This year, the members of the newspaper’s editorial staff have a hidden secret: They are all gods, and each of them has a unique kind of divine prowess. Although they have kept this a secret from their peers for several years, they have decided to finally reveal their powers to the student body in honor of this issue’s Ancient Greece theme.

Ancy Dow Opinions Editor
The editors call Ancy the Goddess of Kindness because of her cheerful attitude and eagerness to help, but everyone is pretty sure she’s secretly plotting an evil scheme. It’s only a matter of time until she reveals her true colors.

Kelly Wang In-Depth Editor
Kelly is the Goddess of Healthy Habits. Ever since doing an In-Depth spread on nutrition, she has refused to eat In-N-Out with her fellow gods and angrily brandishes her carrots at them to guilt them.

Gilberto Orozco, Jr. Business Manager
Gilberto is the God of Quickness because he is the fastest writer on The Talon. He generally starts writing his articles 10 minutes before a deadline, and it still manages to come out okay.

Trisha Nangia Content Editor
Trisha is the Goddess of Unsanctioned Field Trips During Sixth Period. When she returns from a 20-minute bathroom break, she has usually found a cup of coffee “just lying in the quad.”

Nicole Schreiber Features Editor
Nicole is the Goddess of Crazy Feet. She seems like a beautiful dancer, but that’s partly because she cannot control her feet, as evidenced when she makes any attempt to walk.

Mark Levin Entertainment Editor
Mark is the God of Highly Processed Meats. Raised solely on Taco Bell, he prefers not to eat dinner with the rest of the staff. When he wants higher quality meat, he opts for dog food.

Sandra Song News Editor
Sandra is the Goddess of Hipsters. She will deny that she is a hipster at all, but that’s just what a hipster would say.

Michael Moul Adviser
Michael Moul is a mere mortal, but the gods like to make him feel included, so they usually just play along.

Zia Rosenzweig Copy Editor
Zia is the Goddess of Nit-Picking. In her free time, she enjoys measuring hyphens to make sure they are all the same length.

Scott Stephens Managing Editor
Early on, Scott found he was the God of Good Looks and so decided to grace the student body with his beauty by sneaking his image into every issue. The rest of the gods, however, think he is really the God of Unjustified Vanity.

Jamie Eng Sports Editor
Jamie is the Goddess of Other Commitments. Although she was free at the start of the year, Jamie picked up six sports by November. She also scheduled her Foothill classes such that their finals (conveniently) fell during Late Nights.

Carolyn Huang Information Editor
Carolyn is the Goddess of Highly Awkward Situations. She usually announces her weekly crushes just as the room falls silent, and her comments about tapioca balls are often unintentionally inappropriate.

Sahil Luthra Editor-in-Chief
Sahil is the God of Puns. Though his jokes and rhymes are well-intentioned, he only succeeds in making the entire staff cringe when he refers to himself as “Sahi the Mahi Tuna.”

Shefali Luthra Website Editor
Shefali is the Mother Goddess of Talon. Like any good mother, she enjoys yelling at her children. At the same time, she loves Talon and has memorized the past 100 years of issues, even though The Talon is only 25 years old.

Jason Hu Copy Editor
Jason is the God of Pretentiousness. He enjoys bossing around Copy/ Content (despite being a copy editor himself) and waggles his finger at peers who use fonts that are not sophisticated enough.

Charlie Falconer Photography Editor
Charlie is the God Everyone Yells At. Usually he hasn’t done anything wrong, but it’s good to take extra precautions.

Ava Foudeh Managing Editor
Unfortunately, nobody remembers what Ava is the God of, since she never comes to school.

Justin Koehler Content Editor
Justin is the God of Style—but not just the styles and conventions of written English; he works hard to never repeat a hairstyle. He also enjoys jumping.

Michelle Madani Business Manager
Michelle is the Goddess of Opinions. Her hobbies include telling people that they’re wrong, telling people that she’s right, and telling people who think she’s wrong that they’re wrong and she’s actually right.

The school is beginning a process to recruit another counselor to replace Pasallo, who will be the fourth person to fill the position in five years.

