On Friday night at Foote Field, sisters Kate and Anna Dunn put on their soccer jerseys and went out on the pitch for the very first time representing the University of Alberta Pandas together.

It’s not the first time they’ve been teammates. They played together every other year growing up — but this moment was truly special.

The Dunns are part of a family with deep passion for soccer and a love for the U of A and its varsity athletics teams.

There may not be a family more connected within the U of A than the Dunn family.

Their family tree is deeply rooted in evergreen and gold.

Their father John was the captain of the Bears soccer team in the late ’80s and is a sports psychology professor at the U of A. Their grandfather Bob (Causgrove) played both football and hockey for the Bears in the late 1940s and ’50s. Their uncle Jim (Causgrove) played hockey under Clare Drake from 1977-1979 and their great aunt June (Causgrove) was the captain of the Pandas basketball team in the early 1940s.

Their mother Janice didn’t play any varsity sports, but she’s a graduate of the U of A and is a professor and associate dean of undergraduate programs in the physical education and recreation department at the university.

That’s a lot of family history tied to one university.

“We grew up around the university. We got to experience that culture and I just fell in love with it. I was going there whether or not I was playing soccer — that was just a bonus for me,” said Kate, who’s in her third year with the Pandas.

“The U of A has always been a big part of our family. I remember in elementary school, teachers would ask who wants to go to which high school, but I always dreamed of going to the U of A.”

Having grown up around the U of A campus with both their parents’ careers firmly planted there, it was pretty easy for the girls to feel that family connection to the U of A.

“You don’t really recognize how much you have them around here, but the U of A has become a second home to them growing up,” said Janice.

“I’m so proud of what they’ve achieved both in the classroom and how far they’ve come with soccer.“

With so many ties to the U of A and their varsity sports programs, family dinners and get-togethers must be pretty interesting.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see a soccer game break out, or old stories rehashed.

“My favourite story he always tells is they were playing the U of C in an alumni game, and my mom was sitting in the stands. All the U of C fans were yelling about how they hate that John Dunn and how much of a pest he is. I think it’s his Scottish blood,” said Anna.

“He’s still got the moves. It’s still tough to beat him sometimes. He can’t run as fast, but he’s still very tricky,” said Kate.

In Friday night’s 2-0 win over Manitoba, both John and Janice were in the crowd.

They’ve likely watched hundreds of their daughter’s games, and you could sense some nerves, but that didn’t stop either of them shouting out words of encouragement.

You could clearly see just how proud they are of Kate and Anna.

This moment didn’t bring back memories for John and his playing days, it was all about his girls.

“Watching the girls now, it brings back so many memories of me coaching them. I spent hours and hours with the kids watching them play and develop ... and look where they’ve made it,” said John.

“For me, this is extremely gratifying. I’ve coached both the girls since they were five years old and when I first started, I had zero desire to see them move on to the next level. It was all about the fun experience, but slowly you started to see their talent show through.

“This is a parent’s dream come true to see your kids do something the family values in terms of their education and sports dreams.”

Both Kate and Anna took different routes to make it on to the Pandas team. Their playing styles are different, but they both have that love and passion for soccer.

The two sisters will always have that sibling rivalry, but no matter what, they’ve always been each other’s biggest support systems — especially when they play together.

“We push each other to be at our best, but we still compete hard against one another,” said Anna.

“Having my sister on the team with me is so special. We play for each other ... we support each other and I am always trying to make her proud.”

@hillsyjay

hillsyjay@gmail.com