![“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 boys soccer fought to a 1-2 loss against Milpitas High School in a fast-paced, closely-matched game on Friday.
From the opening kick-off, the Eagles pressed hard, with holding midfielder Sam Li (11) launching the ball forward and forwards Ryder Hewitt (12) and Christian Mehta (10) closing in on the Trojan’s defense. Milpitas won possession and drove up the field, but center back Krish Nachnani (12) and wingback Arun Banerjee (9) made crucial tackles to clear the ball out of play.
“As a team, we played physically, and I played more physically than usual as well,” Arun said. “We’ve been training with a couple of key points like possession of contention or volunteer defending, and it’s been working, but we still need to develop a lot to actually use those properly in game.”
Harker dominated much of the first half, with center midfielder Nathan Mao (10) slipping passes to forward Stanley Chen (12), who took on the Milpitas’ left back. Sam made interceptions in midfield and tackles to stop Trojan attacks, passing to forwards Cyrus Ghane (12), Stanley and Ryder. Stanley drove to the endline, winning corner kicks for the Eagles. With 15 minutes remaining in the half, Stanley stole the ball from a Milpitas defender and passed to Nathan, who took a shot that soared over the crossbar.
The Eagles continued to apply high pressure, and Ryder gained possession, dribbling the ball to goal in a three-on-one. Ryder was fouled, gaining Harker a free kick from 30 yards out. Center back Roger Fradin (10) floated the ball into the box, but Milpitas cleared it out.
Cyrus halted a Trojan counterattack, flicking the ball behind their defensive line to forward Vova Shchegrov (11), who ultimately missed the goal. Stanley and Vova continued to take shots, but the Trojans’ goalkeeper saved them, keeping the score at 0-0 going into halftime.
At the start of the second half, Cyrus won possession and played the ball forward to Stanley, who missed his shot. Center back Jonas Parra (12) made several crucial tackles, shutting down runs from the Milpitas forwards.
Milpitas launched a quick counterattack, sending a ball into the 18-yard box. Both teams scrambled for possession, but the Trojans ultimately fired the ball into the bottom right corner, taking the lead 0-1 11 minutes into the second half.
Harker maintained their high press, with Cyrus and Vova driving forward and attempting to score. A Trojan foul sparked arguments with the referee, and both a Milpitas coach and player were shown yellow cards.
With 21 minutes remaining in the half, Sam stole the ball and played it back to Roger. Roger attempted a pass to goalkeeper Mikhil Kiran (12), but the ball bounced past, rolling into Harker’s own net to extend Milpitas’s lead to 0-2.
“The key takeaway is we have to communicate more,” Vova said. “We gave up a goal in the end that was due to poor communication. We need to stay in the game. We came into the game expecting to lose, and we fell asleep and got scored on in the end.”
Following another Trojan foul, Robert lined up a free kick at the 20-yard line, but his shot sailed over the goal. Thirty-one minutes into the second half, Stanley was taken down inside the penalty box, winning the Eagles a penalty kick. He slotted the shot in the bottom right corner, raising the score to 1-2. Despite several more attempts from both Milpitas and Harker, neither team was able to score again, and the match ended with the Eagles down 1-2.
Stanley’s father and spectator Aoyu Chen reflected on the game and his hope for the boys’ upcoming season.
“Honestly, they lost just because of bad luck,” Chen said. “They fought hard. The highlight was the penalty kick, but starting with the second half, they played a lot better and created many chances. It’s early in the season, so they’re going to get better.”
The Eagles continue their preseason with a 1-2 record and will play Silver Creek High School next on Friday.