Principal Wynne Satterwhite first announced the change at a faculty meeting yesterday afternoon on Wednesday, April 28.

Satterwhite said Pasallo had expressed interest in assuming the role of assistant principal.

“We felt it would be a natural fit into the counseling department,” Satterwhite said in response to Pasallo’s new position. “She’s a good match.”

Leslie said that he currently does not intend on pursuing another school-related position, and is looking instead for more time to spend with his family.

“Working at Los Altos High has been a great experience for me, and it has been my privilege to serve the students and families over the last nine months,” Leslie said.

Although, this was Leslie’s first year working at the school, Satterwhite said that the school had known “for some time” that Leslie would not be returning.

“Mr. Leslie brought a lot of expertise,” Satterwhite said. “[And] Ms. Pasallo will do a fabulous job.”

Pasallo is looking forward to the position and working with another team of administrators.

“My ultimate goal is that every student is successful,” Pasallo said. “Every single student.”

As the cameraperson described it, today’s footage is “like a pilot” and will be used by MTV executives to decide whether to feature Justin in a full-length episode of MADE.

“I just go through my normal day,” Justin said. “They’re going to view the footage and decide from there.”

According to its website, MADE is “about making dreams come true.” Each episode follows the life of a high school student as he or she tries to achieve a goal, whether that goal is to become a beauty queen or football player.

The camera at LAHS will be tracing Justin as he becomes a “ladies’ man.”

“If you know me, I’m really shy, around girls especially,” Justin said. “[I want to be] a more open person, willing to speak in public.”

After his March audition, Justin spent a long time waiting and made many phone calls before he was confirmed as a candidate for the show. Before hearing back from MTV, Justin had to wait for two weeks.

“The first week I was thinking about it a lot,” Justin said. “After that week everyday people would tell me, [especially] my aunt, ‘Don’t get too excited because you never know if you’re going to make it.’”

At the end of two weeks, Justin received a phone call which meant he was still being considered. However, this meant he had to wait for yet another week.

“That was during spring break,” Justin said. “My whole spring break I was waiting for the call, and then I got an email.”

That email told him he was a candidate for the show and that a cameraperson would document his life for two days. So today, Tuesday, April 27 Justin was hooked up to a microphone and the cameras started rolling.

“The night before I was excited, but when the actual camera was on me at first I was nervous, because I’m not used to people paying attention to me,” Justin said. “And cameras do attract attention. But now I’m fine with it.”

Although MADE strives to be as candid as possible, the spotlight garnered its fair share of attention from passersby.

“Some people just want to get the attention and act as if they know me and wave at the camera,” Justin said.

Students who missed their chance at sneaking into a scene (and ruining the shot, the cameraperson added) can try again tomorrow, when the camera will still be filming.

The next chance for students to be “that kid whose face you can’t see in the background,” however, is up to the executives from MTV. If they like the footage, a full camera crew will be back in a few months to follow Justin over the course of his transformation.

Until then, however, Justin must wait some more.

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• “The Unit” members stand in front of the school at the Diversity Assembly on Friday, April 19 while teacher Seth Donnelly speaks about Haiti contributions.
• “The Collective” magnets decorate the school vending machines on Tuesday, April 8.
• Students walk in front of many “The Collective” fliers on Friday, April 2.
• “The Collective” fliers covered the front of the cafeteria windows on Friday, April 2.
• “The Collective” fliers were placed upon the cafeteria windows on Friday, April 2. Fliers had individual neon stickers posted with words like “compassion,” “loyalty” and “integrity.”
• “The Collective” fliers were posted on the choir room wall on Friday, April 2.
• A large “The Collective” banner was displayed on the entrance to the school parking lot on Friday, March 26.
• “The Collective” stencil displayed here was one of a few decorating the school on Wednesday, March 24.
• “The Collective” brand is displayed in the girl’s bathroom by the quad on Thursday, March 25.

The Collective, a school-supported student group that aims to promote a message of respect, launched its campaign on Wednesday, March 24.

The Collective is scheduled to release the details of its message regarding respect during the Diversity Assembly on Friday, April 9. Community Hope and Sober Events (CHASE) founder Leslie Lodestro and students affiliated with The Collective declined to comment on the specific wording of the message.

