The Student News Site of Saratoga High School

The Saratoga Falcon
95071X Extremity’s robot competes on the playing field during a scrimmage.
VEX Robotics team hosts inter-school scrimmages in preparation for worlds
April 26, 2025
Courtesy of Abhiram Ruthala An infographic describing the implications of different waves captured by the Muse headset, included in a video produced by the group to present their project.
Sophomore explores passion in neuroscience, placing second in California’s 16th Congressional District in prestigious coding competition
April 26, 2025
Courtesy of Dave Rickling Rickling’s stand at De Anza College Farmers’ Market, selling jars of honey and honey sticks alongside other vendors.
Dave’s Backyard Bees: from lockdown hobby to booming business
April 25, 2025
The SHS and RMS Combined Band performs at the 2024 Pancake Breakfast.
SMB prepares for annual Pancake Breakfast
April 25, 2025
Student art being showcased at last year’s Soundings exhibition in the SHS Library.
Soundings’ April 18. Exhibition will feature works from The Wildcat Review
April 17, 2025
Using phones before sleep not only harms your eyes, but also delays the time it takes to fall asleep.
Scrolling into insomnia: how electronics rob teens of sleep
April 27, 2025
Strydom’s dabbles in a variety of mediums, including pencil sketches, pen sketches and digital art.
Sophomore’s YouTube Shorts reach thousands of views
April 27, 2025
Courtesy of Portsmouth Events The remake of ‘Snow White’ sparked controversy and mixed reactions ahead of its March 21 release.
Disney’s ‘Snow White’: not the fairest adaptation of them all
April 26, 2025
Courtesy of Karthik Sangameswaran Sangameswaran proudly holds up the book his work is published in.
Senior becomes a published historian
April 25, 2025
Our H-Mart shopping basket.
A Falcon guide to Chinese Lay’s flavors from H-Mart
April 25, 2025
The notorious “torpedo bat” has increased mass in the center of the barrel, hence the name.
Controversial torpedo bat makes a splash in MLB
April 27, 2025
Athletic trainer Kevin Attard helps junior football and lacrosse player Jayden Kwong prepare for knee rehabilitation.
New athletic trainer hired after months-long search
April 25, 2025
Bonner instructs swimmers to start the set off the block.
Christian Bonner’s journey from non-swimmer to longtime swimming coach
April 17, 2025
Ning launches a three against Sacred Heart as his teammates prepare to celebrate.
From 13th man to 3rd team all league — Steven Ning’s basketball journey
April 3, 2025
The beam training area at Gold Star Gymnastics.
Paying it forward for the next generation of gymnasts
March 31, 2025
Courtesy of Pinterest The ideal Expo marker in a classroom should be fresh and full of ink.
100-word rant: Dried markers, know your place (in the trash)
April 25, 2025
This energy drink is the perfect refreshing drink on a hot summer day.
100-word rave: Energy drinks are just spectacular
April 25, 2025
The issue of modern feminism: Don’t mistake progress for exploitation
The issue of modern feminism: Don’t mistake progress for exploitation
April 20, 2025
Mangione’s alleged actions were wrong, but the diagnosis of America’s failing health-care system wasn’t
Mangione’s alleged actions were wrong, but the diagnosis of America’s failing health-care system wasn’t
March 31, 2025
Stay safe.
In a dark time, it’s time to know your rights
March 27, 2025
New York Times’ games can predict my future
New York Times’ games can predict my future
April 26, 2025
The infamous “criss cross chair” from TikTok Shop, ranging from $40-70, has taken over social media feeds.
Is TikTok Shop another marketing trap or actually have legitimate products?
April 17, 2025
Students gather to eat and talk on the upper deck.
Prom 2025: A grape evening at the Mountain Winery
April 6, 2025
Courtesy of Imgflip If you’re going to stop reading this story right here, this meme sums up my entire high school experience (I been chilling with boba but it’s close enough). Seriously, though, John Cena’s Chinese is elite.
My high school life in memes
April 5, 2025
Courtesy of Neha Sharan Students compete in a co-ed tournament held at the India Community Center in Milpitas.
A sophomore’s gambit: encouraging more girls to take up chess
April 4, 2025
Volume 57, Issue 6
Volume 57, Issue 6
April 23, 2025
Volume 57, Issue 5
Volume 57, Issue 5
April 23, 2025
Volume 57, Issue 4
Volume 57, Issue 4
April 23, 2025
Volume 57, Issue 3
Volume 57, Issue 3
April 23, 2025
Volume 57, Issue 2
Volume 57, Issue 2
April 23, 2025

The Saratoga Falcon

The Saratoga Falcon
All content by Sam Bai
Seniors Sam, Kabeer and Shrey sleeping while Pothan stays alert

Senior Mag 2024: A professional guide to sleeping in class

Sam Bai
Weasel Decklich belaying up at Movement Climbing.

