Eleven women clad in blue and white jerseys scattered across the field in San Diego, prepared to kick the new season off in style.
One player zipped past multiple San Diego State defenders, threatening to score several times, the number 10 stamped on her back. No, it wasn’t alumna Kodi Lavrusky, the forward that clinched a NCAA title for UCLA women’s soccer back in 2013.
It was sophomore Julia Hernandez, a forward with her own backstory.
In her first career match, the junior-college transfer didn’t seem nervous as she bobbed and weaved through the back line of Aztec defenders, displaying her offensive capability. But each time she managed to get a shot off, she was denied by the goalpost and crossbar.
Her poor luck didn’t faze her for long though. When junior defender/midfielder Gabby Matulich curved a cross into the box in the second half, the Spaniard didn’t let it get away, heading it into the right corner of the goal. A stampede of players rushed her from left and right, capturing the significance of the goal – the first of her UCLA career. It was more than just a goal to her.
“It was such a special moment,” Hernandez said. “To have been here for two weeks and everybody is already involving me and cares about what I’m doing – it was just such a good moment for me.”
[Related: UCLA shuts out SDSU in its season opener]
But growing up, Hernandez never thought about playing soccer, let alone at the collegiate level. Life was different in her hometown of Madrid.
While players like Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach are praised for their unbelievable skill on the pitch in the United States, women’s soccer in Spain is irrelevant. It has no support. It is almost nonexistent.
“In Spain, women’s soccer is not a thing at all,” Hernandez said. “People don’t watch it or see it as a sport for women. I didn’t even know any girls that played soccer.”
Though she hardly ever played as a child, Hernandez began participating in a boys’ league when she was 12. Though undersized and underestimated, the Spaniard wasn’t intimidated. But she needed to determine whether she wanted to pursue playing higher-level soccer in the future.
“I was at the point where I had to decide,” Hernandez said. “I was like, ‘Okay, I want to keep playing soccer. It’s the sport I love.’”
It was only the beginning of her long, prodigious soccer career.
The slender black-haired amateur quickly proceeded up the proverbial ladder of soccer squads. She spent time on a few women’s club teams – there are no college sports teams in Europe – before she was invited to join the state team and eventually the national team, one of the highest honors in Spanish soccer.
“Those were the players I was really impressed by,” Hernandez said. “To see the quality of those players, pair yourself with them and play with them was really special.”
Maintaining a weekly regimen was difficult. Women’s soccer facilities were severely limited, practice schedules were irregular and distance mattered. Hernandez spent hours traveling from her house to school and to practices that only lasted two hours in the dead of night. It wasn’t worth the effort.
With her future in mind, Hernandez had to make a decision. She could stay in Spain and play soccer or voyage elsewhere and explore her opportunities, as she accumulated countless options across the globe because of her academic and athletic resumes.
The United States garnered her interest. The educational opportunities were a critical factor, considering academics were Hernandez’s main priority. But the physical style of play that American soccer is known for, compared to the much more technical style in Spain, suited Hernandez’s skill set as well.
“In Spain, we never actually run. They don’t care that much about physical stuff,” Hernandez said. “Coming here and being able to evolve and involve my body in a way like lifting is a good thing because I’m not so technical like Spanish players, but I can be pretty fast and pretty strong.”
Despite multiple offers from Division I schools, Hernandez decided to cross the Atlantic and enroll at Eastern Florida State, a junior college known for its distinguished soccer program. Her choice, she said, was primarily affected by the academics of the schools recruiting her. Getting notice for her play on the pitch also factored into the decision.
“I didn’t have a chance to go to a really good (Division I) school, so I said I’d wait,” Hernandez said. “ Going to (Eastern Florida State), meeting people and getting attention from American coaches – it was a good option.”
UCLA coach Amanda Cromwell traveled to the National Junior College Athletic Association championship last fall to scout the junior collegiate talent at the tournament. While on the sidelines, Hernandez caught Cromwell’s eye. Though Hernandez was not on her initial list of prospects, the prestigious coach was impressed by the forward’s body control and killer offensive instinct.
“She had good ideas tactically,” Cromwell said. “She has really good skill and she scored goals in a variety of ways. You could tell the sophistication about her.”
Not long after the tournament, Eastern Florida State coach Jeff Carr received a message from Cromwell. She wanted Hernandez – an NJCAA All-American – in Westwood.
Carr knew it wasn’t his decision to make, but he didn’t hesitate to tell his star player what he thought.
“(Hernandez) told me, ‘Coach, if you don’t want me to go, I won’t go. I’ll honor my commitment to you’ – it being a two year school,” Carr said. “I told her you’d be crazy not to take it for the opportunity. It was a no-brainer for her to go to UCLA.”
When she first stepped on campus in Westwood in March, Hernandez was certain she made the right decision. Everything she desired – the academics, the soccer and especially the beach – was there, more than 5,800 miles west of her home city.
It was a perfect fit. And she was a perfect fit.
The creativity and flare Hernandez exhibits on offense complement the tactical, specialized style of play Cromwell prefers. Though an underclassman, her experience meshes well with her teammates’, who all sport similar resumes – most played for their national teams at one point in their career.
“She’s not afraid to tell you what you’re doing wrong or give you a little helpful criticism,” said redshirt freshman forward Chloe Castaneda. “Having her voice and presence on the field helps everyone else.”
[Related: Castaneda rockets the game-winner against Texas A&M]
While she’s known as a goal-scorer, Hernandez is also a comedian, keeping the mood light on and off the field, sometimes unintentionally.
“I think my accent is funny,” Hernandez said with a chuckle. “That’s why people think I’m funny.”
Her teammates and coach can attest to it. Whether she’s cracking wise at a regular practice or reciting Adele’s “Hello” in a mock music video, Hernandez knows how to put smiles on her teammates’ faces.
But the journey wasn’t easy. Overcoming the limitations in Spain, proving herself on the field and coming to the United States alone all for a chance to play soccer and receive a superb education – it took dedication.
But now Hernandez is at UCLA, and she’s here to stay.
“I feel lucky every single day and every single practice to get to play with these players and with this school,” Hernandez said. “I have other friends in Division I schools. But they are not at this school. I say I’m the luckiest of them all.”