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April 2, 2014
community
SAMMAMISH REVIEW
Science fair a chance for young minds to shine By Neil Pierson
Spring is typically a time when students in the Issaquah and Lake Washington school districts have a chance to let their scientific flowers blossom. That was the case at Endeavour Elementary School last week. The plateau school, located in the Issaquah School District, had roughly 400 of its 660 students participate in its annual science fair, “Little Minds at Work.” “It’s one of the biggest events we have here at the school,” said Jill Bengis, a member of the Endeavour PTSA. “The kids really look forward to it, and it’s a great opportunity for them to really shine and show what they can do.” The school’s hallways and classrooms were teeming with life March 27 as organizers brought in multiple science-related groups to lead demonstrations and activities. KidsQuest, a children’s museum in Bellevue, led magnet-related lessons. The Cascades Science Center Foundation sent its Science Squad to provide instruction on Kodu, a child-centered language for programming computer games. And Destination Science donated a free week of
Photo by Neil Pierson
Carol Smyth of Destination Science, a Seattle-based science camp, shows Endeavour Elementary School’s students a glow-in-the-dark glove during the school’s March 27 science fair. activities at its Seattle science camp to a raffle winner. Susan Gardner, a 10-year
member of the Issaquah Valley Rock Club, was surrounded by young children pouring over a
wide variety of fossils, rocks and minerals. Gardner said the rock club col-
lects items throughout the year at field trips across the western U.S. The club was also sending representatives to science fairs at several Issaquah schools this week and last. “We’ve got a lot of families, and we’ve got a popular junior program,” Gardner said of the club. Among the rocks on display were a progression of quartz stones, including clear and rose crystals, iron-laden purple amethyst and orange citrine. There were petrified wood, clam fossils and obsidian, and unusual items known as gastroliths, “stomach stones” that helped dinosaurs digest their food. “They’re very easy to find out in the Utah deserts because they’re polished and they just stand out,” Gardner explained. “They’re a different material. They’re round and everything else might be angular.” The school’s multi-purpose room was packed with exhibits from all grade levels and a huge selection of topics. Fifth-grader Christopher Teperdjian’s project tested the density of eggs using fresh water and salt water. He found that eggs are less dense than salt See SCIENCE, Page 7
Eastlake senior selected for prestigious scholars program By Neil Pierson
Less than 1 percent of the nation’s high-school seniors score at least 2,370 on the SAT or 35 on the ACT, the most common tests for measuring college readiness. Eastlake High School senior Nikhil Auradkar accomplished both tasks. Auradkar was one of three local students whose lofty academic achievements earned them the honor of being nominated for the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. Skyline High seniors Samantha Krahling and Crystal Liang were also among the 3,000 national nominees, 67 of them from Washington. The nominees must submit applications in order to be selected as a national scholar – the program choses up to 141 each year. The Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 to recognize the top high-school seniors, and was expanded in 1979 to include seniors “who demonstrate exceptional talent in the visual, creative and performing arts,” its website states. The scholars are given an all-
expenses-paid trip to Washington D.C. in June, where they tour the city, attend multiple ceremonies and events, and receive a medallion. Additionally, the scholars select a teacher who has been most influential on their studies, and they’re invited to the recognition ceremony as well. In Auradkar’s case, he might have difficulty choosing one teacher – he cited Eastlake math teacher Christine Everson and science teacher Brian Wikrent as his inspirations. “Also, just my peers, because a lot of people I associate with are performing at a pretty high level in school, too,” he noted. “A couple of my friends from Redmond High School got the presidential scholar (nomination) as well.” While SAT and ACT scores are the primary means of evaluating nominees, results in the classroom also matter, and Auradkar had a 3.9 grade-point average last year. He doesn’t shy away from a challenge either – he’s currently enrolled in advanced placement courses in statistics and calculus, and has previously taken AP
chemistry and U.S. history. His list of extracurricular activities includes stints with the Eastlake track and field, tennis and chess teams. Auradkar said he was humbled to be the only Eastlake High student to receive a nomination. He credits his parents, Uma and Rahul, for keeping him on track, and teachers like Wikrent. “He made (AP chemistry) really fun, and he got me really interested in chemistry applying to engineering,” Auradkar said. Auradkar said he’s been accepted to several colleges; most are in California or on the East Coast, but he’s also considering staying close to home at the University of Washington. “Right now I’m still kind of deciding where I want to go to based on the strength of their engineering programs,” he said. “I really have a lot of different interests that are in the engineering area. So my goal is to get into a college that is strong in engineering generally, and then just scope in after I start taking classes and find out what I’m really interested in.”
