The Campanile, 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA (2026)

09/10/2026

Girls Volleyball beat Menlo-Atherton on Tuesday 3-1, extending their season record to 8-1.

Although the team initially lost their first set by a score of 25-19, they stormed back, winning the next three consecutive sets.

Junior and libero Genevieve Lee said she was happy with how the game went.

“I think it was great,” Lee said. “We started off a little bit rough, but as the game went on, it was really fun to play. M-A has always been a big competitor of ours, so it was really fun to beat them and play against them again.”

Senior and outside hitter Maura Hambly said although the game started slow, the team was able to compose itself.

“We were making a lot of unforced errors and we weren’t like ourselves, but as the game progressed, we found ourselves and found our rhythm,” Hambly said.

Despite the loss in the first set, Head Coach Chris Crader said the team is more than capable when in the right mindset.

“I think when we’re dialed into competing, to making the hard, scrappy plays, and when we’re feeling confident, that we’re a pretty darn good team,” Crader said.

Moreover, Hambly said staying calm as a team was key to victory.

“I think we just shook off our nerves,” Hambly said. “We decided (regardless of) whatever was going to happen we were just going to have fun and play like ourselves and I think that helped us not only play better, but also have more energy.”

Moving forward, Lee said the team can work on their in-game mindset.

“We’ve been practicing really hard recently and I also think our chemistry has gotten a lot better,” Lee said. “(We) just (need to) make sure that we’re aggressive and confident in ourselves.”

Photos and reporting by Eve Dixon and Dashel Chun.

09/07/2026

Varsity field hockey lost 3-2 to Los Altos High School on Sep. 3.

Los Altos controlled the first half of the game, leading 1-0 until Paly scored in the second and third quarters to take the lead. But Los Altos scored two consecutive goals in the fourth quarter to ultimately win the game.

Junior forward Ela Aba scored Paly’s first goal, tying the score at 1-1 after being down for two quarters. Aba said it gave the team much-needed confidence.

“It felt pretty good,” Aba said. “It was nice to feel like we had a chance to get back in the game.”

Despite the loss, senior goalie Caroline Williams said she was proud of how the team performed overall.

“I think we played really well for just being our second game of the season,” Williams said. “I think we definitely have a lot to improve, but it’s a good start to the season.”

Junior forward Yoyo Cai said the team’s spacing was one of the main factors in their loss.

“Going into the game, we were kind of clutched together, and we should have spread out more,” Cai said.

Still, Cai said that the team was able to adapt well to their initial struggles as the game progressed.

“I think something we did well is that we noticed that there were some problems with our play in the beginning, and then we figured it out and we improved throughout the (game),” Cai said.

Williams said the main priority of the team for upcoming matches is communication.

“It was a little silent on the field, and communication really just always helps out,” Williams said.

Aba said the team’s new roster needs more time together to bond but that she is optimistic for the rest of the season.

“I just think that we just need more time with chemistry, because we do have a lot of new players,” Aba said. “The more time we play with each other the more chemistry we’ll get.”

Photos and reporting by Asaf Milman and Mathew Hong.

09/02/2026

Varsity flag football lost to Castilleja School 14-6 on Tuesday, Sep. 1.

Castilleja led in the first quarter and held a consistent lead for the rest of the game.

After beating Evergreen High School the day before, junior quarterback Eleanor Wells said she felt the team became careless.

“We felt honestly amazing because we won all of our games last year, but still I think that win just gave us an even greater confidence boost in our training and the work we put in,” Wells said. “Today’s game, seeing that we lost, I think that we might have been a little complacent with what we thought of our talents.”

Sophomore wide receiver Mia Wong said the loss provided a good learning opportunity for the team.

“We had high hopes for it,” Wong said. “Definitely didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to, but we all played hard, and I think, overall, it was a good experience for us.”

With the addition of new flags, senior captain and defensive player Zoe Quintana said the team will improve as they get used to them.

“They’re a lot better (than the previous ones), but it’s only been one day playing with them in a game, so we haven’t really had time to practice with (them),” Quintana said. “But I think the more we practice with (them), the better we’ll be.”

Quintana said with many new players this season, the team’s focus is on improving their chemistry as the season goes on.

“The team goals right now are definitely connection, especially because we have a lot of new players who haven’t played flag football at all,” Quintana said. “So just getting that chemistry there and also that understanding of the game there is really important for us.”

Photos and reporting by Kira Tzeng.

09/01/2026

Varsity girls water polo lost 18-15 to Stevenson School on Saturday, Aug. 21.

