As the hot, humid Nicaragua climate weighs on Esperanza’s skin, the Westridge junior moves the soccer ball along the thick grass towards the goal. While two opposing players approach her, Esperanza speeds past and notices her teammate who is unmarked. As a defender approaches Esperanza from behind, she swiftly passes the ball to her teammate, who takes a second to launch the ball past the flying goalie. After the goal, Esperanza and her team run to celebrate together. This memory is just one of the countless unforgettable experiences Esperanza had while playing for the U-17 National Women’s Soccer Team of Nicaragua.

From late October to mid-November of this year, Esperanza O. ’26 spent her time in Nicaragua, trying out for their U-17 National Women’s Soccer Team. Her first four days in the Central American country were defined by intense tryouts in rain and sunshine, but her hard work paid off as she was eventually selected to play for the team. 

Esperanza has been playing soccer for 11 years. While watching the World Cup at a young age, she rarely thought about the possibility of playing for a national team. “I didn’t even imagine ever going on a national team ever. I didn’t even think that was even possible for me.” She continued, “I always loved soccer and it was always a big part of my life…[Getting selected for the team] was a huge deal for me.”

This opportunity first became a real possibility at a UCLA Women’s soccer game in 2022 where Esperanza’s mom discovered UCLA player Jackie Guilday was playing for the National Nicaragua Women’s Soccer Team. Seeing a player with the same background as Esperanza sparked her curiosity to begin the process of being recruited for a national team. Though reaching out to the team’s coach proved difficult for Esperanza and her family, they found his email address and sent clips of her playing. After Nicaraguan coach Doriba Bueno reviewed the highlight reel, he invited Esperanza to try out for the team a couple of months later.

Esperanza and her family didn’t pass up on this opportunity and quickly booked flights to fly out to Nicaragua. Her sister, freshman Kasandra O-C., reflected on her reaction when she found out her sister was invited. “I was so proud of her because I know she worked really hard to get there, and it was a big [accomplishment]…Obviously, I missed her, but I was happy for her,” Kasandra said.

At first, Esperanza believed she had already been selected for the team but soon realized there were selective tryouts. The idea of being sent back home worried Esperanza. “My family had done so much for this moment, and they’d sacrificed so much. My dad wasn’t gonna work…it was just a lot and it was so much for both of us. I was also missing so much school,” she said. 

While the selective tryouts worried Esperanza, she kept saying to herself, “I have to make this.” On the first day of tryouts, the humid climate in Nicaragua made it difficult for Esperanza to play to her full abilities. While this initially held her back, Esperanza adjusted to the different climate and grew more comfortable playing and showing her talent in the following tryout days. Her skill was soon recognized as she received an email on November 1 informing her that she was one of the 20 that made the team out of the 28 girls who had tried out.

Once the team was configured, they immediately jumped into training and preparation for games. At first, Esperanza lived with her aunt, but Esperanza and her team relocated to the town Diriamba where they practiced as a team at a sports practice location, La Escuela de Talentos. For an entire week, Esperanza’s schedule consisted of an early wake up time at 5:30 a.m., followed by a two-hour practice, breakfast, two-hour practice, lunch, and time to reflect as a team. Through the preparation of intense practices, Esperanza also played in national games against other Latin American national teams. While Esperanza and her dad were the only two from her family to travel to Nicaragua, Esperanza’s family got to support her through online streamed games. Her sister Kasandra said, “It felt like an out-of-body experience when I saw her on the screen…[My family] watched it on the couch together, and my mom was crying…It was such a moving time to see my sister reach one of her biggest goals for soccer.”

While Esperanza balanced intense practice times and games against other national teams, she found a community within her team. The majority of Esperanza’s team lived in Nicaragua, but a select few came from other countries. Although Esperanza is nearly fluent in Spanish, the communication barrier between English and Spanish became difficult for her because of the different talking variations from Nicaraguan teenage girls. For this reason, Esperanza became especially close to fellow teammates who also traveled from the United States. As well as being half Nicaraguan, Esperanza said, “[Playing for the team] was just so personal…and it was a community I’d never been around. I’ve never been around that many Nicaraguans in my entire life. I just didn’t really feel connected to [the Nicaraguan] community I guess, and I feel like through [this team], it was like a new beginning.” 

Through getting closer to her culture while playing a sport, Esperanza also rediscovered her love for soccer. Esperanza said playing for the team connected her to the Nicaraguan community. “It honestly really made me love soccer even more. I feel like there was a point in my life where I kind of lost my love for soccer…I didn’t really want to do it and I feel like I was doing it for other people, and I feel like I lost the love within myself and it was showing in my playing, and I just got all in my head,” she said.

As the Westridge varsity soccer season has begun, for the first time ever, Esperanza and her sister are playing on the same soccer team. Similar to many siblings at Westridge who play on the same sports team, Kasandra has been inspired by her sister’s accomplishments and improvements. “Having a sister who has been able to accomplish so many things really inspires me as a person…Even if it’s like this crazy opportunity to go to this unknown place, you should do it, I should do it…She’s really inspired me to go beyond,” she said.

Esperanza encourages others to continue to strive for their goals even if they initially seem unattainable. She said, “Keep pushing, keep going, you never know what’s gonna happen.”