![“[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)
Weekly sports previews: Feb. 1 to Feb. 8
Leisha Devisetti pushes against an opposing defender at a varsity girls basketball game on Jan. 20. The girls host their senior night on Feb. 10.
February 1, 2023
Looking to support Harker Athletics? Check out this week’s slate of winter sports games and updates on how each team is performing below!
Girls basketball:
Varsity girls basketball fell to Menlo 41-46 yesterday at home. Their current record stands at 7-10. The girls will play in two more league matches in the following week, with a game against Pinewood on Friday and Notre Dame on next Tuesday. The girls will host their senior night game on Feb. 10 at 6:30 p.m. The team will celebrate its five seniors, Annmaria Antony, Leisha Devisetti, Grace Hoang, Lakshmi Mulgund and Lexi Nishimura in a ceremony before the game.
Boys basketball:
The varsity boys basketball team fell to Priory 48-75 yesterday. They will match up against Crystal Springs Uplands on Friday, followed by Menlo next Tuesday The team will host their senior night game against Eastside College Prep on Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m. following a ceremony to honor this year’s seniors Gordon Chen, Matthew Chen, Abhi Namala, Mike Sullivan and KJ Williams.
Girls soccer:
Varsity girls soccer beat Notre Dame San Jose 6-0 on yesterday at home, improving their season record to 10-3-1. Following this game, the team will host their senior night tomorrow at 3:15 p.m. Seniors Aneesha Asthana, Cassie May, Amrita Pasupathy, Divya Sivakumar, Lexi Wong and will be specially recognized at the ceremony with flowers. Following the ceremony, the team will play Menlo.
Boys soccer:
Varsity boys soccer will play against Crystal Springs Uplands on Friday, followed by King’s Academy on Feb. 8. The team will play against Priory during their senior day game on Feb. 10 at 3 p.m. This year’s seniors are Mir Bahri, Atri Banerjee, Rahul Herrero, Ethan Joseph, Jeremy Ko, Vikram Mani, Krish Maniar and Michael Pflaging. The team’s overall season record currently stands at 3-5-4.
Correction: A previous version of this article misspelled Leisha Devisetti’s name as Leisha Deviretti and failed to include Lexi Nishimura in the list of varsity girls basketball seniors. This article has been updated on Feb. 5, 2023 to correct these errors.
