![“[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 boys water polo was defeated by Los Gatos High School 11-12 in a close rivalry matchup on Sept. 26.
The Los Gatos Wildcats won the opening tip of the game, but the Eagles scored first off of multiple offensive recoveries leading to Vyom Vidyarthi’s (11) shot early in the first quarter. Los Gatos responded with a goal of their own and scored another point when a temporary ejection forced goalie Caio Cammer (11) to miss twenty seconds of action. Nikhil Chadha (11) landed a successful bounce shot to tie the score at 2-2, and after back-and-forth scoring, Harker emerged in the lead 4-3 at the end of the first quarter with more goals from Oskar Baumgarte (11) and Nikhil.
The game remained a close contest between the Eagles and Wildcats through the second quarter, as Vyom scored two consecutive goals and the Wildcats responded with two straight points of their own. To cap off the quarter, Caio blocked a penalty throw to prevent Los Gatos from taking the lead entering halftime, preserving the score at 6-6.
Varsity boys head coach Lee McBride commends the strength of both teams. He compliments how some of his players acted in the face of difficult moments throughout the game.
“Looking back and forth, we are two of the top four teams in CCS and I feel like that experience showed today,” Coach McBride said. “Our leaders really stepped up in pivotal times not only in their play obviously but also in their communication. They led our team in that way”
At the start of the third quarter, Los Gatos outscored Harker three points to one as the Wildcats began to pull ahead. Harker received a player ejection for a scuffle over a loose ball, and with the momentum in favor of Los Gatos, Harker called a timeout to regroup. Afterward, Los Gatos scored another goal on a fast break to put the score at 7-10.
In the final quarter, a disagreement on a call between the two referees briefly put the game on halt, but they ultimately ruled a penalty throw for co-captain Lachlan Rossi (12), who converted for one point. After a Los Gatos goal, Oskar scored a bounce shot for Harker, but a Los Gatos counterattack resulted in a successful penalty throw to maintain the Wildcats’ lead at 9-12.
In the final minutes of the match, Harker acted quickly to try to pull off a comeback, as Sasha Ivkov (12) scored a shot clock buzzer beater. Lachlan followed up with another goal with 38 seconds left in the game. Harker stopped Los Gatos from scoring on the subsequent play, and then Los Gatos fouled Harker with one second on the clock.
Down by one point, Harker had a chance to force overtime but could not execute a shot in time, losing 11-12.
Lachlan highlights the team’s determination throughout the match, which was especially put on full display toward the end of the game.
“We never really lost our composure or gave up,” Lachlan said. “We were down three goals in the last quarter and made it a way closer game than it probably should have. I liked that we fought back really hard.”
Former Harker water polo player Rajas Apte (11) came out to watch the game and commented on the friendly competitive nature between the players on Harker and Los Gatos, as many of them are familiar with each other through external water polo club relationships.
“These are all guys we’ve played with since we were at a very young age around ten, eleven years old,” said Rajas. “We’ve all been on the same [high school] team playing each other, and these are our main rivals right here. It sucks to lose to them, but we’ll be back and we’ll beat them next time [on their senior night]”
The Eagles currently hold a record of 13-8 for the season and play Palo Alto High School in an away game on Tuesday.
