Creative Kabellis
November 01, 2006 | Women's Soccer
Kara Kabellis is passionate about many things. There is soccer of course. And the Italian national team, San Diego, her family, the school she plays for.
The senior midfielder's career is winding down at the University of Wisconsin. But Kabellis hopes it won't be the end of her soccer career. She has bigger aspirations.
The Lockport, Ill., native got an early dose of competition thanks to her older brother, Eric.
'My older brother played soccer so I would watch him and we would go play in the backyard,' Kabellis said. 'Then I decided I wanted to be on a real team my dad actually was my first coach when I was four years old.'
Kabellis, who was born in Chicago before moving out to San Diego for a few years early in her childhood, fell in love with the city right away. At age four, she suited up and played on her first organized soccer team.
'In San Diego we played with little mini-goals,' she said. 'It was great they had a league for four-year olds. I don't think too many other places did.'
Kabellis was fortunate enough to return to San Diego in after the school year ended last May to compete in the prestigious W-League. As a member of the Gauchos, Kabellis paired with future UW teammate Krista Liskevych, a California native who is in her freshmen year with the Badgers.
'It was so much fun to be back there,' Kabellis said. There's the beach of course, and all the girls were a lot of fun.
'With Krista, it was good to get to know her before-hand. I think she felt more comfortable and I know I felt more comfortable knowing her.'
Kabellis' playing style, whether it be on the fields in San Diego, Illinois or Wisconsin, is certainly her own. She credits her tactics to her club back when she played for the Windy City Pride in middle and high school.
'He really stressed the creative aspect of the game,' Kabellis said. 'He gave us freedom to create for ourselves and think for ourselves. I think that is what I take to the game.'
Kabellis also points out how much she enjoys watching professional and international soccer games on television.
'Those matches are just so technical and skillful,' she said. 'It's important to be comfortable on the ball.'
Speaking of international soccer, Kabellis and the women's soccer program got to enjoy a trip to Germany over the summer. It was a special trip for a number of reasons but perhaps the most fun was the players finding themselves right in the middle of the FIFA World Cup.
For Kabellis, she traded in her Cardinal and White for the royal blue of Italy. She cheered on the Italian men's team ' even when they played the U.S. ' and her family's native homeland eventually claimed the World Cup trophy.
'I have always rooted for Italy,' Kabellis said. 'My mom and her family are from Italy. My aunts and uncles are very into it so I have liked them since I was little. I guess I can appreciate their style of play. The Italian team is very structured and organized.'
Kabellis was given an honor of her own prior to the 2006 season when she and fellow senior Stefani Szczechowski were named co-captains. Kabellis, though, insists she leads on the field.
'Shiz is more of a vocal person. I pick my moments, but she is more talkative, ' Kabellis said. 'I try to just play and lead by example.'
Kabellis has been a part of many teams. But she says her days at Wisconsin will always be something she looks back on, for many reasons.
'I think there is always something special about representing a school, especially a school like Wisconsin,' she said. 'It's a different feeling, playing in college, than with any other team. Everything has more meaning. When you put on your jersey, you're not just going out and playing for yourself, or even for your team. You are playing for the whole school. When you see how passionate people are about the Badgers, it's a pretty big deal. I think that means a lot. '
Kabellis credits her family ' her brother, her dad, Rick and her mom, Connie, with having an enormous impact on her soccer career.
'My dad and brother have a lot to do with my play. My dad is very intense and competitive, and my brother is that way too. I would play with my brother outside every day. He pretty much kicked the crap out of me everyday. But it just made me mentally tough. Three years older. We would go at it everyday and I always came in crying because I lost. '
With her competitiveness coming from her dad and her brother, where do you think her mom fits in'
'My dad always accuses her of being un-athletic because she never played organized sports,' Kabellis said. 'But she is actually really feisty. She hates to lose. And if someone says she can't do something, she'll prove them wrong. That's my mom; all five feet of her.'
Kabellis will graduate in December 2007 with a degree in legal studies. She admits she would like to continue playing soccer and that if things don't work out for her in the U.S., she would like to give the Italian national team a shot.
'It would be dumb for me not to try,' she said.
