![“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 volleyball swings it away at second annual Spikefest
Navya Samuel (10) and Juhi Madala (11) block an Andrew Hill High School hitter. The front row players were able to successfully stuff many hitters during the day.
October 31, 2022
Varsity girls volleyball attended the Milpitas Spikefest II Tournament away at Lincoln High School San Jose and Wilcox High School, finishing with a record of 2-3 on Oct. 22.
The tournament spanned over a 12-hour day with the team switching between refereeing and playing various high schools. The Eagles started the day strong against Andrew Hill High School with a 17-0 serving run by Rachel Ning (12) in the first set. With an unbending offense, the team won the match in two sets, 25-15 and 25-14.
“They were able to handle their business really well,” Head Coach Theresa “Smitty” Smith said. “I was worried about today because [the last few days] took a lot out of them. This day, in and of itself, is a long day; it’s hard to stay on point from seven o’clock in the morning till seven o’clock at night. But, I’m proud of the girls and I’m happy with the fight.”
The second game against Santa Cruz High School proved to be a difficult fight for the team. Santa Cruz had tenacious blockers and hitters that gave some trouble to the Harker defenders. Although Harker was able to slowly adjust, Santa Cruz ultimately took the match in two sets, 12-25 and 20-25.
“Our service was better and there were only a couple of times where we missed,” player Vivan Bi (12) said. “We kind of struggled with [unforced errors]. I think our offense is pretty good, but because they’re pretty big girls, we need to play smart and put our hits in good areas.”
The Eagles dove into their third game against Lowell High School from San Francisco, starting off with renewed energy and then entering a stalemate in score with their opponent. While diving to pick up a ball, Nat Tan (9) hit her head on the ground, leading her to step out of the game for the rest of the set. After, Lowell was able to pull ahead with solid blocks and defense and won 20-25 and 22-25.
“I think we’re all a lot closer since [the first Spikefest on Sept. 3]. We’ve known each other for so long, everyone’s a lot closer and our bond is stronger and the team dynamic [on the court] is different,” player Brooke Kubose (9) said. “Honestly, [besides winning] I just want us to have fun. Play well, play our best, play our own game and don’t go down to the opponent’s level. That’s what matters.”
With a 1-2 record, Harker advanced to the Blue Division Playoffs, the fourth division in the tournament. The team relocated to Wilcox High School at 2:30 pm and began playing Lincoln High School San Francisco. The first two sets ended head to head, full of riveting rallies and swings from both teams resulting in both sides taking one set 25-27 and 27-25. In the third set, the game paused for a series of contested referee calls causing Harker to lose momentum, and the girls eventually lost the third set 15-3.
“The energy on the bench was very strong,” Brooke said. “We need to call [the ball] a bit more and communicate. We get frazzled sometimes and we just need to be able to reset and restart after losing a few points.”
To close off the day, the team played Pioneer High School. Harker was able to overpower Pioneer with their well-placed swings and solid defense, and they took the game quickly at 25-11 and 25-15 and finished second in the Blue Division.
“We traditionally just played in the one [Spikefest] and then we played another tournament somewhere else,” Smitty said. “A lot of the top seeds have already done other tournaments so they don’t come to [the second Spikefest], so it’s a bit different. There was a little up and down today, but I was really happy with the way we fought back in the games today and we hung in there.”
The team will participate in the Central Coast Section (CCS) quarterfinals on Nov. 1.