The Collective is sponsored by CHASE, a local organization that has been working with the school since the end of last school year, Lodestro said.

CHASE paid for The Collective to implement the ACTUALITY program. The ACTUALITY program is run through TEAM Fort Collins, a nonprofit organization from Colorado that aims to combat teen drug abuse.

According to the TEAM Fort Collins website, ACTUALITY aims to influence teenage “social norms.”

“[ACTUALITY] seeks to improve health and safety by exploding commonly held myths about unhealthy behavior and [communicating] positive behavior instead,” the website said.

TEAM Fort Collins has worked with over 60 schools, Lodestro said, and campaign messages have varied in focus from heroin prevention to stopping drunk driving.

ACTUALITY helps each school assemble a “Street Team” of students, usually around 10 in number, to decide on a brand name and roll out a marketing campaign. The campaign is based on a “complete understanding of the unique characteristics of the target audience,” according to the ACTUALITY Core Team training manual. The ACTUALITY program also requires some teachers at the school to become “facilitators” of the program.

Members from TEAM Fort Collins came to the school in October 2009 to gauge teenage cultural norms through student focus groups. ACTUALITY also conducted surveys in November during Tutorial, asking about alcohol, drug use, GPA and stress.

Based on the results from the ACTUALITY focus groups and surveys, the Street Team at LAHS chose the name “The Collective.” The brand was designed by ACTUALITY Creative Director Ray Romero.

The Street Team then launched the brand on Wednesday, March 24 by posting “The Collective” stickers and sending five iPods to targeted students. These students came from specific target areas based on qualities such as participation in sports and school spirit, Lodestro said.

The Collective relies on a “ninja marketing” strategy, according to Street Team members junior Carolyn Yang and senior Karim Poonja. Ninja marketing aims to create suspense and pique student curiosity until the campaign officially reveals its message.

The Street Team tagged the school on Thursday, March 25 with window paint graffiti that said “The Collective” and distributed T-shirts with The Collective brand and gift certificates to randomly selected students.

“They pulled me out of my fourth period and gave it to me,” said senior Charlie Bergevin, who received a Collective T-shirt. “I was like, ‘Why are you giving this to me?’ and [administrative assistant LeeAnn Norkoski] didn’t say anything. … She didn’t answer any questions.”

On Friday, March 26 a large banner reading “The Collective” appeared in the student parking lot school entrance. After the school dance that day, students found The Collective lanyards placed on cars parked in the student parking lot.

On Friday, April 2 many yellow fliers were posted around school campus such as on the cafeteria windows, choir room building and hallways.

On Tuesday, April 6 yellow magnets reading “The Collective” were stuck to lockers and the vending machines.

On Wednesday, April 7 The Collective Street Team revealed itself as “The Unit” over the morning announcements.

On Thursday, April 8 many fifth period classes received bags full of small containers filled with jelly beans. The containers read “The Collective.”

On Friday, April 9 The Collective officially revealed its message during the Diversity Assembly.

ACTUALITY campaigns follow a six-phase method, according to the ACTUALITY Core Team training manual. The team must “build a foundation,” “gather relevant data,” do a “target audience assessment,” “develop [a] marketing plan,” have a “campaign rollout,” and then finally “evaluate” the process. The school is currently in the process of campaign rollout.

For more details about ACTUALITY campaigns, visit teamfortcollins.org.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Dear Readers,

The Editorial Board of The Talon voted to publish a news article on ACTUALITY and The Collective after months of deliberation. Although The Collective expressed worries that an article would ruin the “ninja marketing” strategy, The Talon believes that the student body has a right to know what is happening at the school.

When an outside group comes to the school to market a message to the student body, it is important that students are fully aware of what they are being sold. By providing this article before The Collective officially reveals its message, The Talon hopes students can decide for themselves if the message of The Collective is one with which they agree. The Talon Editorial Board believes that the success of the ACTUALITY campaign is not dependent solely on the marketing strategy but also on the message it contains.

For these reasons, The Talon Editorial Board has voted to publish this story online. We devoted a great deal of thoughtful discussion to the issue and feel we have made the right decision. We welcome your thoughts and comments.

