The Riverside Police Department is searching for the driver who crashed into a woman during a protest Saturday night. 

A large group of demonstrators was marching on University Avenue between Main and Orange streets at 9:10 p.m. when a speeding SUV drove around the march and struck a woman and drove away, according to police. 

Paramedics took the seriously injured woman to the hospital, where she remains in stable condition. Friends identified the victim as a 21-year-old Alexa Carrasco. The collision cracked her rib, punctured her lung, broke her leg and caused severe skull injuries, according to her friends. They said she is in a medically induced coma while preparing for her second surgery.

"Just seeing her like this is just terrible," friend Yecenia Ramirez said. "It's really hard to see her like this."

Carrasco was peacefully protesting with her relatives when the driver started provoking people in the crowd, according to her friends.

"It was just a 21-year-old girl protesting for their family, for human, basic rights," friend Minor Garcia said. 

Carrasco and her friends celebrated her 21st birthday last month. 

A video of the collision shows protesters approaching the black SUV. While most protesters stood outside the driver's side door, one of the demonstrators bumped into the left taillight, and another smashed it with an object. The suspect quickly turned into the crowd and ran over the woman. The driver sped away as protesters chased after the vehicle. 

Police did not say what happened before the video.