Photo by Neil Pierson
Eastlake High School senior Nikhil Auradkar is one 67 students in the state to be nominated for the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.
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SPORTS
April 2, 2014
SAMMAMISH REVIEW
Lawrence pitches Spartans past Bulldogs By Neil Pierson
Photo by Chuck Blackburn
Skyline second baseman Diego Graterol scoops up a ground ball during the Spartans’ 4-0 win over visiting Garfield in March 26 KingCo Conference baseball action.
After starting the season with three losses, the Skyline High School baseball team was hungry for a win, and the Spartans satisfied their appetites March 26. Skyline got a dominating performance from starting pitcher Sam Lawrence, and Jason Santiago drove in a pair of runs at the plate as the host Spartans earned a 4-0 victory over the Garfield Bulldogs in a Class 4A KingCo Conference opener. The Spartans scored only five runs in nonconference defeats to O’Dea, Auburn Riverside and Eastside Catholic. But they managed enough support for Lawrence, a 6-foot junior lefthander, who stymied Garfield’s offense. Lawrence limited the Bulldogs (2-2 overall, 0-1 conference) to three hits and one walk in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out six hitters, and the key may have been
throwing first-pitch strikes 60 percent of the time. “I just go out there and my only goal is to throw strikes, get ahead in the count, just do my job and hit spots,” said Lawrence, who picked up his first varsity win and has yet to allow a run in 10 2/3 innings this season. He followed the blueprint coach Chris Tamminen and his defense laid out. “That just goes to show you that’s what happens when you throw strikes,” Santiago said. “You get outs, quick innings … We really just enforced our pitchers to throw strikes and trust the defense.” Lawrence worked out of two jams to earn the shutout, although he didn’t complete the game. Alex Wu, a senior, struck out Garfield’s Justin ArkillsMcLain for the game’s final out. In the first inning, a throwSee BASEBALL, Page 9
Eastlake track teams open season with strong marks By Neil Pierson
Kyle Suver’s victory in the 1,600 meters against Newport March 27 was an even bigger achievement than it appeared at first glance. The Eastlake High School senior broke away on the last lap and won the one-mile race in 4 minutes, 42 seconds during the season’s first Class 4A KingCo Conference meet at Eastlake. But it’s a minor miracle Suver was running at all. Near the end of the cross country season in November, he found out the back pain he was suffering with was due to a partial stress fracture. That forced him to take a seat during the winter, and he only began running again within the last month. “It’s just really hard because it’s starting from the beginning again,” Suver said of the recovery process. “I did swim in the offseason just because it was less stress on my back. “It’s just that period of not being able to work out at all – it killed, pretty much. It was a sad time.” However, Suver is showing he’s capable of being one of the top athletes on an Eastlake longdistance squad that should have several postseason qualifiers.
He’s already within 10 seconds of his personal-best in the 1,600, and he’s hoping to make some noise in the 3,200, his main event. Eastlake sophomore Nathan Pixler, who won the 800 meters against Newport in 1:58.50, should be a contender at the state meet in May, Suver said. “Other than that, it’s up in the air,” he added. “We have a lot of really good guys, but it’s a really competitive conference.” Eastlake’s boys dominated Newport in most events. In the sprints, twin brothers Troy and Drew Lewis got the season off to a flying start. A returning state medalist, Troy Lewis won the 100 (11.24) and 200 (22.54), and Drew Lewis was second in both events (11.34 and 22.94, respectively). Brandon Naluai, a junior, won the 110 and 300 hurdles, and is among the top 10 4A athletes in both events thus far. Other winners included Ryan Urh in the long jump (17 feet, 6 inches), Eric Uhlar in the pole vault (12-0) and Ryan Wasserman in the shot put (42-3 1/2). The Eastlake girls also showed quality in several events, although it was tough to tell how they stacked up against Newport because meet results were
Photo by Neil Pierson
Eastlake’s Brandon Naluai cruised to a victory in the 110-meter high hurdles during a March 27 KingCo Conference track and field meet against Newport. incomplete. putting them squarely among the far in the season, and I actually The Wolves think they’ll state’s top 10. hope we break the school record have a strong group of sprintKennedy, a sophomore, ran soon, because it’s 49-something. ers. The foursome of Brooke the anchor leg and said the We’re getting pretty close to it.” Calhoun, Audrey Knutsen, Anna team’s familiarity with each other Ali Becker ran with Knutsen, Carskaden and Maddie Kennedy should prove beneficial. Carskaden and Kennedy in the got off to a good start by winning “I think we have a really good See TRACK, Page 9 the 4x100 relay in 50.84 seconds, group,” she said. “I think we’ll go