![“[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 soccer looks to upset Ygnacio Valley, advance to NorCal finals
The varsity boys soccer team celebrates after clinching their first CCS championship in school history after a win in penalty kicks against St. Francis on Saturday. “The fact that four years ago we’d only been to CCS once. Then we start going to CCS, we start making it further and further. And now we’re the CCS champions, that’s insane,” goalie Laszlo Bollyky (10) said.
March 5, 2020
The boys soccer team faces off against first-seed Ygnacio Valley High School today at 4:30 p.m. for their Division III NorCals semifinals match.
“In the last game, we had many chances at goals but were unable to convert them. In general, we need to be cleaner and eliminate careless errors,” Muthu Panchanatham, a sophomore on the team said. “If we stick to our game plan and continue playing the way we’ve played all season, we should be able to continue our winning streak.”
The boys defeated the Galt Warriors in their NorCals quarterfinals match 5-4 in penalty kicks on Tuesday to earn a berth in the semifinals. The Eagles took an early lead following a goal from co-captain Andrew Cheplyansky (12), but in the final minutes of regulation, Galt scored off a free kick to tie the game up at 1-1. After both teams went scoreless in overtime, the game went on to penalty kicks for the third time in the boys’ last three games.
Andrew and sophomores Ishaan Mantripragada, Arthur Kajiyama, and Justin Fung converted their penalty kicks for the Eagles, while the Warriors punched in four of their five opportunities as well. On the sixth penalty kick, Galt failed to score while Jeffrey Fung (12) converted, sending the Eagles to the NorCal semifinals.
Just three days before, the boys were crowned CCS champions as they took down St. Francis High School on Saturday. The boys were down 1-0 in the second half of overtime, with just a few minutes left to play, as Justin found the back of the net to send the game to penalty kicks, where the boys won 3-1 as goalie Laszlo Bollyky came up clutch with 2 crucial saves.
This has been a historic season for the Eagles, who had previously not advanced past the CCS semifinals for boys soccer. With a win, the team would take on the winner of the matchup between second-seed East Union and third-seed Branham on Saturday.