Senior Mag 2024: Learning to climb, one boulder at a time

Sam Bai
Victoria and Sam waiting in the League of Legends lobby

Senior Mag 2024: Bonding over League of Legends

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
Gravel Ridge, owned by Ryan Cagliostro’s parents, a five-acre vineyard planted for Chardonnay grapes in 1979-81. 

Senior grows up on historic family-owned vineyard

Sam Bai
A wall in the journalism room showcasing many of the awards the Falcon has won in the past 65 years since its establishment.

Falcon wins Silver Crown Award from Columbia Scholastic Press Association

Sam Bai and Nicole Lee
A person crying after losing all of their money

Sports gambling in the digital age fuels underage addiction

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
Junior Aiden Chen swings bat towards incoming ball.

With no JV team and a huge roster, varsity baseball team focuses on skill building for underclassmen

Sam Bai and Isabelle Wang
Bee boxes sitting on my lawn.

A new hobby has me buzzing with excitement

Sam Bai
Student amazed upon receiving a schedule of seven classes.

Yes, it’s hard, but taking seven classes a year is worth the time and effort

Sam Bai and Lynn Dai
A rain cloud smacking somebody with a fist.

Photo or Graphic for: Rain, while sometimes inconvenient, sustains us

Nicole Lee and William Norwood
The first fight encountered when playing “Library of Ruina.”

‘Library of Ruina’: the painful process of learning new games

Sam Bai
Mr. Torrens photoshopped onto an image of a Scottish Lord.

The Tarbox and Torrens Show: using photoshop to provide comic relief for the staff

Sam Bai
Herzman and Tyler enjoy music on the ride to school.

Teachers grow friendships through daily carpools to school 

Sam Bai and Annie Liu
The library is jam packed with students during tutorial.

Teachers continue to call for hiring of credentialed librarian three years after the role became vacant

Sam Bai and Zack Zhang
The National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists pose outside the college and career center.

An untapped resource: student photographers

Sam Bai
The old school website (left) in contrast to the updated version.

School and district websites undergo major redesign

Sam Bai
Principal Greg Louie stands in front of a no fire sign, reviewing the fire drill simulation

Newly created safety team plans for emergency scenarios

Sam Bai and Andrew Lin
Rector sits inside of his homemade jungle.

Plants enliven Rector’s classroom

Sam Bai and Annie Liu
Ghosted

Top 10 ways to ghost 👻

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
27'

Photo or Graphic for: 100-word rant: Students who write 27’ instead of ‘27 should be rescinded

Allison Tan
Senior Kasie Yang’s sculpture “Quarantine Lifted,” a part of her portfolio which won a gold key.

Scholastic Art and Writing Awards: 47 students recognized in 2023 competition

Sam Bai
A student plays Tetris on their computer.

School WiFi should not block students from playing video games

Sam Bai
A student addicted to their phone.

Reddit and Reels: Tech has made teens like me unable to focus for longer than 15 seconds

Sam Bai
Senior Anthony Wang and two assistant coaches, sophomore Skyler Mao and freshman Lawson Wang, teach four students in Redwood’s black team. 

Clubs build connections with middle school counterparts

Sam Bai and Jonny Luo
Cover of the first book in the series, “Percy Jackson and The Olympians, The Lighting Thief.”

Percy Jackson: not as good as nostalgia might make it

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
chess.com is blocked when using school WiFi.

100-word rant: school’s wifi should stop blocking video games

Sam Bai
Physics teacher Matthew Welander does a bench press.

Physics teacher Matthew Welander finds numerous benefits of going to the gym

Sam Bai and Aiden Ye
How much money students spent at Saratoga High School compared to the national average.

How do students spend their money?

