The Student News Site of Saratoga High School

The Saratoga Falcon
There is one MOSAIC lesson remaining in the 2024-25 school year.
MOSAIC wins county-wide award for student impact
March 24, 2025
Sophomore Eric Liang and his VEX team 2041V pose for a photo after winning a competition
The road less traveled: choosing to do robotics outside of the school’s well-known teams
March 22, 2025
Juniors hike along the ocean view at the Año Nuevo State Park on March 13.
AP Environmental Science classes embark on the 14th annual Año Nuevo visit
March 22, 2025
Little by little, the animal rights movement continues to grow in both support and action.
Analysis: Animal rights movement shines light on humanity’s cruelty
March 22, 2025
The district is looking to replace the school’s security cameras, which were installed around campus in places like the corner of the music building as far back as 2016.
New district plans include updated facility rental policies and revamped campus security systems
March 21, 2025
The teachers’ preferences range from fantasy to magical realism.
Free-time reads — books your English teachers recommend
March 27, 2025
Carpenter with her co-star Rowan Blanchard on the set of “Girl Meets World.”
Sabrina Carpenter’s slow rise to stardom
March 26, 2025
Astronauts return after being stranded on the ISS for nine months.
Second space race era sparks new discoveries and hopes and some fears
March 26, 2025
Seniors Alan Cai, Agastya Vitalvedera, Akshat Bora and Karthik Sangameswaran team up at Nationals Round 5 in Atlanta in 2024.
Quiz Bowl team prepares for upcoming National tournament
March 26, 2025
Shopping app and extension honey gets exposed as a fraudulent scam.
Honey scandal reveals the dark side of cashback and coupon services
March 26, 2025
Coach Brian Liao talks game strategy with sophomores Andy Lu and Teegan Seid-Pham.
New head badminton coach brings valued guidance for players
March 27, 2025
President Riley Adler demonstrates yoga moves on the March 20 meeting, focused on the benefits of the practice.
Sports Medicine Club strives to teach athletes to be more aware of their body
March 26, 2025
Brennan runs with the ball in a lacrosse game last season against Gunn.
Two paths, one team — siblings’ shared support transcends different sports
March 25, 2025
Sophomore Sina Mohtaj-Khorassani warms up before a scrimmage.
Promising freshmen primed boost boys’ tennis team’s chances
March 22, 2025
Iris gets some setter reps while practicing with her dad.
Athletes navigate sports with their fathers on the sideline as coaches
March 21, 2025
Stay safe.
In a dark time, it’s time to know your rights
March 27, 2025
Starting next school year, more students are able to study at MIT without worrying about tuition.
Educational institutions are wise to offer free tuition to low-income families
March 26, 2025
Nationwide voter turnout since 2002, blue is presidential, yellow is midterm
Sagging voter participation puts democracy at risk
March 22, 2025
Cutting the tree of the Department of Education in half.
DOGE’s cuts for educational programs cause instability and loss of research confidence
March 19, 2025
The average tuition and fees for public colleges have decreased, while increase in private college tuition has slowed.
Unlike critics of CollegeBoard suggest, the cost of attending public colleges will likely decrease
March 19, 2025
The substance that has me stumped.
What is the true taste of water?
March 27, 2025
All of my school stationery fits comfortably inside a compact bag.
Stationery finds: three essentials for a neat pencil bag
March 27, 2025
The J-room has a plethora of posters to enjoy
Top 10 posters in the J-room
March 27, 2025
Kandoo Cafe serves their pâtissière on their signature, honeycomb-patterned plates.
Kandoo Cafe: sweet and refreshing pastries to enjoy an afternoon with
March 26, 2025
For nearly three decades, Mr. Tyler’s mugshots have looked so similar, yet so different. The one on the left is from 1996, his first year teaching here; the one on the right is from earlier this year.
Top 10: Tyler yearbook mugshots
March 25, 2025

The Saratoga Falcon

The Saratoga Falcon
Richard Fan

Richard Fan, Sports Editor

All content by Richard Fan
Junior Richard Fan executes a backflip off of a jump at the Alpine Meadows ski resort near Lake Tahoe, Calif.

