![“[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 Mountain View in four sets
Freshmen Billy Fan and Brian Pinkston block a ball against Mountain View High School. The varsity boys team beat Mountain View in four sets.
March 22, 2018
The varsity boys volleyball team defeated Mountain View High School on Wednesday after four close sets with scores of 25-13, 28-26 and 25-15 in the second, third and fourth sets.
The boys went head to head with Mountain View in the first set, always staying within two points of each other until Mountain View pulled ahead midway through the game and won the set 25-19.
“We started off with not very much defensive intensity, and we weren’t getting very many stops,” Jeffrey Kwan (10) said. “They were scoring first ball, and in the second and third and fourth games, we played a lot better defensively, which allowed us to go on a lot more runs and score better.”
Morale was low heading into the second set, but the eagles brought it back with several consecutive points scored by outside hitter Jarrett Anderson (11) and a few aces by Brian Pinkston (9). The eagles ended the set with a score of 25-13.
“I thought [the players] did a really nice job of isolating Jarrett Anderson on the right side,” coach Chad Gordon said. “Getting a lot of action into our left and then flipping the ball over to our right really freed him up, and he had a great night.”
The players again were neck and neck with their opponents throughout the third set, but with decisive serves from Charlie Molin (11) and strong blocking from Billy Fan (9) they were able to win the third set as well.
Following a brief time-out called by Mountain View, the eagles swept the last set with a score of 25-15, despite struggling with the many out-of-system plays they had to resort to. Once again, the match showcased outstanding offense from Jarrett and strong defense from libero Jeffrey.
“I think we have a lot of the foundation down,” team captain Jimmy Lin (12) said. “It’s just a matter of being able to start off a lot faster than what we did today, and just getting into a rhythm where we can be at full energy and we can be confident in doing what we do best.
The team’s next game is away against Los Altos on Mar. 23 at 6:45 p.m.
