![“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)
![“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)
![“[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)
![“Animation just clicked in a way. I had been interested in art, but that felt different. [Animation] felt like it had something behind it, whereas previous things felt surface level. I wasn't making that crazy of things, but just the process of doing it was much more enjoyable," Carter Chadwick ('22) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-16-at-9.44.08-AM-900x598.png)
A pack of over 70 runners stampeded down a dusty hill at the sound of the gun, marking the approaching end of the cross country season. The boys’ and girls’ Varsity and Junior Varsity teams traveled to Crystal Springs in Belmont today to compete in the WBAL League Championships.
Led by Head Coach Scott Chisam and Assistant Coach Brent Woodcock, the students ran a 2.95-mile course, competing against over ten schools in the Bay Area including Menlo School, Pinewood School, and Sacred Heart Preparatory. Overall, the Varsity boys’ team placed sixth out of nine teams and the Varsity girls’ team placed eighth out of 12 teams.
Despite the unfavorable weather, Chisam praised the team’s performance, hard work, spirit, and the athletes’ support for one another.
“The team performed very well,” he said. “[Many athletes] have put in the time and the mileage, and we see that with people on our team this year.”
Although neither of the Varsity teams advanced to the Central Coast Section (CCS) Championships, Corey Gonzales (10), Tyler Yeats (12), Ragini Bhattacharya (12) and Claudia Tischler (11) qualified individually.
Corey, who led the boys’ team, came in with a time of 16:12, second after a runner from Sacred Heart Preparatory, breaking a personal record by three seconds while also setting a school record.
“I’m kind of disappointed I didn’t win. I went [into] the race hoping to win, but I’m really happy I get to go to CCS, and that’s really all that matters,” he said. “It’s more important to do well in CCS and qualify for states, and that’s my goal.”
For the girls, top runner Ragini placed third, completing the course in a personal best of 19:24, followed closely by Claudia in sixth place who ran the race in 19:41.
“Today I felt good, so I’m proud that I placed better than I usually place at other league meets,” Ragini said. “It’s bittersweet [to race] at Crystal today, knowing this is my last race here because I’ve been training at this place for years and years.”
The four qualifiers will travel to Toro Park in Salinas next week on Saturday, November 10 to run in the CCS Finals.
Though the cross country team had traveled to the same dirt trail course for practices a few times prior to the meet, this was only the second time the runners had competed at the course this season. Many of the runners improved their times by several seconds and attributed their progress to the training, workouts, and effort they put in throughout the season.
“It was a bonding experience, coming here for the second time as opposed to the first time,” runner Sahana Narayanan (9) said. “We grew as a team. We knew the course better.”
Following the meet, awards were presented to the top 10 individual runners in each race, and all of the seniors, including Ragini and Tyler, were honored and given roses.