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
100-word rant: The new bell tone is like being at SFO

100-word rant: The new bell tone is like being at SFO

Sam Bai
The three gray bins placed around campus are filled with donated food.

Photo or Graphic for: Hunger at Home club combats food insecurity through food drives

Natalie Chua
 Day 2: Skurry. Victoria: A tiny rat scurries across the floor in search of cheese, “sneaky sneaky.” Sam: A youtuber named Skurry fights the final boss from the indie game Hollow Knight.

Inktober proves to be a daunting challenge

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
School shooting pranks undermine safety

School shooting pranks undermine safety

Sam Bai
shsfalcon

Photo or Graphic for: Top 10 isms

Victoria Lin
100-word rant: Fog is confusing

100-word rant: Fog is confusing

Sam Bai
Ask someone out with these easy, fool-proof methods.

Top 10 ways to ask someone out

Christina Chang and Sam Bai
The long line of students waiting to enter the cafeteria extends all the way to the student center.

School joins National School Lunch Program

Sam Bai and Victoria Lin
Outside temperatures are burning hot while inside ones are freezing cold.

100-word rant: too cold classes

Sam Bai
People socialize during the Food Truck Festival on Aug. 16.

Food Truck Festival deemed great success, $300 raised

Sam Bai and Leyna Chan
Gloriana Garcia standing in front of motivational posters in her room.

Long-term sub brings in her experiences as an advocate, journalist and entrepreneur into classroom

Sam Bai, Selina Chen, and Aiden Ye
Falcon individuals and teams shine in their respective sports

Falcon individuals and teams shine in their respective sports

Sam Bai, Aiden Ye, and Victoria Hu
100% sugar? More like 100 grams of sugar

100% sugar? More like 100 grams of sugar

Sam Bai
School to host Grad Night in person on June 2

School to host Grad Night in person on June 2

Andrew Lin and Sam Bai
Engineering Design and Development students design and build original projects for practical use

Engineering Design and Development students design and build original projects for practical use

Sam Bai and Howard Shu
“NileRed explains what is happening in a Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction"  

NileRed, a professional amateur chemist, savior of students, bane of teachers

Sam Bai
NileRed explains what is happening in a Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction

NileRed, a professional amateur chemist, savior of students, bane of teachers

Sam Bai
Math and CS teacher incorporates video games into teaching

Math and CS teacher incorporates video games into teaching

Sam Bai and Aiden Ye
Achieving perfection after two reboots and nine tries: ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

Achieving perfection after two reboots and nine tries: ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

Andrew Lin and Sam Bai
My month-long journey to learn Morse code through mnemonics

My month-long journey to learn Morse code through mnemonics

Sam Bai
Senior Andrew Hong defends the goal at the team’s last game against Lynbrook on Oct. 29. The Falcons ultimately lost 8-7.

Boys’ water polo closes season with a loss to Lynbrook at league finals

Bill Yuan, Sam Bai, and Andrew Lin
Teachers gather for a picture in the library after the Nov. 16 LGSUHSD board meeting.

District Teachers Association rallies behind effort to get higher pay

Sam Bai, Shreya Rallabandi, and Aiden Ye
Sam and Andrew get insanely jacked

Sam and Andrew get insanely jacked

Sam Bai and Andrew Lin
So you want to play all the games The Falcon has reviewed recently? Start here

So you want to play all the games The Falcon has reviewed recently? Start here

Sam Bai
If you snooze, you lose

If you snooze, you lose

Sam Bai
Why you should buy ‘Bloons Tower Defense 6’

Why you should buy ‘Bloons Tower Defense 6’

Sam Bai and Jonny Luo

Advisories resume; more changes still planned

Sam Bai and Andrew Lin
From left to right: Varsity players seniors Daniel Jiang, Chris Wu and Marcus Kuo perform warm up drills during practice

Boys’ water polo currently undefeated

Sam Bai, Andrew Lin, and Esther Luan
Learning poetry, one stanza at a time

Learning poetry, one stanza at a time

Sam Bai
Welander poses next to equipment used in AP physics demonstrations.

AP Physics C students dive into school year with advanced concepts and labs

Sam Bai and Nicole Lu
Mr. Bayona smiles for a photo in a chicken costume back in high school.

New math and CS teacher aims to engage students

Sam Bai and Vicky Bai
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