Photo or Graphic for: Cliff drops and beam flips: Outside-of-school athletes train and compete in dangerous sports

Anthony Luo
March 19, 2025
English teacher Marcos Cortez speaks to the whole school during the Speak Up For Change Rally on Jan. 24.

Speaking up for ‘finding your passion’

Richard Fan
February 4, 2025
Arranged left to right, senior captain and center back Hillary Gonzalez leads a strong defense, sophomore attacking midfielder Katie Lu with 11 goals, and junior Keatyn Spendlove with 8 assists.

Girls’ soccer undefeated in El Camino League halfway through season

Richard Fan and Ashni Pillai
January 29, 2025
AP Physics teachers Tom Casavant and Matthew Welander discuss a change in their upcoming lesson plans.

Class-alike teachers collaborate to improve and standardize student experiences

Richard Fan and Ashni Pillai
December 13, 2024
Falcons look to defend Notre Dame’s free kick during home game on Dec. 10.

Girls’ soccer defeats Notre Dame Knights 3-2, still undefeated in pre-season

Ashni Pillai and Richard Fan
December 13, 2024
From 1959 to present-day, the Falcon has transitioned from a black-and-white newspaper to a colored magazine and website.

Through the decades: How The Falcon transitioned to new technologies

Amy Miao, Jessica Li, and Richard Fan
December 10, 2024
Saratoga Team 1, senior Alan Lu, junior Lawson Wang, sophomores Andy Lu and Seabert Mao, senior Skyler Mao and sophomore Vivian Zhong (left to right), hold their 3rd place trophy.

Math club places third at Berkeley tournament

Richard Fan
November 17, 2024
The National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist is a prestigious position granted to students who achieve high scores on the PSAT exam.

30 in the Class of 2025 announced as National Merit Semifinalists

Richard Fan
November 16, 2024
Junior vice captain Max Rombakh reads a packet to the Science Bowl team, as they practice buzzing.

Science Bowl squad has first match of season

Richard Fan
October 25, 2024
Junior left wing Chester Bunker looks for a pass to penetrate the Pioneers’ defense during the Oct. 24 game.

Boys’ water polo secures an impressive 7-5 win on senior night against Cupertino, proving momentum heading into league tourney

Richard Fan
October 25, 2024
Lalitha Maruvda helps freshman Brooklyn Harman test his nearly complete Pong game on Sept. 13.

New Intro to Computer Science teacher brings over 20 years of industry experience

Richard Fan
September 19, 2024
Junior Nirvan Shah faces off against junior Brady Liang at lunch on Sept. 16.

Student irresponsibility undermines the Falcon Nest’s true potential

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
September 18, 2024
Junior Aiden Chen winds up for a pitch against Santa Clara on May 9.

Baseball falls short of CCS but builds for the future

Richard Fan and Jane Lee
May 23, 2024
Sophomore Kelsey Zhang swims the 100-yard Fly at CCS on May 2. 

Star swimmer’s disqualification in 200 IM race puts stirs controversy at CCS

Richard Fan, Agastya Vitaldevara, Ruiyan Zhu, and Bill Huang
May 21, 2024
Leo Shetler rows at a competition in Boston.

Sports: 2023-2024 notable athlete achievements

Richard Fan, Bill Huang, and Grace Lin
May 21, 2024
Junior Sawyer Chao sprints towards the ball during home game on March 11. The game against Gunn ended with a loss for the Falcons. 

Lacrosse: After a canceled year, teams rebound to complete their seasons

Richard Fan and Nika Svizhenko
May 21, 2024
Senior Riley Alves executes a reverse straight dive during a meet at Los Altos on March 14.

Senior diver competes at CCS, ends season unsure of future of the team

Richard Fan
May 21, 2024
Sophomore Nikhil Srivasta serves during home game against Homestead on April 29.

Boys’ tennis falls to California High at NorCal Regional Championships

Richard Fan
May 21, 2024
Saratoga students often take a variety of West Valley summer courses, whether it is for college credit or self interest.

