![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
New coaches join girls basketball team
![Coaches Thompson and Pringle watch the players sprint to warm up before beginning to practice at an open gym as the latter handles a basketball. The coaches want "mostly to build up [the players'] fundamentals, skill development and a winning attitude," Pringle said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Coaches-Thompson-and-Pringle-watch-the-team-run-laps-in-the-gym-1-900x697.jpg)
Coaches Thompson and Pringle watch the players sprint to warm up before beginning to practice at an open gym as the latter handles a basketball. The coaches want “mostly to build up [the players’] fundamentals, skill development and a winning attitude,” Pringle said.
November 20, 2015
Tomas Thompson and Dan Pringle joined the varsity girls basketball team as the new head coach and assistant coach respectively on Nov. 2, replacing former head coach Alfredo Andrew Alves.
Thompson, originally from Santa Cruz, played basketball throughout high school and college. He continued to teach physical education at the lower school for 12 years before coaching basketball at Hillbrook School. The son of a basketball coach, he was also the assistant coach for Harker’s varsity boys basketball team for five years.
“I wanted to follow in [my dad’s] footsteps, so I knew when I was done playing basketball that I wanted to be into coaching,” Thompson said.
Pringle has coached both in his hometown of Philadelphia and in California. He was the head basketball coach at Downtown College Prep in San Jose and has also coached flag football, baseball and basketball at Harker. The Philadelphia atmosphere steered Pringle towards a career in coaching.
“From New York to Philadelphia, it was basketball games every Friday night and Saturday, and I would go to all of those games,” Pringle said. “So from 1985, I started coaching basketball until today.”
Thompson and Pringle plan for the team to focus on running, endurance and basic techniques so that the girls play fast and stay in shape.
“Off-season, we did a lot of conditioning,” Thompson said. “In the summer we did a lot of workouts, focused a lot on just fundamentals and worked a lot on speed and endurance, because the way we’re going to play this year is going to be really fast.”
New player Kailee Gifford (11) spoke about how the coaches helped her learn how to play the sport.
“Coach Pringle and Coach Thompson are super patient with helping me catch on to the basics,” Kailee said. “They have a tremendous amount of faith in each and every player.”
The team held open gym practices before their practice season started on Nov. 2. The girls play their first game at Pescadero High School on Dec. 3 at noon.