Sincerely,
The Talon

District Superintendent Dr. Barry Groves will present his budget recommendation to the Board of Trustees next Tuesday, April 6.

Although the BAC has proposed cuts of $1.6 million at the Mountain View Los Altos (MVLA) District level, Groves said that uncertainty of state funding may render additional cuts necessary.

“We’re trying to get things that will have the least impact or shortest long-term effect on kids,” Groves said. “Obviously there’s nothing here that we think is not useful—we’re just tightening [the budget].”

According to Principal Wynne Satterwhite, LAHS will be making changes at the site level to plan for budget cuts. These changes will likely include changes to classes offered, class sizes and schedule flexibility.

Courses previously offered through Foothill College—including Mandarin, Sports Medicine and Digital Photography—are “in jeopardy” of being cut next year, according to Groves. Foothill classes require at least 30 students to be offered at LAHS, and Satterwhite said that LAHS has not received enough sign-ups for those classes.

Groves and Satterwhite said that Foothill itself will have to cut approximately 1,000 class sections next year.

“If we do get the numbers [of students that we need to offer a class], then we still have to negotiate with Foothill,” Satterwhite said.

Satterwhite said that Mandarin, which was offered at the school this year, will not be an option next year. The school is looking into ways to offer the course online.

Satterwhite said she also had “bad vibes” about the availability of Sports Medicine next year. Earlier this year, the school had difficulty in filling the required number of students for the class.

According to Groves, the MVLA district anticipates cuts to California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) classes at a district level. Satterwhite said it is difficult to plan for this at the present because the results of the CAHSEE have not yet been released and the number of students who will need CAHSEE assistance is unknown.

“[Even if the classes are cut,] we will figure out a way to get students through the CAHSEE one way or another,” Satterwhite said.

CAHSEE teacher Therese Ducharme said that the class is helpful because it gives students daily practice with the CAHSEE, which she does not believe they can necessarily get in their English or math classes.

“It’s not the tutoring that the students need so much as someone who can help them learn test-taking skills and help them gain confidence,” Ducharme said.

Although most of the students in the CAHSEE course have passed the test by second semester, Ducharme said the class is “really great for the students,” especially in first semester.

“Maybe another option is to make it a one semester class [instead of cutting the class entirely],” Ducharme said.

Additionally, Groves said that students next year may experience more difficulty in switching their schedule after enrolling in their classes.

“If you’re in an Honors class and want to drop it, or you want to change your schedule around for other reasons, it will be more difficult to do that because [each period of a class] will probably be tighter,” Groves said.

Satterwhite agreed and said that classes next year might be “fuller” but “not unreasonable” in size.

“It’s going to be tighter,” Satterwhite said. “Students considering Honors and AP classes need to think long and hard about [their course selection].”

According to Groves, the cuts at the district level will likely include cuts to instructional materials as well.

“Everybody will still be able to have a textbook,” Groves said. “They just may not get [a new one] as soon.”

Groves said other cuts may include the hours of library technicians, although the library would still be open the same number of hours.

Groves will recommend that the Board of Trustees cut the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program’s budget at both Mountain View High and LAHS by half, from a total of $32,000 to $16,000.

According to Satterwhite and Groves, the Board of Trustees will hear the BAC’s recommendation on Tuesday and then vote on a final budget in June.

After speaking at the school during Writers Week on the night of Tuesday, February 9, Copeland expressed interest in the program and returning to the school to perform his show. Fifty percent of the proceeds generated will be donated to the PTSA, which funds Writers Week.

“This is really very generous on his part,” said Debra Strichartz, Co-Chair of the Writers Week committee. “We really want to fill the auditorium with people from the community to take advantage of this opportunity.”

The hour-long show is open to students as well as others in the community. Student tickets are priced at $15 and adult tickets are $35. A $75 VIP package will also be offered, which includes an autographed hard back copy of his book “Not a Genuine Black Man” and admittance into a reception with Copeland after the show.

The PTSA plans on forming a bigger committee with students in order to help raise publicity for the event.

