![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[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)
Girls varsity basketball loses close game to King’s Academy
Junior Jordan Thompson runs for the layup amid Kings Academy defenders. The girls lost the game by four points.
January 30, 2016
The girls varsity basketball team lost to The King’s Academy 46-50 yesterday at 6:00 p.m. in the Blackford gym.
This game marks the end of the first half of the season for the girls, resulting in an overall record of 14-6.
The Eagles led the first two quarters by only a point in each. The girls had a high field goal percentage, with a number of steals and multiple points scored by Akhila Ramgiri (9), Satchi Thockchom (10), Joelle Anderson (11), and Jordan Thompson (11).
By the fourth quarter, however, the Knights surpassed the girls with consistent free throws and strong defense.
Satchi explained what may have led to the turnaround in the neck-to-neck game.
“Some downs were defense because there was a lot of pressure on the posts to play well and not let that big girl 42 get the ball, which was really difficult – she is a great player,” she said. “At times we pushed the ball really well. Jordan got a lot of great finishes, Joelle got some great finishes, and we got some good shots.”
With one minute left in the fourth quarter and the Eagles down by one point, Joelle Anderson (11) gets ahead of the defenders and prepares to shoot the ball. The girls lost the game by four points.
The stakes were high at moments in which one team led by a mere point, but the Flight Zone cheered on the Eagles in the hopes of pushing the girls to maintain their fight. However, they were unable to make the final stretch and lost by only four points.
Jaclyn Shimada, a junior on the King’s Academy team, discussed what gave her team the extra boost to win.
“I think we moved the ball around a lot better today,” she said. “I think as the season goes on, the team starts to gel together and midway through the season we are finally starting to play together. When we bond off the court, it really shows on the court. I also think more of our shots were going in today.”
As the girls reach the midpoint of their season, they have shown a great deal of improvement in their play despite today’s loss. Their energy, coordination, field goal percentage and speed clearly rose in quality as compared to other performances this season. Joelle expresses what she hopes will come out of this game in how it will influence the rest of the season.
“I think we lost focus a little bit, but we still kept playing hard and it just didn’t go our way in the end,” she said. “We’ve just got to work hard, and since it’s the end of the first half of the season, we need to come out strong.”
The girls play an away game at Mercy High School next Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Freshman Prameela Kottapalli attempts to block the shot by a King’s Academy player. The girls lost the game by four points.
