Defenders surround her, but she spots an opening.

The ball comes to her, and she dribbles towards the goal.

The goalkeeper rushes out to stop her shot, but the ball curves just around her outstretched hands.

Sophomore Ahava Babajanov has loved soccer since the first time she kicked a ball.

“I started playing soccer when I was 5 years old,” Babajanov said. ”I just went to a park, saw how fun soccer was [and] asked to play.”

Babajanov realized that not only did she enjoy soccer, she was good at it. As her passion became serious, she turned to her father for training.

“My father was a professional referee and he knew a lot about soccer, so he decided to put me into a small little league called Westbury,” Babajanov said. “I was playing very well for my age, so my dad started making me go to better levels, and that’s how I started.”

Ten years later, Babajanov’s father would give her the opportunity of a lifetime.

“My father was actually in touch with Israel’s coach, because they were friends, and I was invited. ” Babajanov said. After seeing Babajanov play, the coach offered her a spot on the team. “It was the best feeling because I worked so hard for it.”

Babajavov didn’t just choose to play for Israel because she got the chance — she was born in Tel Aviv and moved to Houston when she was three years old.

“I chose to play for Israel because that’s my ethnicity,” Babajanov said. “It’s the best opportunity you could ever ask for and I’ve worked on it since I was 12 years old.”

Babajanov’s hard work paid off, and she made Israel’s U16 team last year, giving her an opportunity to play in Croatia. While she was in Croatia, she built relationships that inspired her to return come back, this time in Albania.

“I got the chance to connect with [the Israeli girls] more, so I wouldn’t get nervous for Albania,” Babajanov said. “I was so happy. I don’t really talk a lot, and I was talking a lot in the games and everywhere and my coaches, they talked to me. They told me they were really proud [of my hard work].”

Once Babajanov got her nerves out of the way, she was able to connect with the players.

“Personally, outside of the games, I’ve connected with the players and got to talk to them more so I wouldn’t get nervous in a game,” Babajanov said. “They talk in Hebrew, and during the games that language barrier can get me nervous. I’m not fluent, and I just wanted to speak English because a lot of them understand English. They would say ‘We’re with you, we’re okay.’ That just got my nerves away.”

Their chemistry as a team would be tested when they played Greece, the most feared team in the bracket.

“I was so nervous, because those Greek girls were huge,” Babajanov said. “They were tall, and I was so small compared to them, but I knew that I was faster. I made this run diagonally where the ball came at me, [and] I was all alone. I knew I had to score. I dribbled, the goalie came out and I curled it right in.”

Even though Babajanov had scored, the stands were filled with uncertainty.

“Everybody thought I was offside,” Babajanov said.”My dad didn’t even cheer because he didn’t think the goal counted. [But] when the goal counted, I was super excited in that moment. Before this tournament, my dad believed I was going to score and I was so happy. I went with all the girls. We all hugged each other, and they were so proud.”

Even though her career in Europe brought success, playing in the states wouldn’t be the same for Babajanov.

“In Europe, they play more calmly,” Babajanov said. “In the U.S. it’s more just kicking a lot, [but] in Europe, everyone just keeps passing and making runs, and my teammates were all very talkative and competitive. In the U.S., it’s more aggressive and more challenging.”

Babajanov would have to adapt since her team was put in Group B, a division for smaller countries. If they wanted to make it to Group A, where better teams from bigger countries awaited, they would need to beat out Albania, Greece and Estonia.

“We were competing to move up to Group A to be qualified for the World Cup,” Babajanov said. “And so we tied our last game, and we didn’t get in because of that tie. If we won, we would have gotten in, but we didn’t.”

Even though they didn’t make it, that defeat inspired Babajanov to come back next year.

“It was really upsetting because we thought [we would win],” Babajanov said. “We all believed in it, and seeing how we can play well, and we believed in ourselves, but it was just unlucky. Everyone was really sad, but we will try our very hardest next year and we believe we’ll win.”

Babajanov may intend to return to Israel to play again, but her goals go much beyond that.

“I want to play D1 for college, and I’ve been emailing colleges a lot [since I will] know what colleges want me in June,” Babajanov said. “I want to play professionally all around Europe, not just Israel. I want to play in Italy, Barcelona, Chelsea, all those places. When I have my next tournament for Israel in a few months, I will get the chance for the World Cup.”