![“[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 boys volleyball defeats Wilcox High 3-0
Libero Jonathan Schwartz (11) digs a hit from Wilcox while Andrew Gu (11), Ray Song (11) and Jarrett Anderson (9) get into hitting position.
April 6, 2016
The varsity boys volleyball team won their second league match 3-0 against Wilcox High Wednesday to improve to 2-0 in league and 4-8 overall.
The Eagles won the first two sets decisively, scoring 25-14 and 25-16 respectively. The third set was more competitive, with Wilcox starting with a 3-0 lead and coming as close as 19-22 before the Eagles rolled off the last three points straight to win 25-19.
Assistant coach Alex Jones commented on the team’s performance.
“This was the best match of volleyball that we’ve played,” he said. “I think Wilcox came out a little flat because they had a five set win on Friday night, and we were really able to take advantage of that by playing with a lot of energy at the beginning of the match.”
The team started the match with a strong 10-4 lead, earned through tough serving and aggressive hits. Wilcox gained some momentum when its middle hitter scored an impressive kill, but they were unable to sustain it for the rest of the game.
When outside hitter Andrew Gu (11) hit a kill to change the score to 16-9, Wilcox to called their first and only timeout of the match. Even after the timeout, the Eagles went on a run and eventually won the set.
The second set mirrored the first. The Eagles led from beginning to end, starting off winning 10-2 after service runs by Charlie Molin (9) and Christopher Gong (9). Highlights included an ace by defensive specialist Luke Wu (12) and a middle kill by Albert Xu (11).
The third set was closer, as Wilcox’s passing and hitting became more consistent. After the Eagles lost a contested out-of-bounds call they thought was a touch, Wilcox served an ace down the line. Wilcox had an 11-8 lead before the Eagles began their comeback. After a long rally, the Eagles prevailed to tie the game at 11-11. The momentum shifted, and the team finished the game 25-19 on an ace by right side hitter Jarrett Anderson (9).
Andrew led the team with 16 kills. He took advantage when Wilcox had a split block, earning most of his kills through tools and crosscourt hits.
“I think we brought a lot of energy in the first set, and that’s what let us start off really strong, and then we continued that into the second set,” he said. “We got a little complacent in the third set.”
Charlie, a setter on the team, reflected on his setting decisions during the match. He often “set against the flow,” a term for when setters set the opposite direction of where they are moving in order to surprise the blockers on the other side.
“Setting against the flow helps because it will confuse the other blockers and usually will get a lot of [one-blocker-on-one-hitter] hits,” he said.
The varsity team will face Santa Clara High at an away game at 5:45 p.m. tomorrow for their third league match of the season.
