![“[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 volleyball defeats Carmel High School
Sophomore Lindsey Trinh and junior Jackie Chen (11) jump to block a shot during the first match. Although the girls lost the first match 23-25, they came back and won the second match 26-24.
The varsity girls volleyball team won 3-1 against Carmel High School in its fourth game of the season at the Blackford Gym.
The girls lost the first set by a slim 23-25 but came back to win the second set 26-24. They won the third set 25-13 and wrapped up the game with a 25-11 fourth set.
“I think so far we are kind of getting our bearings so we’re working out some of the kinks,” coach Yagmur Ilgen said, “as a team we’re doing pretty well when we play to our full potential.”
For libero Rachel Cheng (10), the first match started out slow and even though the girls won the second match, it too was not won quickly. “We pushed and lessened the amount of errors so we were able to come out and win in the end,” Rachel said.
“Our game tonight was a great win because we got past a mental block that seemed to hold us back in the beginning,” co-captain Shannon Richardson (11) said. “We lost a tough first set and started off poorly in the second set, but we were able to make up points and pull out the win. I think this was a great win to build our confidence for the future.”
“We started the season off with a lot of injuries and very competitive matches against strong schools,” Dorrene Kang (11) said. “I think we fought well against Homestead and St. Francis, but we really clicked in our match today and were able to finish.”
For Rachel, the girls’ relationship with each other plays a large part in their games. “I think there’s some really good team chemistry and I hope our team will play to our full potential,” Rachel said.
Shannon agrees. “We have so much potential and I am excited to see where we end up,” Shannon said, “Our team has such a great camaraderie that we have lots of fun improving together.”
The girls will play their next game against Willow Glen High School at 5:45 p.m. on Thursday at Blackford.
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...