Stevenson led in the first quarter and held the lead for the rest of the game. Paly came back with four goals in the fourth quarter but ultimately fell short.

Senior Sabrina Meyers said despite the final score, the team’s performance was a positive opening note for the season.

“We knew this was going to be a tough opponent, but I would say only a three-goal difference is really good for us, and I’m glad this is a good way to start the season,” Sabrina Meyers said.

Head Coach Deke Rowell said this match was a beneficial learning experience for the team.

“That team is going to be top eight in the section, so that was a good test for us,” Rowell said. “For us to go into battle with them, especially when we’re younger, was really nice. I was super proud of the performance today.”

Rowell said the team’s younger players have started to find their rhythm alongside their more experienced teammates.

“We have three really experienced players who play at a high caliber,” Rowell said. “The other three players are younger. What I’ve really appreciated is those three experienced team members have been good leaders and very supportive of their younger teammates.”

Freshman Sevanna Meyers said the team’s communication and energy helped them perform better in the second half.

“Especially in the second half, we came out really strong, and we were playing really well as a team,” Sevanna Meyers said. “We had a lot of good communication on offense and defense.”

Drive and passion for the game, Rowell said, is what matters for the team’s success.

“We want to teach them the ‘how,’ but we want them to understand the ‘why,’” Rowell said. “Why are you doing this thing? The passion, the leadership and the competitive spirit of it all is up to them. That’s ultimately the reward for being on a team.”

Photos and reporting by Medha Muppidi and Brooke Bressler.

08/29/2026

After a winless last season, varsity football opened its 2026-2027 campaign by securing a 56-14 win over Leigh High School on Thursday,picking up momentum heading into the rest of the season.

Sophomore defensive end Deacon Gibbs said the team’s collaboration on defense played an important role in the win.

“The defense was like a symphony working together every single play,” Gibbs said.

Junior running back Kaleb Osotonu agreed and said collaboration was a key contributor to the team’s success.

“It was really a lot of communication and team bonding,” Osotonu said.

Defensive coordinator Lawrence Johnson said the team prepared well for the game.

“The kids were playing with effort,” Johnson said.“They were ready to play today.We studied, we knew our alignment, and we executed our game.”

The win carried even more significance for the team’s returning members, such as Senior cornerback Nathan Rodriguez, who had experienced the previous season’s struggles firsthand.

“It feels great,” Rodriguez said.“You couldn’t imagine it. Last year was down, and we’re just on a high, and we got to run on this, and we got to change what happened last year. It’s going to be different this year.”

Senior linebacker Jair Nucamendi said he’s proud of how far the team has come..

“We really came a long way,” Nucamendi said. “From 0 and 10 last season, to now already getting a win in week one.”

Gibbs said one of the team’s goals is to bring home a state title.
 “State Champs or bust,” Gibbs said. “We’ve just got to keep working on our defense.”

Head coach Edward Tonga said the team’s primary goal this season is to win both as people off the field and as players on the field.

“The vision is to win,” Tonga said. “In the classrooms, between the hallways, and obviously on the field.”

Photos and reporting by Evan Chevsky and Jonathan Gu

08/28/2026

Girls varsity volleyball defeated Mountain View High School three sets to one with a strong start followed by the final set ending 25-10 in their season opener on Thursday.

Junior Libero Genevieve Lee said the team played well despite it being the first game of the season.

“We did pretty great, and I had a lot of fun playing with everyone,” Lee said.

Senior Outside Hitter Elena DeLorenzo said the team’s energy contributed to the victory.

“Overall it was a great start to the season,” DeLorenzo said. “Our whole team was having a lot of fun and putting effort into both playing and cheering.”

[add some sort of transition here from the previous quote] Head coach Chris Prater said the team’s biggest success was increasing their intensity towards the end of the game.

“I think we just kind of picked up our compete level in that third and fourth set,” Prater said. “But we were just making little plays, and then the little plays started adding up to points.”

Although it was a great achievement for the team overall, DeLorenzo said the team could still improve on handling adversity.

“Something I think we could improve on is being able to recover after losing multiple points in a row,” DeLorenzo said. “I think we get in our own heads easily, and because of this we continue to lose points and the energy shifts a lot.”

Looking ahead, DeLorenzo has several hopes and goals for the team this season.

“We definitely want to keep a winning streak going, but also play our hardest and keep building our chemistry as a team, so even if there are games we lose, we don’t have any regrets coming out of it,” DeLorenzo said.