Get a real college experience at no cost — take some summer community college classes

Richard Fan
May 4, 2024
The taste of happiness sadly lasted only one day.

100-word rant: Please bring back beef stew for school lunch

Richard Fan
April 30, 2024
More and more jobs will now be taken over by automation, making Computer Science less appealing as a major.

Is studying comp sci still the golden ticket to wealth?

Alec Guan and Richard Fan
April 29, 2024
Coach Osayi Omorodion gives sprinting suggestions to sophomore Steven Sun.

New track and field coaches help distance running and sprinters 

Kevin Yang and Richard Fan
April 18, 2024
Breaking will make its debut in the 2024 Summer Olympics in an effort to draw in more attention from a younger audience.

Break Dancing to be introduced at 2024 summer Olympics

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
April 18, 2024
Senior Ryan Cagliostro (young Jamie) mixes up a shot for a drinking game with junior Ryan Backhus (future Jamie) and junior Chloe Mantle (young Abby) in the play “Now and Then.”

Senior stretch in directing 2-act play of ‘Now and Then’ 

Richard Fan and Jeremy Si
March 24, 2024
Science Bowl members prepare for regionals during Feb. 1 meeting after school.  

Science Bowl team places third at regionals, falling short of national tournament qualification

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
March 3, 2024
Social media can shorten students’ attention span and hinder their academic performance.

Down the online rabbit hole: Students find social media to be detrimental to academic performance

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
March 3, 2024
Avadhanam uses geometry techniques to solve Team Selection Test (TST) problems.

Photo or Graphic for: 2 seniors now one step away from making national Math Olympiad teams

Jessica Li, Parav Manney, and Amy Miao
February 10, 2024
The blizzard on Jan. 6 caused numerous participants, including me, to lose visibility.

Harsh weather conditions derail my hopes at skiing competition

Richard Fan
February 6, 2024
Skiing and snowboarding are both very fun sports with very different styles. 

Slopesport face-off: a guide to the pros and cons of skiing and snowboarding 

Richard Fan
January 21, 2024
My current mish-mash playlist.

A musical journey, from Beethoven to The Fat Rat

Richard Fan
December 5, 2023
My Christmas in 2022 was completed perfectly with a bowl of clam chowder despite a sprained shoulder.

Shared experiences and togetherness are the essence of Christmas

Richard Fan
December 5, 2023
Sophomore Yash Sharma presents “Wonders of Python” on a trip to India in summer 2023.

Sophomore’s non-profit organization aims to inspire younger generations to pursue programming

Alec Guan and Richard Fan
December 2, 2023
Senior poster of girls’ varsity team captain senior Ryder Gangemi

Sports Boosters helps fund personalized Senior Night banners for athletes

Richard Fan
December 2, 2023
Girls’ soccer Instagram home page. 

Student-run social media accounts hype up school sports teams 

Richard Fan
December 2, 2023
The school’s Comedy Improv Troupe competes for laughs during the ComedySportz show

Drama program to hold student-directed plays

Richard Fan and Jeremy Si
October 21, 2023
Junior goalie Lera Polyakova gets ready to block the shot on goal during a home game against Homestead on Sept. 26. 

1-loss girls’ water polo celebrates success in league 

Richard Fan
October 21, 2023
Lithium mining has increased exponentially over the past few decades– and we will have to face the consequences of it sooner or later

Newsom’s mandate on electric vehicles will do more harm than good

Alec Guan and Richard Fan
October 19, 2023
Swimming cap worn by water polo players.

Photo or Graphic for: Top 10: ways to turn around struggling sports teams

Nika Svizhenko
September 29, 2023
Andrew Beattie works with football players during an after school practice.

New CBI aide takes on coaching roles for multiple sports

Richard Fan and Neal Malhotra
September 29, 2023
Tired of sweating? Try the sports on the right!

Top 10: unathletic sports

Richard Fan and Alec Guan
September 24, 2023
Load More Stories
Donate to The Saratoga Falcon