Sisters Jessica and Staci Proudfoot will be the first to tell you they're not very much alike.

But they both love soccer.

Jessica, a college sophomore at Kentucky Christian University, was just named player of the year in the Mideast division of the National Christian College Athletic Association and is a former all-state player in West Virginia.

Her little sister, Staci, is a junior at Hurricane High School, where Redskin girls' soccer team just finished second in the state tournament - the best finish in the school's history.

Jessica also played for Hurricane's soccer team, and the two even played on the team together for one year when Staci was a freshman and Jessica was a senior.

But that doesn't mean they have the same style of playing.

"She's more a laid-back conservative player," Staci said. "She knows what she's going to do before she even gets it. Usually the ball is only on her foot for like a second."

That's not how Staci plays, though.

"She's more of a run through-the-ball, run-through-anybody, type of player," Jessica said. "Her aggressiveness is something that I've tried to match up to."

But their differences have helped them learn from each other.

As an older sister and more experienced player, Jessica said she has tried to teach Staci over the years.

"Sometimes I get frustrated, and I think she doesn't listen," Jessica said. "I used to help her with her skills a lot when she was younger. I would teach her the techniques."

But Jessica admits she's got some things to learn from Staci, too.

"If I had her drive and aggressiveness, it would help a lot." Jessica said.

But Jessica says neither style is better than the other.

"I think that really it's a combination of both," Jessica said. "You have to be able to be aggressive and push through the ball, and at the same time you have to know when you need to be more of a finesse player."

Jessica started playing soccer when she was about 4 years old, playing in a YMCA program. She moved on to a recreational league, and then to school ball in sixth grade.

In seventh and eighth grades, Jessica played travel soccer, then she switched back to school ball in high school.

"We made it to Regionals a couple times, and then my senior year we didn't," Jessica said.

Staci also started playing when she was very young, but she wasn't as intent on playing as her sister was.

"I started playing when I was about 4, but I kind of took a few years off. I basically spent my Colt League days running around playing in the dirt."

But seeing her sister play motivated her to get back into it.

"She used to go to all my tournaments and stuff, and that was about the age that she started getting into it," Jessica said. "She kind of wanted to be like me, I guess. She's kind of told me that a few times."

So Staci started again in a recreation league, and then she started playing school ball in high school.

That year, she was on her sister's team for the first and only time.

"It was different," Jessica said. "I'd never played on my sister's team before. I got kind of frustrated with her if she didn't do something I wanted her to do."

"We sometimes would get into fights during practices because sisters do," Staci said. "We only got to play on the same field for like two games. One was senior night. She spent the whole game trying to get the ball to me."

Jessica said that teaching and mentoring Staci was her job  - "As her sister and senior."

Both girls agree the experience was good for them.

"It kind of bonded us more," Jessica said. "I was with her all the time at school and then at soccer. Your soccer team is like your second family. There's a lot of things about her that I didn't know, like how aggressive she is," Jessica said.

And for then-freshman Staci, getting to play with her sister was an opportunity.

"I've always looked up to her because she is a really amazing player," Staci said. "I've learned a lot just watching her play."

And Jessica says that Staci really has learned a lot.

"I think she has become a much better player," Jessica said. "Her skills have improved so much."

But Jessica says Staci has also grown up.

"I think she's become more social since she was a freshman," Jessica said. "She's gotten along so well with the seniors and freshman and the whole team's just bonded. She's made a very good contribution to the team."

Now that Jessica is away at college, the two girls keep in touch through soccer.

Staci has traveled to see most of Jessica's college games, and Jessica has been able to come home to see Staci play in some critical games for Hurricane, including their regional title game.

Staci hasn't decided if she wants to play soccer in college yet like her sister. She's considering studying architecture, which would likely take her to a larger, NCAA-Division I school where it would be harder to make the team.

"We're trying to talk her into coming down to KCU," said Jessica, who is studying nursing at the small, private school.

One thing is certain: no matter what Staci does in college, the aptly named Proudfoot sisters will always share a love of soccer.