Photos and reporting by Kane Do and Chris Lee

08/21/2026

Palo Alto High School kicked off its second week of school with flying flags, roaring crowds, and the classic competitions between grades at its spirit rally on Wednesday.

The band, dance and cheer teams kicked off the rally. Junior and dancer Jackie Reyes said the performance was the payoff of weeks of hard work.

“We put in a lot of practice, for sure,” Reyes said “It was more of learning how to engage with people and having a lot of energy. I’m so happy that everyone was actually engaging. I loved everyone’s faces, everyone looked so happy.”

Senior and dancer Audrey Erickson said the team rose to the occasion.

“Our new members learned the dance this week, literally yesterday,” Erickson said. “So I think that they did really good, and I’m really proud of our team for doing awesome.”

After the performances wrapped up, activities from pizza box fights to wig snatching ensued among class chants in the background.

Junior and spirit commissioner Roy Jiang, a referee for the games, said his favorite part of the rally was the school unity, and the class spirit.

“We really came together this time, and I think we all had a good time,” Jiang said. “I think we did a really good job. It was a lot of hard work put into this.”

Reporting by Eden (Liselle) Yoo and Maia Wadhwani
Photos by Philip Shen

08/18/2026

On Monday morning, Paly seniors, wearing pajamas and holding decorative frames, celebrated senior sunrise, an annual tradition where seniors gather at dawn to celebrate the beginning of their last year of high school.

Senior Class President Luiza Teixeira said the tradition took a little planning beforehand.

“We had a couple people come in and want to help out, so they came and got food,” Teixeira said. “We got some funds to make all this happen (and) to have breakfast. Mainly, the planning for everything else was pretty simple: Just come to the field, set up a tent and enjoy a night with your friends.”

Even though the clouds blocked the sunrise, senior Lily Liu said she enjoyed the morning celebration.

“It’s a way to start off the year while senior sunset ends the year,” Liu said. “It really ties everything together in a really nice way.”

Senior Richard Klinkner, who stayed the night with his friends on the field, said he appreciated how the tradition allowed for him to meet other seniors and reconnect after summer.

“It was a great opportunity to see a lot of new faces that I haven’t really talked to much before and it was really fun talking to new people today,” Klinkner said.

However, Liu said the event was bittersweet.

“It’s really sad since I lowkey was in denial that senior year was a thing and that it’s going to have to come to an end eventually,” Liu said. “But all of these traditions and events that I’m going through currently just makes things hit really deep.”

Teixeira agreed and said she expects the bittersweetness to grow as the year progresses

“I think it’ll definitely hit more later in the year … but for right now it’s more so happiness and just a little bit of nostalgia when you’re hanging out with everyone,” Teixeira said. “But then you go back to just being in the moment, being present.”

Photos and reporting by Dashel Chun.

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08/18/2026

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06/15/2026

The PAUSD Board of Education announced the appointment of Jason Glass as superintendent on Friday. Glass has two decades of education leadership experience, with previous roles across Colorado and California. The Board is set to approve Glass’s contract at its June 16 meeting. If approved, he will begin his tenure on July 1.

Glass most recently served as the superintendent of the Laguna Beach Unified School District, where he focused on improving trust, expanding learning pathways and supporting student well-being among other goals outlined in the district’s “Superintendent’s 100-day report”.

Glass’s selection comes a month after former PAUSD Superintendent Don Austin’s appointment as the new superintendent of the Laguna Beach School District, creating a trade between the two districts.

In a statement to the community, PAUSD said the decision follows a national search with input from 1,434 community members.

“Their priorities were consistent: a leader who listens, who rebuilds trust, and who comes to invest in this community,” the statement said “Dr. Glass will begin not with an agenda but with a listening process, working alongside the board, staff, families, and students.”

In the same statement, Glass expressed gratitude and described his goals for PAUSD.

“I am grateful for the opportunity and ready to do the work to earn the trust of this community,” Glass said. “I intend to listen carefully, be present in the schools, and build connections as my first priority.”

Sophomore Lucas Wiedenhoeft wrote that he hopes to see better support for student mental health in a message to The Campanile.

“(The district should focus on) better management of mental health among students,” Wiedenhoeft wrote.

Sophomore Alon Milman said the appointment could give the district the strong leadership it needs.

“We need a strong and experienced superintendent to reconcile the district,” Milman said. “I think switching to Dr. Glass could help with this. He appears to have a lot of experience and I think he possesses a lot of qualities that could help the district thrive.”

Reporting by Jonathan Gu

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