Liz Argenziano started playing soccer before she started kindergarten — a norm in her sports-loving family. Her older brother and cousin had done the same, taking an interest in sports as early as 3 years old.
In New Jersey, Liz and her brother, Joe Argenziano, lived on the same street as their cousin, Nick Argenziano, for most of their lives. Before they were called in for dinner, Liz would often shoot hoops in the driveway and Joe would play baseball in the backyard. Five houses down, Nick was practicing with a plastic bat and Wiffle ball during the last minutes of daylight. They’d meet halfway and turn their shared street into a playground.
“I think I’ve seen him every day of my life,” Joe said. “Everything he’s done, I’ve done.”
Joe spent nearly as much time with his cousin as he did with his siblings — if not more. He and Nick were in the same grade in the same school from elementary to high school, and were basketball and baseball teammates from T-ball to varsity teams.
Being four years younger, Liz always began new chapters of her life as her big brother and cousin finished them. She started high school in fall 2018, while Nick and Joe embarked on their senior year. Liz joined the high school soccer team, while Nick and Joe had played on the basketball and baseball teams for the previous three years.
As always, the Argenziano family made sure to split time between watching their kids’ games. When game schedules eventually conflicted, Liz and Joe’s mom would be stationed on the sidelines of the soccer field while their dad was seated in the baseball stadium — except when travel ball was in season, and he was in the dugout coaching his son and nephew.
During her first year of high school, Liz and her team battled their way to the state finals. They fell short of a victory, yet she still recalls the game as a fond memory. Her whole family was in attendance — even her twin brother, whom she said was never the biggest fan of soccer.
Nick and Joe played their final high school basketball and baseball seasons together that year, but it wouldn’t be the end of their run as teammates. By the time the fall came to a close, both Argenziano boys committed to play baseball at NYU the following year.
Being teammates was far from a new concept to them, but it was different to see each other decked out in matching NYU uniforms, ready to play their first game of college ball. Before the pandemic hit New York City, Liz would frequently come into the city from New Jersey to visit her brother and cousin during their freshman years. In the winter of 2021, Liz committed to play soccer for NYU.
“Being here so often and seeing them made me love the city even more,” Liz said. “Once I got that offer, that was just a major bonus. They’re here too, in case I need anything.”
Games had always been a family affair, and that didn’t change when the kids started college. Last year, when spectators were allowed to attend games, Nick and Joe’s parents made the trek to Coney Island for nearly every home game. They have done the same for Liz, and her mom even accompanied her to Pittsburgh for her first collegiate soccer travel weekend. That’s where some of the Argenziano kids’ best memories have come from — playing sports while their family fills the stands, cheering them on.
Joe, Liz and Nick are the only Argenzianos currently at NYU, but their other college-aged siblings aren’t far. Liz’s twin plays baseball uptown at Columbia University and Nick’s sister is attending Fordham University — they’re “populating the city,” as Nick puts it.
“It’s awesome that we’re all here together, and we’re all athletes too, for the most part,” Nick said. “We’re all students and athletes at the same college or in the same city.”
Their busy schedules keep them from seeing each other more than once a week or so, but they’ll often cross paths in between classes and practice — a familiar face in a city of eight million.
Nick and Joe will graduate from the College of Arts & Science this spring, but Liz won’t be the lone Argenziano on campus next year. Nick’s younger brother will be attending NYU to play baseball next year.
“We grew up as a family coming into the city,” Joe said. “It’s almost fitting that we came here together and we’re still here together.”
