Oriana Hernandez brings six years of soccer experience, making her a solid addition to the City College soccer team, according to her coaches and peers. Hernandez took over for the Panthers as the team’s starting goalkeeper this season, bringing the athletic ability and confidence necessary for the position.

“She is very athletic and reacts very well using her arms and legs in dangerous situations,” says Panthers head coach Jang-Ha Oh. “She is not afraid of the ball or [of taking on] other players one on one.”

The 19-year-old Hernandez, who played soccer at Argonaut High School in Jackson, Calif., says she started taking soccer more seriously when she started playing for the Panthers.

“I feel a lot more pressure,” she says. “There’s a lot more drama on the field, a lot more swearing and smack talking.”

Though she is not used to such hostility from the opposing team, Hernandez says she tries to keep her confidence up and roll with the punches.

“I don’t get mad at what [the opponents] say. I just want to prove them wrong,” she says. “I just do what I have to do.”

By bonding in hotel rooms during away games and practicing with her teammates four days a week, Hernandez says she and her teammates have become close.

“Most of us get along really well,” she says. ”We joke around and try to bond as a team.”

Oh says he also appreciates Hernandez’s strong teamwork attributes.

“She gets along really well with all the players on and off the field,” says Oh. “She communicates really well with the other defenders during matches.”

She knows that her City College coaches have a lot of knowledge and experience to share with her. Though it feels like a lot of work sometimes Hernandez tries not to get overwhelmed.

“I just do what I have to do,” she says.

When she’s not on the field with her team, Hernandez enjoys spending time with her younger brother and sister. Born with Down syndrome, Hernandez’s 9-year-old sister shares the same love for the game. She also plays soccer competitively, and Hernandez loves to put her goalie gloves down and join the cheering section when her sister takes the field.

“We’re really close” Hernandez says, “I love spending time with my family. We play a lot of sports together.”

Hernandez says she plans on completing her associate’s degree in criminal justice.

“My dad is a correctional officer, and my mom works in the medical office at the same prison,” Hernandez says. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Though she’s not sure if she will go to the police academy after school or become a correctional officer like her dad, she says.