![“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)
Students share World Cup hopes and predictions
December 2, 2022
This year’s World Cup has taken the sports world by a storm, taking place in Qatar and with games lasting through Dec. 18. The United States defeated Iran in a high-profile game on Tuesday, advancing to the knockout round of 16, and the team will face the Netherlands tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. in an elimination round, with the winner making it to the quarter-finals.
Watch the following video to hear five upper school soccer fans share their hopes and predictions for the World Cup.
Which country do you want to win?
Sara Glusman (10): I want Argentina to win because obviously my family is from there. But also, my idol, my favorite player Messi like plays for that team. And I think we have a pretty good chance of winning.
Ryder Hewitt (9): USA man! I’ve heard a lot of guys talking about the soccer Lombardi, and it’s just such a fun environment right now. Everybody’s loving the US national team. And I am too.
Rahul Herrero (12): Well, absolutely I want Spain to win, and my dad’s actually from Spain, if you didn’t know. So that’s really the main reason I want Spain to win. I think Spain has a pretty good team this year.
Anya Chauhan (11): I want Argentina to win because of Messi, but we’ll see how that goes. That’s really the only one I’m rooting for.
Deeya Viradia (12): I’ve always been a big supporter of Brazil because of Pele, originally, and now Neymar is the best player on the team.
Which country do you think will win?
Sara: Argentina had a rough start, but I think we have the possibility to make it to the final and then the other team, I think France is really, really strong this year as well.
Rahul: I did say that Spain’s a good team, but I actually think that Brazil is probably going to win, they have Neymar, Vinicius. Those two guys are probably top five players in the world. And overall, their entire team is just not not too many weaknesses. So I think they’re gonna win.
Ryder: Brazil looked amazing in their in their group stage games. And I just feel like they’re the kind of team that can easily hold out and just go on the whole thing.
What specific players are you rooting for or keeping an eye on?
Ryder: Specific players, I would probably say, Christian Pulisic. He is a player for the United States men’s national team. He’s always been a big inspiration to me.
Sara: I’m keeping an eye on obviously Messi and Ronaldo, but also Kylian Mbappé. He’s a pretty young player from France. And he’s really, really fast and just a big addition to the team.
Rahul: I’m a Real Madrid fan. So I’m always looking for Real Madrid players on the teams. Vinicius is my favorite player, and so I’m always looking out for him. I’ve been watching because Ronaldo and Messi because for both of them, this is probably their last World Cups. So it’s gonna be interesting.
What do you think of the United States team so far? How far do you think they will get?
Anya: Honestly, I don’t think we’re gonna do too well. I think it’s definitely gonna be competitive, but I’m not… I don’t really have any high expectations necessarily for the US.
Rahul: I’m surprised with the US team. I didn’t expect much, especially after them getting eliminated, or not even qualifying, for the 2018 World Cup. And so I think they have a chance of beating Netherlands. I think after that, they’ll probably get eliminated. But yeah, that’s the furthest they’ll go is a quarterfinals.
Deeya: The US has had some pretty good games against Britain. And I don’t know, they could win.
What matches are you looking forward to watching?
Ryder: Looking forward to Saturday, it’s a Saturday morning, you know, Netherlands facing off with the USA. I’m so excited to watch though. I think the USA can go far in this world cup. And so I’m very interested in that match.
Sara: I mean, I’m always looking forward to watch Argentina games, but I’m just really looking forward to you know, the quarters and the semis and seeing how that ends up.
Rahul: Well, I’m definitely gonna be watching all Spain matches whoever Spain matches up. I know Spain will be playing Morocco, either Sunday or Monday. So I’ll be watching those. I mean, really for me, and all the matches are good, but go España!
