MISSOULA — Ella and Ethan Stack might look like siblings, but to know they're twins might shock some.
Most noticeable is the height difference.
"His height really gets to me, he's way taller than me, so he looks a lot older," Ella said with a laugh.
But though the height goes to Ethan, the honor of being the oldest goes to Ella, who wins that by exactly two minutes. Because with the two of them, it's always been about competition.
"We played a seven-game series of one-on-one basketball and it got to Game 7 and my parents got involved, and there was blood and there was tears, and I think it was fourth or fifth grade," Ella recalled. "I ended up beating him and I'll always hold that over his head."
"I'd say she always has a little bit of like edge to her and she's pretty fiery, but I know growing up that we always would play basketball, football, volleyball in the yard," Ethan said. "We used to hang up a net and kind of go at it and just compete and make each other better, and that was always super fun."
In the unique world of twin siblings, Ella and Ethan stand out, as now seniors at Missoula Loyola Sacred Heart High School and as a pair of talented athletes.
For Ella, it's on the soccer pitch, but most notably in the pool as a multi-time state champion and 12-time all-state performer. She'll compete at NCAA Division II Colorado Mesa next year in swimming.
She's won individual Class AA titles in the 200 freestyle in 2023 and 2024 — as Loyola co-ops with Big Sky and Frenchtown — and was also a member of a state championship 400 freestyle team in 2023. This season she's battled a shoulder injury but recently wrapped up her high school career at state swimming.
"I've just been super lucky to have her," Ethan said. "Not everybody you know has a twin sister who's equally talented, super well-known as a swimmer, as a person. She was homecoming queen. It's just super cool to have a person in my life that I can turn to who I’ve also grown up with and had such a solid relationship with and she pushed me to get better. I push her to be better and we just know how good we can be and I think that helps us."
"I love it. I love being able to watch him at any sport. I would say I'm probably one of his biggest supporters," Ella said. "I'm always screaming in the student section and going crazy, and it's really fun to watch him succeed just because I see how much he cares when he's at home and at practice and in games, and how much time and effort he puts into it. And so it's really cool to see him succeed and grow. And I get to be able to watch it."
For Ethan, he's a three-sport athlete, but the hardwood is where he's most well-known.
He's been a key cog in Loyola's bid for a Class B three-peat with the state tournament in Missoula in a couple of weeks, and he'll also play college ball at Montana Tech next year. He's been a major part of Loyola's first two basketball titles, and Ethan also suited up for the Rams as a multi-year starter in football and is currently the reigning Class B triple jump champion in track and field.
"We were a big sports family and still are," Ella said. "They've also been great motivators, and I think it's just been something me and Ethan really enjoy doing. So, it's always just been a thing around our house."
Through growing up and finding continued success in sports, they've had each other to lean on and support.
"I'm super proud of it just because I've seen how far she's come and how hard she's worked for it and fought through adversity with her shoulder and whatnot," Ethan said. "And (she) still made the best of her situation and how she still has opportunities to make things happen in college."
"It's been so fun to grow up with like a built-in best friend," Ella added. "There's really nothing like being a twin, whether you're best friends or worst enemies. It's just the way it is and we've been super blessed to be able to get along really well."
So the two will go their separate ways next fall, but the competitive nature remains, as does pride in watching and experiencing what their sibling has accomplished.
"She kind of ducks from the smoke a little bit sometimes, which is fair," Ethan laughed. "Wouldn't want to jump in the pool with her either, but I feel like a long time ago in like a hotel pool, I beat her in a couple laps back and forth. But don't quote me on that."
"Sometimes I forget that we’re twins or even siblings," Ella said. "I'm like, whoa, that's my brother, but it's super special to have that. And I'm just lucky that even though we are pretty different that we're able to kind of mesh together and still be each other's best friends."