“They need help … communicating with the student body,” said junior Libby Strichartz, Co-President of the Juntos club. “They want us to really publicize, and we’ll be selling tickets and hanging up posters and just kind of making [the event] known on campus.”

Copeland’s show is based off of his experiences growing up as an African-American in the Bay Area suburbs of San Leandro in the 1970s. Then 99.99 percent white, according to www.briancopeland.com, San Leandro was “considered in the 1960s and 70s to be one of America’s most racist enclaves.”

A review by The New York Times said, “Copeland’s wit is the spoonful of sugar that helps his sad stories go down.”

”He performs multiple characters,” said English teacher Galen Rosenberg, also a member of the Writers Week committee. “He even acts out dialogue between different characters.”

The Writers Week committee hopes to publicize the show in hopes of a successful turnout.

“It’s a really popular show that plays all over the country,” Strichartz said. “We’re really lucky at LAHS.”

Senior Sasha Zebb, one of the costume designers for Broken Box, paints the sets for the upcoming production of “Romeo and Juliet.” Broken Box puts hours of work into sound, prop and costume design before the shows.

While Romeo and Juliet were busy falling in love, eloping and dying, wherefore art the people making costumes, timing music and changing sets? The tech crew of Broken Box may never be on stage, but they are the cornerstones of production without which the curtains could not open.

Sound Design

Sound designer senior Breana Park and her assistant junior Tasha Mistry have to work fast, because they can only tailor sound effects and music once they have seen the actors run through the play.
“I can’t find music for the scene without seeing the scene happen first, and that means we don’t have a finishing touch until the very end,” Breana said.

Tech Week is her “cram time.” The entire cast stays from after school until 9 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, but Breana puts in overtime; after she returns home, she puts in several extra hours of work on background sound.

Usually, Breana finds music or sounds that have already been created and takes clips from those, but she also makes her own music or produces new sounds entirely.

In “Alice in Wonderland,” she had trouble finding music for when the Cheshire Cat disappeared. Using a PC program called Audacity, Breana mixed songs and sounds to create a suitably creepy exit for the equally creepy cat. All the finished sounds are entered in order into a playlist on her iPod. During the show, Breana follows the script and waits for the cues.

With all the last-minute work comes last-minute disasters. On the Friday showing of “Alice in Wonderland,” the iPod in which Breana stored all the songs broke. She had to drive down to We Fix Macs on El Camino hoping that the damage could be reversed.

“I was in tears almost. I was so hysterical,” Breana said. Luckily, the store was still open. Even luckier, the employees managed to fix it.

“They were like ‘we have good news and we have bad news,’” Breana said. “’The good news is, here’s your iPod’ and then I don’t even remember the bad news because I can only remember the good news. The music was still on there which was amazing.”

Props

Seniors AJ Strom and Preshia Washington manage the props. Some of the props Broken Box already has or can borrow from cast members; others they have to buy.

Show budgets vary from play to play, depending on how much income the last play earned. AJ allots money to spend on props and organizes them all for the play. Unlike the sound manager, he generally finishes his work before Tech Week but watches the actors run through the play anyway in case ideas for new props come up.

“It’s an ongoing process until the last day before the show,” AJ said.

Costumes

Costume designers senior Sasha Zebb and junior Charlotte Byrne- Bailey plan out what the actors wear.

For “Romeo and Juliet,” Broken Box wore matching colors with families, so that the Montagues all had blue and black clothing and the Capulets donned purple and gray.

Acting teacher Nancy Moran provides the foundation of the ideas while Sasha and Charlotte build off of her vision, then try to tie the design concept together and translate it into costumes.
“We have a budget … so [our boundaries are] kind of limited,” Sasha said.

The modernized “Romeo and Juliet” featured Shakespearan language, but the cast members wore clothes they could have worn to school. The cast members compiled their costumes from their own wardrobes.
“This show’s kind of like a break for us, because [‘Alice in Wonderland’] was costume-heavy,” Charlotte said. “Everyone needed a prop or a costume. It was intense.”

Other times, they rent costumes from Debbieland’s Costume Store or the Costume Bank.

