compete in Worlds

Nikhil Mathihalli

Boys’ volleyball hopes to avoid injuries that plagued them last year

Nikhil Mathihalli and Viraaj Reddi
Guacamole is the worst

Guacamole is the worst

Nikhil Mathihalli
Post-pandemic woes: Yearbook, ASB face funding issues

Post-pandemic woes: Yearbook, ASB face funding issues

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
Same-subject classes should have similar policies, assessments and difficulty

Same-subject classes should have similar policies, assessments and difficulty

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye
The FRC hardware team is fixing their robot, Cowfish, for their regional tournament at San Francisco.

Two regionals put MSET Fish’s robot to the test

Nikhil Mathihalli and Arnav Swamy
A Sources of Strength professional talks to students during Sources of Strength training on Nov. 30.

Sources of Strength organizes Valentine’s day flower sale to fund mental health awareness projects

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
The Saratoga Library: at the heart of the city

The Saratoga Library: at the heart of the city

Nikhil Mathihalli

100-word rant: Please, I don’t want to freeze in class

Nikhil Mathihalli
Sophomores Arjun Raje and Varun Sreedhara take the court against Monta Vista on March 8. The team ultimately lost 16-14.

With young roster, badminton seeks to develop skills

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
Junior boys arrive on stage in their starting positions awaiting the loud music.

Bombay in the Bay dazzles in person

Meher Bhatnagar and Nikhil Mathihalli
Portrayed in a sketched by a courtroom artist, senior mock trial president Nicole Lu competes at the Santa Clara County Mock Trial Competition.

Students see success in competitions, scholarships

Selina Chen, Allen Luo, Jonny Luo, and Nikhil Mathihalli

Seniors Vignav Ramesh and Anouk Yeh selected as Coca-Cola Scholars Regional Finalists

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli

Academic clubs prepare to host respective competitions

Jonny Luo, Nikhil Mathihalli, and Aiden Ye
The boys’ varsity soccer team huddles up to end their practice.

Boys’ soccer finds early league success

Annie Liu, Nikhil Mathihalli, and Tiffany Wang
After months of deliberation, school board leaves bell schedule unchanged

After months of deliberation, school board leaves bell schedule unchanged

Andrew Lin and Nikhil Mathihalli
Bombay in the Bay still on track for in-person performance

Bombay in the Bay still on track for in-person performance

Meher Bhatnagar and Nikhil Mathihalli

Top 10 excuses for not returning your friend’s pencil

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye
Quiz Bowl members practice for Cal Cup virtually through Protobowl, a real-time, multiplayer Quizbowl application.

Quiz Bowl to send its top team to nationals

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
The football team practices at the field on Oct. 21

Football season cut short by lack of healthy players

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
A deep dive into popular cereals

A deep dive into popular cereals

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye
School sees increase in iPad usage for both students and staff

School sees increase in iPad usage for both students and staff

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
Being unvaccinated amid a push for vaccination

Being unvaccinated amid a push for vaccination

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
Why can’t I make decisions?

Why can’t I make decisions?

Nikhil Mathihalli
For more information about Homecoming, scan this QR code

Homecoming bounces back

Nikhil Mathihalli
Teams get ready with their robots to begin their match

MSET Fish exceed expectations at CalGames

Nikhil Mathihalli
Freshmen Caleb Yu, Arsh Tikku, Langdon Huynh and Vivaan Suri review their cases during speech and debate practice on Oct. 1.

Speech and debate, facing challenges on all fronts, begins to find solutions

Nikhil Mathihalli and Shreya Rallabandi
Junior running back Paolo Navarro runs the ball as senior lineman Parker Smith blocks Monta Vista’s defense.

Falcons kick off league season with a win and a loss

Andy Chen, Jonny Luo, Nikhil Mathihalli, and Shaan Sridhar

MSET Fish exceed expectations at CalGames

Nikhil Mathihalli

Quiz Bowl practices remain online to mimic tournament setting

Nikhil Mathihalli and Jonny Luo

Top 10 ways to get bored

Nikhil Mathihalli and Aiden Ye
The sophomores perform their partner/co-ed dance during their quad day.

Delayed by a pandemic, sophomores struggle with first quad day performance

Nikhil Mathihalli
Music department back on track after rough pandemic year

Music department back on track after rough pandemic year

Shannon Ma and Nikhil Mathihalli
Recapping the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Recapping the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Jonny Luo and Nikhil Mathihalli
As promised, district offers online program for ‘21-‘22

As promised, district offers online program for ‘21-‘22

Howard Shu and Nikhil Mathihalli
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