![“[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 girls volleyball defeats Westmont in four sets
Emma Dione (10) dives for the ball as Michelle Ning (10) watches on. The varsity girls volleyball team defeated Westmont in four sets on Friday, the respective scores being 25-22, 18-25, 25-11 and 25-15.
September 10, 2018
The varsity girls volleyball team defeated Westmont in four sets on Friday, the respective scores being 25-22, 18-25, 25-11 and 25-15. This brings their overall record to 5-3.
The Eagles started out strong, going head-to-head with Westmont for the first half of the set, before Westmont began pulling ahead. However, just when it looked like they were about to lose, Harker began to catch up, thanks to strong serves from Michelle Ning (10) and aggressive hits from Lauren Beede (11). They eventually tied at 22 points, where the winning serves from Tara Ozdemir (9) brought them up to 25 to win the first set.
“It was a rough start, but I think we really pulled through at the end,” player Allison Cartee (12) said. “Our back row passers did a really good job of reading the hitters, picking up all the tips, and especially the line shots, which was really great because then our offense could get a lot of good spikes.”
The second set began similarly, both teams going head-to-head, always within one point of each other until Westmont began pulling ahead and eventually won. While the Eagles had a massive turnout of support for the game, Westmont brought substantial support of their own, a presence which did not go unnoticed throughout the match and aided in Westmont winning the set.
In set three the Eagles seemed to learn from their past mistakes. The game was driven by strong offense from Ashley Jazbeck (11) and, once again, successful serves from Michelle Ning. The score reached 19-9, and the Eagles kept climbing from there. Westmont only scored 2 more points before the set was over.
The Eagles swept the final match with a joyous and well-earned 25-15, thanks to stellar defense from Tara Ozdemir (9). Tara, the only freshman on the team, has proved to be a talented libero and has received a lot of love from the rest of the girls.
“Tara’s like the love of my life,” co-captain Emily Cheng (11) joked with a hint of pride. “She played really well today and stepped up to the occasion. She got some awesome digs where she was literally flying on the court and getting perfect ups, and I couldn’t be more proud of her as an upperclassman.”
Both the JV and freshman teams also prevailed in their games against Westmont, which were also held in the Athletics Center at 4 and 5:30.
This year especially, coach Theresa “Smitty” Smith is confident that the girls can go farther than they’ve ever gone, with CCS being the end goal to all their hard work. The varsity girls’ volleyball team has not made it to CCS for the last two years, despite qualifying every year before then.
“The sky’s the limit for this team,” Smitty said. “It’s a young team, even though we have seven seniors, there’s a lot of youngsters that are on the floor playing. It’s a really, really good group, maybe the best energy and camaraderie we’ve had in the last couple years.”
Their next game will be held against Los Altos High School on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the Athletics Center.
