![“[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 JV volleyball loses to Cupertino High School
Sophomore David Feng dives for a ball during the game against Cupertino High School. The team has eight games left in their season.
March 30, 2018
Boys junior varsity volleyball lost a close game against Cupertino High School at 5:30 yesterday in the athletics center, with a score of 25-12 in the first set and 25-20 in the second.
Their record is now 0-9 as they move through their season, and with each game, the boys have learned new lessons to improve their playing skills.
“From this game, I think what we learned most was the mentality. It’s not that we’re not physically fit; it’s that sometimes our heads get in our way,” David Feng (10) said. “We can’t have this mindset of just staying on the last play, looking at the mistakes we made—we have to get past that, reflect on those mistakes later, and we want to [focus on] the next play specifically.”
While the Eagles trailed behind during the first set, they gained a lead for the first half of the second set before the Cupertino players overtook them towards the end of the set.
“As a team, I think we can work a lot better on starting off with a bang instead of taking some time to progress forward,” David said. “It’s important that we start off with a lot of effort, start off strong, and start off winning the game.”
Yesterday’s game marked the halfway point of the team’s season, with eight games left. The boys will play Cupertino High School again in their next game at Cupertino on April 12.
