![“[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)
Cheered on by supportive parents, friends, and coaches on the sidelines, the varsity girls’ and boys’ water polo teams honored their twelfth-grade players during their annual senior night at Singh Aquatic Center on Thursday, October 20.
Prior to their game against Cupertino High School, the ceremony recognized the varsity boys’ seniors Tariq Jahshan, Jagdeesh Kottapalli, Cole Manaster, Akshay Ramachandran, and Jason Yu with flowers, balloons, and water polo balls.
“I’m going to miss them tremendously,” said coach Ted Ujifusa. “It’s really sort of a tough day for me emotionally, because I thought they really made tremendous progress. When we first started the program four years ago, we really were not very good in the league. Right now we’re a really good team, and it’s really based on having the seniors get better every year and us being able to build off that kind of improvement.”
Led by captains Cole and Akshay, the team proceeded to defeat Cupertino 8-3.
“It’s a culmination of four years,” Cole said. “When I was a freshmen on senior night, it was always kind of hard to imagine that now would be my night, and now it is.”
Following the varsity boys’ game, the girls’ varsity team celebrated their seniors Simrun Bhagat and Kaitlin Halloran. The girls’ team, led by captains Simrun and Kerri Clifford (11), was also victorious against Cupertino, with a final score of 14-4.
