![“[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)
The varsity boys volleyball team defeated Homestead High School 25-17, 25-19, 25-23 at home on April 12.
Harker scored the first three points of the first set. Opposite Kyle Johnson (12) took the first point, setter Adrian Liu (12) hit an ace and Homestead spiked the ball out of bounds. However, the Eagles soon became neck and neck with the Mustangs, with both sides gradually racking up points.
Throughout the first set, the Eagles maintained a narrow lead, consistently keeping a higher score than the Mustangs’. The Eagles called a timeout when the score tied at 13-13, after which they pulled ahead on a steady streak and ended the first set 25-17.
Once again in the second set, the Eagles took the early lead, quickly gaining an advantage with a score of 8-1. Homestead called a timeout in an attempt to break Harker’s streak, but outside hitter Aaron Guo (11) noted that his team was able to continue scoring consistently even after the timeout.
“When we have momentum going, we don’t want to lose it, especially after the other team calls a timeout,” Aaron said. “We want to keep the pressure on the entire time.”
Homestead’s score stayed a consistent five to six points below Harker’s even as the Mustangs continued to advance. After a smooth second set, the Eagles triumphed 25-19. Middle Edis Mesic (12) believes that the team’s performance throughout the game was because they practiced consistency and teamwork.
“One strategy that was really big for us [during the game] was just connecting on the things that we were working a lot on in practice,” Edis said. “One of the biggest ones was just being consistent with our serving and then also being really consistent on our blocking defense.”
Opening the third set, the Eagles scored the first five points, eventually pulling ahead with a seven point lead. While Harker managed to stay on top throughout the set, Homestead mounted a comeback and racked up a six-point streak, shaking up the scores to 22-20. Both teams were left with a chance to take the third set as the scoreboard reached 24-23 by the end of the set. Nevertheless, the Eagles pulled through, with middle Rahul Yalla (11) scoring the final point to win the third set and the game overall.
Despite the uncertainty faced in the third set, head coach Mason Tufuga believes that the game went smoothly overall and cites the victory as a product of the team’s hard work.
“[Homestead] is the team that we’ve lost our only league match against, and so I think the boys wanted some redemption,” Tufuga said. “We had beaten them in a tournament recently, but this is our first match since losing to them to play them again and our boys bounced back pretty well. We’ve been working pretty hard the last three weeks and just playing cleaner, not making as many mistakes and the effort is showing.”
The team currently holds an overall record of 6-6 and will compete against Monta Vista in an away game on April 24.
![Senior Gabe Sachse and sophomore Shaurya Jain hug after winning the game. “I don’t want to say goodbye because [the seniors] are my friends outside of baseball as well,” Shaurya said. “Either way, I wanted to go all out for the seniors.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/53-KAT_4240-e1747776384650-1200x778.jpg)
