![“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)
Junior boys volleyball bested Lynbrook High School 24-26, 25-16, 15-3 in the Zhang Gymnasium on Wednesday.
Lynbrook served to open the match, but Harker responded quickly with a kill from outside Kyle Chun (9) for the first points on the scoreboard. Subsequent aces by setter Nathaniel Steeg (9) and Kyle increased the Eagles’ lead, as the Vikings struggled to receive the ball.
Head coach Diana Melendez commented on the team’s strategy and emotions going into the game. She also highlighted how adding new players to the match influenced the team’s overall energy.
“Our mindset was to stay as relaxed as possible, enjoy the game and be positive and encouraging to the newer players,” Melendez said. “We have a couple of new players that have been working really hard during practices to try to improve on their positions, which we actually got to start in today’s game, and they did really well. What that does to the team as a whole is it fires them up and gets them cheering on the newer players.”
After opposite Weston Smith (10) tipped the ball over the net, Lynbrook passed it back to Harker. However, outside Luke Xing (9) managed to block the attack. Strong blocks by Weston and middle Brendan Kong (10) kept Lynbrook to two points over the next few minutes and increased Harker’s lead to 7-2.
The Eagles maintained their lead over the Vikings, with Luke tipping the ball over for 12-8 and Luke adding a point by smashing the ball into the opponent’s court. Kyle later followed with an ace to extend Harker’s lead to 19-14. Despite the Eagles’ lead, the Vikings persisted by scoring well-placed hits, bringing the score to 21-19. After Luke committed a service error, Kyle sent the ball out of bounds for 22-22. Lynbrook added powerful spikes and a hit that barely skimmed over the net, sealing their comeback victory over the Eagles in the first set, 24-26.
“We thought that the game would be pretty easy, but in the first set, we kind of fumbled,” Luke said. “Then we had to lock back in, and we had to refocus, and we took the last two sets. We could keep our energy up a little bit more and be a little more consistent throughout the entire game.”
Harker scored the first points of the second set before Lynbrook crossed the ball far to the left side of the net to tie the score 1-1. The Eagles quickly regained control as Luke delivered kills that the Vikings failed to receive, increasing their lead to 6-4.
A hit by a Lynbrook player grazed the net but fell short, improving Harker’s advantage to 12-6. With Lynbrook sending out a ball and Luke adding a hit down into the opponent’s side, Harker’s lead advanced to 15-8. With the Vikings hitting the net on attempted blocks and hits, Luke passed the ball to Nathaniel, who set it up to Kyle for a kill that pushed the score to 22-12.
While the Vikings added a few more points late into the set by capitalizing on the Eagles’ outs, the Eagles maintained control following a Viking hit to the net and won the second set 25-16.
“It was fun watching, and some of the rallies went on pretty long, which was interesting,” spectator Jessie Cao (10) said. “Both Weston and Luke had really good spikes, and then number five had some really good and powerful serves.”
The two teams traded points for a 2-2 tie at the beginning of the third set, but Harker soon pulled ahead to 6-2 after Weston and Brendan executed tips and hits. Continuing to apply defensive pressure near the net, Daniel dived to save several balls, and Brendan contributed key blocks.
After Lynbrook failed to receive several subsequent attacks from Luke and Weston, Weston continued with a series of kills that resulted in the teams reaching match point 14-2. Although the Vikings attempted a hit in the final rally, the ball went out of bounds to seal Harker’s win 15-3.
Although Harker won the game, Melendez emphasized the importance of camaraderie beyond purely caring for victory. As the team continues to improve, she commented that maintaining enjoyment of the sport will be integral.
“Going forward, the whole thing is for them to make sure they’re enjoying the game and not going so much for the W as they are loving playing with each other and being with each other,” Melendez said. “Enjoying the game at this level ensures that by the time they get to a point where the competition really does matter, they still love the game.”
The team currently holds a 3-3 record and will play Homestead High School next on April 7.
