![“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 girls basketball secured a 44-27 victory over Woodside High School on Friday in the Zhang Gymnasium.
Center Sanika Das (11) won the tip-off, and forward Hammy Hernandez (10) scored a layup for the first points of the game. The Eagles jumped to a 7-2 lead halfway through the quarter after a three-pointer from guard Claire Yu (12) and a transition layup from Sanika.
Harker suffered a scoring drought due to passing turnovers until guard Alicia Ran (12) sank a three-pointer from the left wing to extend the lead to 12-6 with 30 seconds left in the quarter. Guard Jillian Chen (10) hit a buzzer beater three-pointer to end the quarter 15-8.
“It was really awesome just to get to come back and watch them play,” spectator and former varsity basketball player Isabella Lo (‘25) said. “I think they played pretty well together as a team today because they swung the ball around.”
Both teams attempted to score from the perimeter, but neither team succeeded until halfway through the second quarter, when Alicia found guard Hannah Tay (9) off an inbound pass for a long two. Guard Finley Ho (11) attacked the rim and located Hammy in the corner for a triple to put the Eagles up 20-8. Sanika constantly fought for offensive rebounds and she muscled in a putback and-1 layup. Sanika was fouled and scored another free throw to wrap up the first half 24-13.
“One aspect of the game that we could improve on is taking our time coming up the court.” Sanika said. “All of our guards are extremely capable of bringing up the ball, but we just need to work on not rushing, taking our time, everyone knowing that they’re capable and they have the ability to bring up the ball if they need to.”
Woodside scored a three-pointer off a turnover to open the third quarter, but Sanika responded by sinking a rim attempt over two defenders. Jillian made a no-look pass and Hammy scored a layup to push the lead out to 28-16. The Eagles continued to connect passes, with Jillian lobbing the ball from halfcourt to assist layups for Sanika and forward Selena Chen (11).
Harker’s defense swarmed the interior, preventing Woodside from scoring any points in the paint in the third quarter. A Wildcat drained a three in transition, bringing the score to 38-19. Claire hit a jumper from the elbow to extend Harker’s lead to 40-19 by the conclusion of the third quarter.
“In practice we’ve been working on our defense and a lot of boxing out,” Hannah said. “Today we were able to get a lot of the box outs, so we were able to collect the rebound and push it up the court.”
Woodside attacked the interior to begin the fourth quarter, scoring eight straight points to close the gap to 40-25. The Eagles forced passing turnovers to stop the Wildcats from scoring again, and Claire responded with another from the elbow 42-27. Sanika drained a layup to put the game away 44-27.
“We worked all week making the right pass, right read, and just being able to trust each other, being in the right spot,” said Assistant Coach Guillermo Nunez. “For the rest of the season, we want to focus on smart passes, executing, and taking care of the ball.”
The Eagles hold a record of 2-3 and face Greenfield High School on tomorrow.
