![“[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)
Track and Field participates in second League meet of the season
Freshman Winnie Li runs in the first heat of the girls 100 meters race against girls from St. Lawrence, Mercy SF, and Pinewood. Winnie also ran in the 4×100 relay earlier in the meet.
The Track and Field team participated in its second league meet at King’s Academy where the athletes took part in a variety of events, such as high jump, hurdles, shot put, and relays.
Some athletes tried out new events at the meet while others used the time to perfect their existing events in a competitive atmosphere.
Freshman Rachel Cheng participated in the high jump for the first time.
“I’m pretty proud of how I finished,” Rachel said, “I can only improve from here.”
Rachel, who is also a volleyball player, feels a lot more in shape than she was at the beginning of the season. She has also gained more discipline in terms of running technique. Rachel hopes to continue to improve for the rest of the season and have fun with her friends.
Another athlete, thrower Arjun Kumar (12), won the Varsity shot put and placed 3rd in discus. Arjun has been working hard on his technique this season, trying to fix some of the smaller issues from last year, and he feels that the hard work is paying off.
With a personal best of 29 feet and 9 inches, Arjun is very close to achieving his personal goal of breaking 40 feet in the shot put and qualifying for CCS. Only the top two throwers in the league move on to CCS, but he feels hopeful that he will be one of the two.
In terms of the team as a whole, Arjun is looking forward to another strong showing in the next league meet and hopes that multiple people will qualify for CCS.
“I’m hoping to enjoy my last few months of track and field, and have many more awesome times with the team,” Arjun said.
Raymond Cheng (12) participated in the 110 meter hurdles, the 300 meter hurdles, and the long jump. This was his first time running the 110 meter hurdles and he thought it was pretty tough. The long jump on the other hand went well for him and he achieved a new personal record.
“I have been slowly improving as I learned the basics of the hurdles and the long jump,” Raymond said, “I look forward to improving my abilities in these events.”
Junior Rahul Jayaraman (11) ran the 200 meters and felt that he did “remarkably well even though this is his first time doing it after a year.” He feels that he has progressed this season and become an even stronger runner under the guidance of his coaches and looks forward to future meets.
Another sprinter, Allen Huang (11), ran the 100 meters and set a new personal best. He feels he has “definitely improved a lot over the course of the season” and “going to practice and running every day has done wonders.”
A few members will participate in the CCS Top 8 meet on Friday, while the rest of the team will be at the Bearcat Invitational on Saturday.
Cheryl Liu is an assistant photo editor of TALON yearbook. She is a junior and has been part of the journalism program since her freshman year. Her favorite...
Shay Lari-Hosain (12) is the Editor-in-Chief and co-founder of Wingspan Magazine. Shay has interviewed 2013 Nobel Laureates, authors like Khaled Hosseini...