From soccer and basketball, to swimming and cross country, sibling duos are showing up in State High athletics this year. But with great genetics comes great responsibility, and there are evident advantages and disadvantages to having a family member on the team.
Sophomores Adam and Natalie Huggins both swim for State High, and have been swimming together for a few years. Their older siblings, Maggie and Sam Huggins, also swam for the team, as well as the same club team, and all experienced success.
Natalie Huggins shared her thoughts on growing up in a “swim family.” “I think there may have been pressure to join swimming, but after that, I personally really enjoy the sport, and there was never any pressure to keep swimming,” Natalie Huggins said. “It’s something we can all bond over and it makes us closer as a family.”
Teammates of the same sport are obviously close, and same with siblings. But when athletes play with someone who is both, it can create a special bond, whether that’s beneficial or harmful.
Sophomore Charlotte Bathgate and sister junior Madeline Bathgate both play for State High girls soccer, and have played together almost their entire lives. Their sister, Ava Bathgate, graduated last year, and the three of them all were all on the team during the 2024-25 school year.
Madeline Bathgate described her and Charlotte’s relationship. “We’re pretty close. We talk to each other about certain things, and we just have a sibling bond. Then on the field, it’s more of a teammate bond, but you can definitely feel this … connection on the field, because it’s different than your teammates,” Madeline Bathgate said. “I know how Charlotte plays. I think it’s more a chemistry, even if I’m yelling at her on the field.”
Charlotte Bathgate agreed on the advantages, joking about the disadvantages of having a sibling on the team. “The biggest disadvantage is the coach always asking me where she is and getting on me if she’s not there,” Charlotte Bathgate said.
Natalie Huggins emphasized a similar experience to Charlotte Bathgate. “One of the biggest advantages is that you always have someone that’s going to push you and make you a better person in and out of the pool. Another advantage is you always have someone to talk to about anything you’re struggling with or anything you’re excited about in the sport,” Natalie Huggins said.
Having an older sibling on the team also gives younger siblings a mentor to look up to. Natalie Huggins shared the most valuable lesson she learned from watching her older brother, Sam Huggins, a current Division I swimmer at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, swim.
“One thing I took from Sam’s swimming is whenever he had a bad day or a bad swim, he never let it get to him. He was really good at just forgetting that it happened, like learning from his mistakes, but also just moving on,” Natalie Huggins said. “And I think developing that skill in my own swimming has really helped me to become a stronger swimmer, physically and mentally.”
Having a mentor can be a benefit, but it can also create pressure on the younger athlete. Charlotte Bathgate felt this pressure when playing with her eldest sister, Ava. “It was fun [playing with her], but since she was so good, she would stress me out.” Although she felt this, Charlotte Bathgate did learn valuable lessons from both her older sisters.
“Just try to not get in [your] head about it,” Charlotte Bathgate said. “It’s just a game at the end of the day.”
