by Hayley McQuade
The Ames sisters find themselves on opposite sides of the soccer field now that all three are competing for WHAC-member universities.
Bella Ames, a freshman planning to major in business or accounting, plays and serves as a captain for Rochester University’s women’s soccer team.
Oldest sister, Molly, is a senior who plays at Indiana Tech University. Middle sister, Gabby, is a junior who competes for Madonna University.
The sisters’ love for soccer began at early ages and continued as they moved into travel soccer, where they became used to practicing everyday and the constant traveling.
Bella and her two older sisters all played at Romeo High School. Molly and Gabby played together for a year on the varsity squad, and Bella competed with Gabby during Gabby’s last year on varsity.
Bella said when the college sport recruitment process began, the sisters knew they could play together for one university or split up. Both Molly’s coach at Indiana Tech and Gabby's coach at Madonna wanted all three of the sisters to play for their programs, but the sisters had other plans.
“I seriously would not have done it any other way,” Bella said. “Seeing my sisters after games is so much fun. There are times on the field where we start talking smack to one another or physically start throwing arms—because we are sisters, we can.”
Bella remembers playing against Molly in the fall, “We instantly started aggressively competing against each other and we joked around a lot to get into each other’s heads. There is nothing like getting to be so competitive against someone on the other team and it being totally O.K. to do so.”
The sibling rivalry has also spread to the three teams. Bella said, “Our teams know that we are related, so we all have a great time playing each other.”
Molly said the sister rivalry is “always something to look forward to.”
Choosing which university to attend and soccer team to compete for was overwhelming for Bella, but she said having her sisters by her side made it easier because the decisions she faced had already been experienced by her sisters.
“Whenever I get overwhelmed or just tired of practice everyday, I call them and they remind me that we are all in this together. It just makes me feel a lot better knowing that they feel the same way as I do,” Bella said.
Already serving as a captain in only her first year, Bella said she is really enjoying competing for RU. “I love playing on this team! These girls help motivate me every day to show up and stand out. My team here is the most fun and filled with the best girls.”
The soccer sisters continue to support each other in all that they do — especially playing soccer. “Playing a sport is a lot of commitment and I am just happy we all get to experience it together, not only at the collegiate level but ever since we were little,” Bella said.
