Women's Sports Imagines

Sam & Kristie Mewis - Surprise (pt. 1)

Background: Sam and Kristie Mewis have a younger sister, Josephine " or simply, Josie. 13 years younger than Sam, 14 years younger than Kristie. To no one's surprise, she's also quite the soccer star. She was recruited to play at Stanford her freshman year of high school and committed shortly after. She couldn't wait to play in the NWSL, but she'd have to. At the time, almost every player in the league played in college and it was expected of her to do the same. 

But, as time went on, the league became more accepting of teens playing in the league and they announced players were allowed to be drafted out of high school. She'd never loved school, and she really didn't want to go to college. With the help of her parents, she decided she was going to forego her college eligibility and enter the 2023 NWSL draft. Her parents were fine with it as long as she got her college degree online, which she begrudgingly agreed to. 

She didn't tell her sisters though. She wanted it to be a surprise. Gotham had the 1st pick overall, so it was clear she'd end up there, with her eldest sister. The coaches were excited to have her. Josie had never shared a field with her sisters before, given the large age gap. She and everyone else we're very excited to see how it was going to go. 

After being drafted to Gotham, she doesn't get the reaction she thought she would from her sisters. 

3rd POV

"With the 1st overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft, Gotham FC selects Josephine Mewis from Whitman-Hanson Regional High School. Angel City, you are now on the clock."

Josie stands up when her name is announced and walks towards the stage. There are a lot of whispers, which she expected. She'd declared for the draft at the very last minute so no fans or media knew. Sam and Kristie also were not aware, which is why they're texting each other and their parents trying to figure out what's going on.

"Hi. First off, I'd like to thank everyone at Gotham for deciding to choose me. It means a lot to be chosen at all and for it to be by Gotham, I'm just so grateful and excited for this opportunity. I also want to thank my club and youth national team coaches for all of the time invested in demanding growth from me over the years. And lastly, I'd like to thank my family. My parents have always supported me and done everything they can to help me become a better player. I'll thank my sisters because we all know that they're one of the main reasons I've been as successful as I have. I also apologize because I didn't tell them this was happening and Kristie just found out she's getting a new roommate! Thanks again and go Bats!"

She takes her scarf and goes off to take some pictures before being called up to the table to do an interview with all the analysts.

"First of all, congratulations! How does it feel to be the number 1 overall pick?" Jordan asks.

"Thank you. There's not a word that describes the exact feeling but right now I'm just very grateful and proud to get that first overall pick."

"You made the decision to declare for the draft very late, why is that?"

"There was an ongoing internal debate for the last year because there are pros and cons for each, but I finally just made the decision to go pro because I think it's where I have the chance to grow, improve, and hopefully, you know, get my senior call up sooner rather than later. Also, school is exhausting and the more I thought about it the more I remembered the academic standards of Stanford." Josie chuckles.

"You just said you felt proud and you've mentioned before that sometimes that can be a struggle for you. If you're comfortable, could you expand on that a little?"

"Of course. I don't think you're going to find an athlete that never doubts themselves. For the longest time, and still sometimes now, I've had issues with being proud of my game and satisfied with myself. As you can probably guess, some of that does come from who my sisters are. Kristie is a stand out player and she's very technical. She knows the game really well. Sam won U.S. Soccer Player of the Year. They're both phenomenal players. I don't want to be the only one who doesn't make it. I don't want to be the exception. And I think that's what caused me the most anguish; the reality of being that other Mewis sister that for some reason just isn't at that level."