![“[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)
Eight athletes qualified in either running or throwing events for this Saturday’s Central Coast Section (CCS) Track and Field Preliminaries held at Gilroy High School.
The athletes include seniors Michael Chen, Ragini Bhattacharya, Isabelle Connell, and Sumit Minocha along with Claudia Tischler (11), Corey Gonzales (10), Julia Wang (10), and Nadia Palte (9). They will be traveling to compete against other top track and field athletes throughout the region for a spot in the CCS Finals and, possibly, the California State Championships.
Claudia, who qualified for three running events, attended CCS her freshman year but not her sophomore year due to an injury. She believes that she has been recovering well and hopes to “race like [she] used to.”
“CCS Trials is the first of the future track meets, and I’m excited to make it to the next round of meets,” Claudia said. “The most exciting part is being able to stay confident and healthy during the end of the season rather than actually going to CCS for me.”
Athletic Director Dan Molin is enthusiastic for these track and field athletes and wishes them the best at CCS.
“The cohesive coaching staff in addition to some very talented, hard working kids is why we’ve seen this recent growth and attention in track and field,” Molin said. “These individuals have worked extremely hard and qualifying for CCS is a great reward for their efforts. Some of our athletes may have a shot at making the state meet at the end of the month.”
This is the first track and field CCS that Ragini will be attending, as she qualified for the 4×4 relay with teammates Claudia, Isabelle, and Nadia.
“I hope we qualify for CCS finals, but besides that I hope we break a personal record,” she said. “We’ve been breaking the school record again and again and I want to make sure we leave our legacy at this school so getting our best time would be a great way to do that.”
For Michael, he hopes that he will remember to “keep calm and throw with a clear head” during his last CCS preliminaries.
“The last few years I’ve been psyching myself out too much. So this year I want to go out and just throw with no regrets,” he said.
If these athletes place in the top 12 for their events during the CCS preliminaries this Saturday, they will be able to compete in the CCS finals next Friday at Gilroy High.