Stage Management

The stage manager senior AJ Strom and assistant sophomore Sarah Weber work with Moran to keep the play running smoothly. They take notes on the actors’ blocking and run scenes with them. During the shows, AJ and Sarah are the main means of communication between actors and Moran.

AJ is teaching Sarah the ropes– quite literally, as stage managers are in charge of the fly system and must remember which rope corresponds to which backdrop.

They also make sure the actors, sets and props are in their places at the right times, and fix random, last-minute tidbits that go wrong.

“It’s a big responsibility,” Sarah said.

1. Facebook Stalking

To some, this may not seem like a game, but in the early hours of the morning one of the most exciting activities is finding out all the latest gossip on this social networking website. It’s also the best time to find your guy’s hottest picture and find out who “the other girl” he’s talking to online is so you can voodoo her.

Creeping on recently added photos from a party or the most recent relationship status updates provides the best sleepover entertainment and fills you in on the latest scoop on all of your friends. And of course it’s common knowledge that if a relationship is not on Facebook, it’s not truly official. Browsing through people’s Facebook profiles is also a great way to start conversations about the latest gossip and the most scandalous rumors. Gossip may be considered a sin, but it leads to girl bonding that no other activity can provide.

2. Do, Dump or Marry

If you are willing to challenge your intellect, this game is one that forces you to think more than any ethical issue in English or history class does. One girl will name three males and ask another player which one she would “do” (have sex with), which one she would “dump” (which means she would have to date him and then dump him) and which one she would marry.

The men chosen could be the most handsome celebrities; heated debate may arise because you want to do and marry all of them and do not want to dump any of their gorgeous bods. But an even harder choice is when the options are the grossest guys because you want to dump all of them, and you throw up when imagining kissing one of them, let alone having sex with them. But remember, girls: Try not to be too mean while playing this game, because it’s not all about looks. The greasy, acne-covered science geek may become the world’s richest man, and who would want to pass that up?

3. 10 Fingers

When you want to play Truth or Dare but there are no boys in sight for the really fun dares, you can play 10 Fingers. To begin the game, all players sit in a circle, with both hands in front of them and all 10 fingers pointed up. Then each player goes around in the circle and says something the player has not done. Any player who has done the act mentioned must put a finger down.

This game is different from most games because there are two winners: the person who has done the most and puts down all her fingers and the person who is the most innocent and keeps the most fingers up. However, the real goal of this game is not so much to win but to be the least humiliated by the end. “Never have I ever” statements can range from “I’ve never been to Europe” to something much more promiscuous, depending on the players. For high school girls, they tend to be very sexual, because let’s be honest: No one cares if you’ve been to Europe or not.

4. Makeovers

Sleepovers are the perfect opportunity to mix up your style, spice up your hair-do and experiment with wild make-up. With no one but your closest friends to see you looking like a drag queen, you can try anything you want—false eyelashes, lots of sparkles, bright red lipstick and teased hair are just a few techniques you can try.

You know you are done with your makeover when you can no longer recognize your own reflection in the mirror. And if you feel a burst of energy from the lack of sleep, make a music video embracing your alter ego. This can include using Photobooth on a Mac while recording with the music playing in the background. Or you could be more advanced, get a real camera and go to a location with maybe a few costume changes and added effects. The photos will be worth a thousand words the next morning when you wake up, making lasting memories last for the future.

5. Reading Cosmopolitan

This magazine is the Bible for girls. It holds all of the biggest secrets and teaches things that you could never learn in school, even in health class. Although it costs almost $6, it is definitely worth the price because it provides many nights of scandalous fun. Every issue’s cover claims to have new tips, but they always end up being almost exactly the same. Nevertheless, the fun in reading it never fades.

The dirty tips and tricks that are written in flowery vocabulary trigger thoughts and images in your brain that will make any girl giggle. The relationship quizzes and beauty tips are surprisingly educational. You might also want to break a sweat and try some of the fat-burning, muscle-toning exercises demonstrated in the magazine. And just for funsies, when you’re toned from all the exercises, you can fulfill the Hollywood movie stereotype and start having a pillow fight, something the Peeping Toms will definitely enjoy.

To begin, the Vikings raced to a 12-6 lead midway through the quarter. They then clamped down on defense and gathered several offensive rebounds, raising the lead to 19-6 by the end of the quarter.

