![“[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 boy’s soccer continues undefeated record
Sanil Rajput (11) runs with the ball. The Varsity boys’ soccer team defeated Lynbrook 4-1.
The Harker Varsity Boys’ soccer team continues its undefeated record in a 4-1 victory against Lynbrook High school on Friday.
The team had a strong start with two consecutive goals made by Kevin Hu (11) and Jeremiah Anderson (12). The game stayed stagnant after the first quarter until the middle of the third quarter, where Nick Acero (9) scored in a surprise drive down the field. Lynbrook scored their goal in the fourth quarter, and a penalty kick goal from Ramzi Jahshan (12) was the last goal of the game.
“In the first half, we came out wanting to win, and we scored two quick goals. They were on the back foot so we just kept on attacking,” said Omar Hamade (12). “We slowed down a little bit in the second half, and our goal was to get four more goals in the second half. We didn’t get that, but we got the win. Every game we’re improving.”
The team was focused on maintaining a strong winning mentality throughout the game.
Before the game, we talked about the importance of a strong mindset and the advantage it can give us over our opponents. If we have a strong mentality, we will be able to win the league this year,” said Sharad Chandra (9). “We can blame weather conditions, such as the rain today, or we can say we’re tired and give up, but we encouraged each other and worked as a team to defeat Lynbrook.”
The constant drizzle of rain and the eventual downpour was an ongoing concern but did not prove to be too great of a problem.
“Although the rain made the field a little slippery, most of us are used to playing in wet conditions. The rain did not really affect us much,” said Sharad.
The team hopes to continue its win streak against Prospect High School on Jan. 3 at 1 p.m.
Adrian Chu (12) is a columnist for the Winged Post and Aquila. He has served as an Opinion Editor for The Winged Post. This is his fourth year in journalism,...