WOODLAND HILLS : Taft Winners Return Home to Cheering

The airport waiting area at LAX was transformed into a sea of red and yellow. There were balloons, carnations, banners, and school shirts all singing the praises of Taft High School in Woodland Hills.

The assembled group of student government leaders eagerly waited for American Airlines Flight 43 from Newark N.J., which carried their schoolmates who won the 13th annual U.S. Academic Decathlon. The group made as much noise as the planes overhead.

“I say number, you say one!”

“Number--”

“One!”

“Number--”

“One!”

So went the call-and-response cheering that transformed the concourse into a pep rally as about two dozen students greeted the winning decathletes.

The faculty adviser for the student leaders had planned the airport rally last week, no matter how the team finished.

As the cheering continued, another group of supporters showed up.

“We ditched school to come see our friends,” said 18-year-old senior Hilla Shprung.

Hilla and about five others said they had to take an English test early so they could come to the airport.

Jennifer Zankan, the student body historian, arrived but without her camera that had broken earlier that morning.

“It’s been a good year for us,” said Jennifer. “My scrapbook’s full.” As for pictures, she said she’d rely on newspaper photos.

Jennifer Fields, 17 and Shauna Howard, 18, came to welcome their best friend and team member, senior Kimberly Shapiro.

Three weeks earlier, the three had spent part of their spring break vacationing in Palm Springs. For Kimberly, it was a needed respite from long hours of study.

“I think if you relax part of the time and you’re not stressing out completely, you perform better,” she said.

Kimberly’s philosophy proved smart as she captured a gold medal in the speech category and finished third among 175 students in the B grade-point average group. She also netted a $2,000 scholarship, one of many for the Taft students.

Andrew Salter, who finished as the second-smartest student overall behind teammate Daniel Berdichevsky, was the first to greet the crowd.

Andrew held up the winning trophy as others waved California state flags before cheering fans. Daniel said that being crowned the best high school academic in the nation among students with A averages would afford him certain perks.

“For the next few weeks and probably for a long time, I’m going to be the happiest person in the city,” Daniel said.

Still, he said, his ultimate goal was “to be a member of the number-one team in the nation.”

Stephen Shaw, 16, and the team’s only junior, didn’t know if he’d compete next year.

“I haven’t really thought about it,” Stephen said. “Right now, I’m feeling an extreme high.”

Sage Vaughn, a senior, received hugs and kisses from his girlfriend and from his best friend who announced he was throwing a Monday night party in Sage’s honor.

Sage, a self-described underachiever and one of the team’s three C students, said he was coerced into joining the team.

“The college counselor and my history teacher saw my potential and talked me into trying out,” he said.

After completing a journey that began nine months ago, the champions left the national competition having recorded the highest score in the history of the event.

“I think this kind of challenge can bring out the best in everyone,” Andrew said.