![“[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)
- Boys Basketball
- Boys Soccer
- Cross Country
- Fall Sports
- Girls Basketball
- Girls Golf
- Girls Soccer
- Girls Tennis
- Girls Volleyball
- Golf
- Online Exclusive
- Sports
- Volleyball
- Winter Sports
Sports preview: Week of Nov. 4
November 4, 2019
A few fall sports — Girls Golf, Girls Tennis, Girls Volleyball and Cross Country — will continue their playoff season next week, while four winter sports — girls basketball, boys basketball, girls soccer, and boys soccer — begin mandatory practices starting Monday.
Girls Golf
The Girls Golf team, after finishing third at the Central Coast Section (CCS) championships last Tuesday at Laguna Seca, will compete at the NorCal Championships on Monday at the El Macero Country Club.
Natalie Vo (11) led the team at the CCS Championships, placing fifth individually and shooting a 72, while Claire Chen (10) placed 15th. Head coach Ie-Chen Cheng was also honored as the CCS Honor Coach of the Year.
In order to qualify for the State Championships, held on Nov. 11 at the Poppy Hills Golf Course, the girls must place in the top three at NorCals. If the team does not qualify as a whole, any individual placing in the top nine can also qualify.
Girls Tennis
The Girls Tennis team will compete in a WBAL Playoff match on Tuesday at 4:15 p.m. at the Blackford tennis courts.
The Eagles, ranked second in the Foothill division with a 6-2 league record, will look to defeat Notre Dame-Belmont, ranked first in the Skyline division with an undefeated 12-0 record.
Girls Volleyball
The Girls Volleyball team (17-8), after earning the third seed in the Division 4 CCS bracket, will host Pacific Grove (16-8) on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Athletic Center for their quarterfinal matchup.
The girls last played against Castilleja on Tuesday in a playoff match, which they won 25-14, 25-18, 25-15.
Cross Country
The Cross Country team will compete in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL) finals on Friday at Crystal Springs Cross Country Course. The races have double the weight of each of two previous league meets in determining the overall league standings. The varsity girls are currently tied for 5th among 13 teams, while the boys are ranked 6th out of eight teams.
The seniors on the team will also be honored at a league-wide senior night following the races. The seniors include Nikhil Sharma, Grant Miner, Evan Cheng, Rohan Cherukuri, Richard Hu, Martin Bourdev, Nathan Wang, Emma Li, Ellen Guo, Annabelle Ju, Eileen Li, Vani Mohindra, Delaney Logue, Anvi Banga and Rashmi Iyer.
Winter Sports
Four winter sports — girls basketball, boys basketball, girls soccer, and boys soccer — begin mandatory practices on Monday. Wrestling will no longer be a sport offered at Harker this season.
All athletes playing a winter sport must attend a mandatory meeting in the Athletic Center at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday. Schedules for the first three days of practice, as outlined in a schoolwide email sent out by athletic director Dan Molin on Oct. 31, are also included below.
No coaching changes have occurred since last year for the four sports. The head coaches are Butch Keller for boys basketball, Daniza Rodriguez for girls basketball, Jeff Baicher for boys soccer and Iman Siadat for girls soccer.
Boys basketball will field three teams this year: a freshman team in addition to the junior varsity and varsity squads due to a significant number of freshmen trying out for the team.
