![“[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)
Boys volleyball sweeps league with a 9-0 record
The boys huddle during a timeout in the game. They played a non-conference match against Pacific Collegiate on April 13.
May 4, 2016
Varsity boys volleyball kicked off the season with strong wins in their first three games against Eastside College Prep on March 25, Adrian C. Wilcox High School on April 6, and Santa Clara High School on April 7.
Although the boys lost 3-1 on a non-conference match against Pacific Collegiate at home on April 13, they came back strong with a 3-0 league win against King’s Academy on April 15.
The team went on to defeat Wilcox a second time on April 20 and Fremont high school on April 21. Their latest game was against Eastside College Prep which they won 3-0. They currently are at the top of their league with 8 wins and 0 losses.
The team trains five days a week at the Blackford gym. During practices, players scrimmage and perform various drills to prepare for games.
“I think that [the team’s major strengths] are their work ethic and their willingness to work hard and get better every day,” assistant coach of the boy’s volleyball team, Dan Molin said. “Their volleyball experience is at a fairly high level.”
So far, the team has a hitting percentage of .167, they average 7.9 kills per set, and 1.8 defensive blocks per set.
“They can always improve on the fundamentals, whether it’s passing, serving or attacking and they’re realistic about that and have a good focus on that,” Molin said in regard to areas where the team can improve.
The team beat Santa Clara High School with an overall score of 3-1. Although they were down 11 points on their first set, Harker came back against Santa Clara with strong leads on their last three sets.
Freshman Chris Gong, one of the team’s outside hitters, is the league’s top scorer with an average of 40 kills and 9 serving aces per game. He also scores above the national average in assists and attack percentage.
“Our pin hitters mainly [are our biggest strengths],” Chris said. “Our passings have been pretty good so far, which lets us get in good situations.”
The team’s pin hitters, or outside hitters, include Chris, Kurt Schwartz (12), Andrew Gu (11), Jonathan Schwartz (11) and Jay Paranjpe (11).
Athletic director Dan Molin has coached the boys volleyball since the 2008 season.
“Their goal is just to take it one match at a time and try to get better every single match. If they do that, good things will happen,” Molin said.
Athletic director Dan Molin has coached the boys volleyball since the 2008 season.
Luke Wu (12), the team’s libero, averages 31 returns per game. As a senior on the team, Luke hopes to continue volleyball in college.
“All the underclassmen are always watching you and looking at what you’re doing,” Luke said. “You know that everything you do has to be as set as possible.”
Instead of the formal wear that most teams at Harker wear during game days, the volleyball sometimes dress up Hawaiian themed on game days.
They played their last league game against King’s Academy today at home at 5:45 p.m.
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on May 4, 2016.
