Female Athlete of the Week
Alexa Hermanns
Sport: Soccer
School: Midland Park
Class: Senior. Age: 17
Accomplishment: Alexa scored seven goals in wins over Hawthorne Christian and Harrison to start the season, scoring all five goals in the latter game and also setting up the game-winning goal in the opening game
Alexa Hermanns has long aimed to do track and field in college. She’s one of the top small-school sprinters and long jumpers in Bergen County and has her eyes set to join former teammates Kelly Ballen and Stephania Granados at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
But even with winter and spring track, that leaves nearly half the academic year with nothing to do. So Hermanns has also stuck with the sport she’s done the longest and still enjoys: Soccer.
“I wouldn’t know what to do with something the first half of the school year if I didn’t play,” she said. “I love my team and playing with them and it’s such a beautiful sport.”
Hall of Fame Midland Park soccer coach Jeff Yearing is happy she has stayed around. As a result, Hermanns might find her athletic future in flux.
Hermanns opened the soccer season with two goals and an assist on the go-ahead goal in a 5-1 win over Hawthorne Christian Academy, then scored all five Panther goals in a thrilling 5-4 win over Harrison. The seven goals in two games gave the four-year starter a career season high before the first week was over.
“I never did anything like that in a game before,” said Hermanns, who started playing in local recreation camps around Midland Park when she was in first grade.
Ironically, for someone who loves to run, Hermanns played center midfield for most of her junior career before switching to striker when she entered high school.
“Center midfield was too much running for me,” she said with a laugh.
But she’s found a perfect role as the No. 9 in Yearing’s offense this year, playing alongside junior Samantha Weston, and her early-season heroics have come as a result of that role.
“Her maturity and understanding of the game, along with her game-breaking speed has made her more adept at finishing this year,” Yearing said. “She’s worked really hard on all of her skills and it shows up in her results.”
“I’m so grateful to have him as my coach,” Hermanns said. “He has so much knowledge of the game and knows so many playing styles. When he got sick and had to miss some games and practices last year while he was undergoing chemo, he was still always there for us, it puts a lot into perspective.”
Hermanns is still looking forward to track season as well.
“Some of my best friends are girls I met from other schools and have competed against many times,” she said. “When we’re competing, I’m very competitive and want to beat them and they want to beat me, but afterwards we are still friends. I love the social aspect of track and field.”
While Hermanns’ career goal is to become a clinical psychologist, she also takes advanced placement studio art at Midland Park. “I love painting and drawing things from nature, like lilles and plants and flowers. It gives me something else to focus on and it’s a way for me to relax.”
