Kalli and Korbin Farmer

They walked the halls together throughout the Columbia school system and will do so again this fall at Millikin University as twins Korbin and Kalli Farmer take their respective athletic and academic talents to the next level.

Korbin and Kalli are different in many ways, but both display a level of competition with each other that only twins can probably understand.

“I think we’ve competed against each other in everything we could,” Kalli said during a joint interview at CHS following their signings to play college sports at Millikin. “Free throw percentage in basketball, which I won.”

Korbin countered by saying, “When we race each other, I usually win.”

Kalli will play softball at Millikin, while Korbin will play basketball. Both have been offered presidential scholarships to attend the university based on their high academic standings. Both are among the top tier academically in their class.

“It’s not just sports we’re competitive at. It’s academics, too,” Kalli said.

That competitive fire between twins has driven both to all-around success.

Korbin averaged 12 points and eight rebounds per game for the Eagles this past hoops season and scored more than 1,000 points in his CHS career.

Kalli is hitting .446 with 19 RBIs so far this spring as the starting catcher for the Eagles softball team. On the basketball court, she averaged 10 points per game and shot 75 percent from the free throw line.

“I know he definitely made me a better athlete, not just on the basketball court,” Kalli said. “He would definitely push me, because… me against 6-foot-7 here, you know?…>>>

Read this story in the April 20 issue of the Republic-Times. If you don’t already receive the paper, you can subscribe by calling 939-3814 or clicking here. Or you can pick up a copy at the R-T office at 205 W. Mill Street in Waterloo or at any of these other locations.