The teams traded basket to start the second, but then began to share turnovers and missed shots instead. The Eagles called a timeout after a Palo Alto three-pointer in hopes of calming the team down and stopping the turnovers, but it only served to energize the Vikings.

The Vikings shooting guard followed with back-to-back threes, followed by another Viking layup that forced to the Eagles to call another timeout as the lead had swelled to 31-8.

The results after this timeout were the same. The Vikings unleashed another run, capped by a monster dunk with 45 seconds left that made the score 35-9.

“Defense was an issue,” sophomore Simon Rosenbaum said. “We just weren’t stopping them we didn’t get back in transition. They were taking really high percentage shots.”

In the final seconds of the half, the Eagles scored twice, including a tough basket and foul by senior Nick Schaefer, but they still entered halftime with the score 37-13.

“In the first half we pretty much put ourselves out of the game,” captain senior Sean Wells said. “Most of that is just nerves. … In the first half of both [CCS] games we really shot poorly. … Even though you try to tell yourself it’s just another game, it’s a CCS one and it puts pressure on.”

The Eagles began the third quarter with a rejuvenated defense. After allowing a quick score, they held Palo Alto scoreless for nearly five minutes, forcing multiple turnovers and contested shots.

The offense managed an 8-0 run that was mostly fueled by one sequence of technical free throws by captain senior Spencer Wells and a three-pointer by senior Sean Small immediately after. This cut the lead to under 20 at 39-21, but Palo Alto ended its scoring drought with a 3 that pushed the score back to 43-23. The quarter ended 43-26.

“Our shooting woes continued through the third quarter,” Simon said. “Our defense really picked up. We only gave up six points which is terrific, but we weren’t able to capitalize on offense still.”

Simon led the team with 13 points.

In the fourth, The Vikings used nearly every second of their possessions, while the Eagles tried to score as quickly as possible. After 2 Vikings 3-pointers made the score 49-28, the Eagles implemented a full court pressure defense. However, the Vikings still cherry-picked easy two-on-one baskets.

Despite several Eagle threes, the Vikings were able to maintain a comfortable lead. Spencer’s 3-pointer made the score 55-41 and Simon cut the lead to 13 after free throws. But with only two minutes left, it was too late. The game ended 58-46.

Sean Wells called it a disappointing end to a great season.

“Its always tough to end a season with a game … that’s kind of a blowout,” he said. “At the same time, winning a CCS game on Thursday, we hadn’t done in my three years on varsity. … We don’t measure our season in this last game. We measured it in the success over the course of it.”

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• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy of Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy of Ryan Ikeda
• Courtesy of Ryan Ikeda

While others went skiing over February break, English teacher Ryan Ikeda and social studies teacher Seth Donnelly took a five-day trip to Haiti.

The purpose of the visit was to bring medical supplies, meet with Haitian activists and distribute funds the school raised in response to the recent Haitian earthquake. This trip was Ikeda’s third and Donnelly’s eighth time going to Haiti.

They stayed in tents near the Port-Au-Prince airport in the project MediShare camp, which is the largest functioning hospital in Port-Au-Prince. Ikeda, Donnelly and 15 others on their team traveled on a truck as they documented the situation and distributed resources.

Along with others on their team, they assessed land damage and listened to Haitians’ stories. Ikeda took film footage and pictures to document the current conditions in Haiti.

“As far as the aid, phase one is kind of complete, which is the immediate damage after the earthquake and getting food,” Ikeda said.

However, according to Donnelly, a whole new crisis is emerging after the earthquake: a medical crisis.

“There have been a lot of wounds and infections and a lot of people are living on the ground after they’re homeless,” Donnelly said. “Now that rainy season is kicking in, the rain water will mix with the mud on the ground and the open sewage lines and we could be looking at a major health problem.”

The two teachers plan to return to Haiti at some point soon, possibly in April. This summer, Donnelly encourages students to accompany him there on a solidarity trip and to bring supplies and meet Haitian peers and activists.

“The Haitian people are some of the most courageous, hard-working and loving people I’ve ever met,” Donnelly said.