![“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)
Varsity girls basketball falls short in fourth quarter on senior night
Co-captain Maria Vazhaeparambil (11), surrounded by three Mercy defenders, reaches for a loose ball during the first quarter of the Eagles’ matchup last Friday. The girls started off evenly, tied 27-27 heading into the locker room at halftime.
February 14, 2020
The varsity girls basketball team fell 69-53 to the Mercy San Francisco Skippers in a senior night matchup last Friday, bringing their overall record to 11-11 and league record to 6-4.
Ahead of the game, five seniors — Allison Yen, Sara Lynn Sullivan, Haley Arena, Kaidi Dai and Charlotte Blanc — were honored in a brief ceremony, presented with flowers by their teammates in front of a loud home crowd.
“I’ve known these people for a really long time. It’s great seeing them in their last home game, knowing they care so much about the sport,” Rakesh Nori (12) said. “As seniors, it’s one of our last chances as a class to be together in this event. It’s pretty nostalgic already.”
The Eagles had already defeated the Skippers once this season — winning 62-49 in an away game on Jan. 14 — and were looking to replicate the feat on the seniors’ special night.
“It was so nice. It’s just another reminder to be thankful for everything I have and how wonderful my friends are. It was just a really overwhelmingly happy night and I’m really glad it went so well,” Kaidi Dai (12) said.
Playing in an athletic center decorated with elaborate posters, streamers and balloons, the game began fairly evenly, with the two teams tied 27-27 heading into the locker room at the half.
The third quarter remained relatively close, with Harker lagging only 43-39 heading into the fourth. However, Mercy crushed the Eagles’ hopes of a late comeback, outscoring the home team 26-14 in the final period to seal the 69-53 loss for the Eagles.
“It was tough. Mercy SF has always been a very formidable opponent for our team,” Kaidi said. “I think everyone played really hard, I think everyone gave it their all. We were in double bonus by the end of the game, which means we were all fouling, we were all working…In the end it was a loss, but in many ways, it was also a win.”
