An estimated 4,000 people braved the high temperatures on Saturday to visit the upper school for this year’s Harker Day. Attendees found respite in the shade and indoors playing a wide variety games and enjoying food from a selection of food trucks, while also watching sports and live performances by Harker students.
At the quad and the auxiliary gym, families sat down for caricatures, tossed rings, threw footballs and played air hockey in addition to the many other activities. Over at the Furry Friends Forest (also known as Graduates Grove), children and adults cozied up to adoptable puppies, while others headed to the Patil Theater during for performances by lower, middle and upper school performing arts groups. The Athletic Center hosted games by the girls volleyball teams, with the varsity team defeating Mills High School in four sets, while JV won in two sets over Stratford. At the Singh Aquatic Center, girls water polo won a 10-9 nail-biter against Mitty, while boys water polo lost a close contest to Pioneer High with a score of 13-11.
More than 200 Harker alums and their families visited the alumni area, enjoying food prepared by Harker’s kitchen staff. That afternoon, Greg Cox ’11, Kailee Gifford ’17, Arman Gupta ’09 and Nikhil Panu ’13 were honored at the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Following words of admiration from Harker athletics staff (including a special appearance by former upper division head Butch Keller), each of the inductees spoke of their appreciation for the support from their families as well as Harker athletics staff.
Before the Homecoming football game, Eagles fans filled the bleachers at Davis Field while the Harker Pep Band provided music. Pre-game festivities started with the third-place tug-of-war contest between the Classes of 2027 and 2028, with 2027 emerging the winner. Crowd favorites the Junior Cheerleaders and Harker Eaglets received enthusiastic cheers before the Eagles took the field by running through the Gauntlet of Spirit. Following the Harker Choir’s renditions of “The Harker School Song” and “The Star-Spangled Banner,” the coin flip saw the Eagles take possession on the opening drive against Anzar Academy. Harker took control of the game early, going up 20-0 by halftime.
The halftime audience enjoyed performances by the Harker cheer team and Harker Dance Company, and students cheered on their respective classes in the tug-of-war finals between the juniors and seniors, which was won by the Class of 2025. As halftime came to a close, this year’s Homecoming representatives walked proudly onto the field. Harker went on to win the game with a score of 35-0.