Junior midfielder Jilly Shimkin and her sister Chloe have never shared the field as teammates. However, with Jilly returning for her senior year and Chloe announcing her commitment to Texas soccer, the sisters finally have the chance they’ve been waiting for.
“We’ve never played together before,” Chloe said. “Having the opportunity in such a great environment, it’s just something you can’t pass up.”
The pair have pursued their soccer dreams at their respective levels and institutions. Jilly started her collegiate career at Penn State, transferring to Texas after her freshman season, while Chloe has been playing in Florida for the International Management Group Academy. However, their journey had humble beginnings at a field across the street from their home in Rockville Centre, New York, where they originally grew up.
“I remember training across the street at the school that we lived by and those sessions were so fun,” Jilly said about their earliest memories in the sport. “Those are the times that I would always cherish the most because they’re so little, but also meaningful.”
While the memories may only be a glimpse of the past, the siblings’ training sessions allowed the duo to grow as players, and with their competitive nature, bragging rights are always on the line.
“I think everything is for bragging rights,” Jilly said. “We did one-on-ones, and we fought the entire time. We will get chippy, we will get into each other, and sometimes it has to be broken up, but we always manage to be fine after.”
The Shimkin sisters’ relationship is something they attribute to their success and their childhood, as growing up they often trained together and ultimately shared the same goals.
“It was really fun being able to chase the same dream and pursue the same things. Definitely, the competitive piece of pushing each other was a factor in helping us to keep going in that motivation,” Jilly said. “I also think that the competitiveness and even the arguing, as much as our parents probably couldn’t stand it, really shaped us as people.”
Starting all 24 games in midfield for the Longhorns, Jilly was able to score four goals and earn 12 assists, racking up 20 points. Jilly ranked third on the team for these stats. On their way to a Big 12 Tournament win, Jilly assisted in their quarter-final win against West Virginia, winning 3-1.
While the Longhorns will look to have two Shimkins on the field next year, they will be anything but the same when it comes to game day.
“Jilly is more of a midfielder, and I’m more an outside forward or outside back,” Chloe said. Jilly’s very technical and very pretty on the ball. I drive at people and am a little more aggressive.”
Their differences don’t fall short off the field, as their playstyles even match their personality. A more composed Jilly said she believes that she is more introverted than her extroverted and hard-tackling sister.
“That’s why me and Jilly are so close, because we are not the same,” Chloe said. “I think that the whole opposites attract kind of thing comes into play.”
Between their similar competitive levels and their different personalities on and off the field, the Shimkin sisters are more than ready for the moment they step on the Forty Acres together.
“It’s such a cool opportunity. … I’m really proud to say that we’re going to be able to play together at such a high level,” Chloe said. “I think that we could really do some damage out on the field.”
