![“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)
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- Swimming
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- Volleyball
Weekly Roundup: Spring sports clear the competition
Anton Novikov (10) and Mitchell Granados (12) run in the first heat of the boys 100m dash finals. Anton won the race, with Mitchell coming in third.
April 21, 2019
Baseball:
After a solid performance, the baseball team ends this week with two more wins under their belt: they beat Terra Nova High School 8-6 on Tuesday and Westmoor High School 20-6 on Thursday, before facing a tough 8-5 loss to Harbor High School on Saturday.
“We’re having a really strong season and getting a lot of wins,” sophomore Ellis Goldman said. “I think we’re all really looking forward to our game next week against Jefferson because if we win that game, we will be first in our league.”
Currently 6-2 in league and 11-5 overall, the team plays Del Mar High School on Tuesday, April 23, and hosts Jefferson High School on Thursday, April 25, at 4:00 P.M.
Golf:
The boys golf team collected another win this week with the junior varsity players beating Menlo School 208-283 on Tuesday. The varsity team’s match against Menlo on Friday was rescheduled to next Thursday, April 25, where they will also be celebrating senior night and honoring Joshua Broweleit (12), Abhinav Joshi (12), Bradley Lu (12), Charles Pun (12) and Ashwin Rammohan (12).
“We’ve been doing well in our matches, and if we beat Menlo, we can get our sixth consecutive league title,” Ashwin said. “We just want to end the year on a high note, especially with the post-season championships, like CCS, NorCal and states.”
In addition to playing Menlo, next week the varsity members will also compete at the Aptos Tournament on Monday and against Valley Christian High School on Wednesday, while the JV team take on Menlo-Atherton High School on Tuesday.
Lacrosse:
Despite beating Presentation High School 10-8 on Tuesday of this week, the girls lacrosse team lost their undefeated league record after a tough game against Woodside High School on Friday, which resulted in a 12-5 loss. They are now 6-1 in league and 9-3 overall.
Regardless, the team is determined to finish the season strong, aiming for the championship title that they had just narrowly missed last year.
“We can definitely learn from the tough loss and come back from this in our next games,” sophomore Rhea Nanavati said. “We realized that we need to work a little better together when we’re under pressure and ultimately just outwork the other teams. [I’m] definitely looking forward to bringing back the energy during playoffs.”
The girls play away at Salinas High School on Tuesday, April 23, and host Carlmont High School on Friday, April 26, at 4:00 P.M.
Lily Wancewicz (12) pitches during a game against Gunn on Monday, April 15. The Eagles lost the game 22-10.
Softball:
After losing to Gunn High School 22-10 and Palo Alto High School 9-6 in their two non-league games this week, the softball team prepares for their upcoming matches as their season comes to a close. The girls currently maintain a league record of 2-5 and an overall record of 4-9.
Next week, the team plays Pinewood School on Tuesday, April 23, and hosts King’s Academy on Thursday, April 25, at 4:00 P.M.
Swimming:
Having not competed in any meets during the last week, the swim team is solely focusing on getting ready for the upcoming WBAL Championship Trials that will be occurring on Thursday, April 25, and the WBAL Championship Finals that take place on Saturday, April 27, both at Sacred Heart Preparatory School.
Junior Alyssa Huang describes how in preparation for the races, the team has been “tapering” in practice, primarily concentrating on technique work rather than over-exerting themselves with too many sprints.
“We’ve been doing pretty well [this year], and everyone has been having fun,” she said. “The season is almost coming to a close so we’re tapering, and we’re just hoping to do well at leagues and CCS, which is in two weeks.”
Tennis:
During their game against Pinewood School on Wednesday, which ended in a 4-3 win, the varsity tennis team also honored Kai Franz (12) and Nishant Ravi (12) in the senior night ceremony.
“[The season] has been awesome,” assistant coach Mike Nguyen said. “It’s been really good to see everyone growing together as a team. I hope that’s something they can take with them for the rest of their lives.”
The boys are currently 12-1 in league, having only lost to Menlo, and they are looking forward to playing the team again on Monday, April 22, along with the junior varsity team.
Track and Field:
The track and field team had a strong showing at the third WBAL meet of the season, taking home prizes in both the relay and individual events. The boys relay team of Andrew Chen (9), Mitchel Granados (12), Anton Novikov (10) and Giovanni Rofa (11) took first in the 4×100 relay, and the girls team of Alycia Cary (12), Sara Min (12), Kismet Singh (11) and Nikki Solanki (11) took third in the same event.
In the boys individual events, Anton won the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.86, with Mitchel following closely after in third place. Ayush Vyas (12) placed second in the shot put and discus throw, while Andrew took first in the long jump and second in the triple jump, which Giovanni took first in.
The girls also earned recognition in both the track and field events, with Ritika Rajamani (9) earning third in the 3200-meter run and Natasha Matta (9) and Zoey Rosa (11) placing second and third respectively in the 100-meter hurdles. Nikki took third in the long jump, followed by Alexa Lowe (9) who also took second in the triple jump.
The team also competed at the Soquel Invitational on Saturday, their last meet until the WBAL Championship Trials on April 30.
Volleyball:
Maintaining their winning streak, the varsity volleyball team defeated Saratoga High School in three sets on Friday, increasing their league record to 12-1 and their overall record to 27-4. The boys also improved their state and national ranking to eighth place, although they are still second in CCS behind Monta Vista High School.
“So far, this season has been a blast,” junior Liam Bakar said. “From going to San Diego to take on some of the top teams in California to playing in front of our home crowd, I couldn’t ask for a better team to share these experiences, and [we] are happy with each and every victory.”
Next week, both the junior varsity and varsity teams play Los Gatos High School on Wednesday, April 24, at 5:30 P.M. and 6:45 P.M. respectively.
