Great distance will separate close sisters

Photo by Alan McFarland

SISTERS STEPHANIE AND JAIME MCFARLAND HAVE SPENT A LOT OF TIME ON FIFE FIELDS TOGETHER, BUT THE TWINS WILL GO TO DIFFERENT COLLEGES NEXT YEAR.

Stephanie and Jaime McFarland have developed a close bond playing sports together. In a few months they will be 2,000 miles apart as they embark on the next chapter in their academic and athletic pursuits.

The twin sisters are seniors at Fife High School (FHS). They have lived their entire lives in Fife. They will head off to college in the fall. Stephanie will stay close to home at Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland, while Jaime is heading to Nashville, Tenn. to attend Lipscomb University.

Both girls have played on select soccer teams for years. They started playing on youth soccer teams when they were 5 and also played T-ball and coach-pitch softball.

Jaime first went out for track in sixth grade. When Stephanie went out for cross-country in eighth grade Jaime, decided to do so as well.

When she got to high school she decided to participate in cross-country instead of soccer. “That was a hard decision to make,” Jaime said. “Soccer had been a big part of my life.”

The track coach at Lipscomb had previously been at Northwest University in Kirkland. He kept up on track athletes in this area through a website that lists results from track meets. He sent Jaime a letter expressing interest in having her on the team at Lipscomb. She was offered athletic and academic scholarships.

Stephanie played fastpitch on a select team and at FHS through her junior year. She also played soccer for the Trojans. This spring she decided to do track instead of fastpitch.

“I always wanted to try something different for my last year of school,” she remarked. After trying hurdles and other events, she found a niche throwing shot put and javelin. She qualified for the prestigious Pasco Invitational in javelin.

She is involved in power lifting at the competitive level on a club team and participates in meets four or five times a year. Stephanie has had to miss some meets due to time conflicts with her other athletic endeavors.

Her favorite class at FHS is anatomy and physiology. She loves physical education, particularly the strength and conditioning class.

She will study nursing at PLU and wants to pursue a career as an oncology nurse. She has enjoyed mission trips through her church. She noted PLU has many opportunities to study abroad and Stephanie hopes to do this in combination with some mission work. After graduating from college she may apply for a position in the Peace Corps or Doctors Without Borders.

She has spoken to the soccer and track coaches at PLU and may try to participate in one of those sports.

“That will depend on my academic responsibilities,” she said. “Nursing is a demanding major and that is my first priority.”

“We do not need to be next to each other all the time,” Stephanie remarked. “We are really supportive of each other. It will be different but I am excited for her.”

“It will be different not having her around every day,” Jaime said about her sister. “I am a little nervous. I do not have any family back there. But I am excited about new experiences and new faces.”

Jaime’s skills were on display at the FHS track on April 29 during a meet with Eatonville. In the 1,600 meters she got out to a big lead and won by a considerable margin. She went to state last year in the 1,600 and 100 meters and feels those are her two strongest events.

Their mother Sara McFarland feels that participating in sports instilled discipline in her daughters.

“They knew after school they would have practice for two hours, then would have to do homework when they got home,” she said. “It gave them a lot of structure in their lives and taught them time management.”

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