Sienna Higinbotham's Collegiate Success Paves Way for Bright Future in Soccer and Social Work

Sienna Higinbotham has been impressive on the pitch during her five years as a midfielder for the Portland State’s women’s soccer team.

In 2023, for example, the Viking team captain was First-Team All-Big Sky, a member of the 2023 Big Sky All-Tournament team and was Big Sky Player of the Week. She also scored four points in a single match, scored three game-winning goals, set the record for single-game postseason points (one goal and two assists) and recorded 39 shots and 25 shots on goal. She led the Vikings with seven goals and three assists, ranked second in the Big Sky in goals and third in points (17) and shots on goal (25).

But her most important accomplishment, in terms of its impact on her life, will probably be the 3.98 cumulative GPA she managed in getting her degree in social work and the 4.0 in her Masters in Social Work. However, that wasn’t particularly surprising since she graduated from West Albany High School with a 4-point, ranking number one in her class.

What is somewhat surprising is that her post-high school soccer and academic achievements were at Portland State University because she was a highly attractive four-sport high school athlete. In soccer, she was a three-time First Team All-League and three-time MVP, scoring 21 goals her senior season. She earned First Team All-State Honors her junior and senior years and was a state finalist for the Player of the Year in 2018.

She looked at the Viking program along with UC Davis, Seattle University, University of Montana, University of Portland and others. But her heart belonged to Oregon State, where she committed as a sophomore.

“I verbally committed to Oregon State which was a dream of mine as I grew up a long-time Beaver fan,” recalled Higinbotham. 

But as happens at the University level, a week before NLI signing day, the entire Beaver coaching staff was fired. Since it’s common for incoming coaching staffs to release all incoming recruits, she decided she needed to look at other options.

“That was a very stressful time for my family and me. I’d been set on playing at OSU for almost two years,” she said.

The PSU coaching staff was interested immediately.

“We’d seen Sienna play in multiple youth games, but she was committed to Oregon State. After a coaching change at OSU, we were notified of her availability and desire to pursue other options.” Between Higinbotham’s academic and soccer credentials “it was a no-brainer for us to jump on recruiting her. Her fierce work ethic, aggressiveness, drive and skills stood out above most people. Those components implied she possessed the fearless and grind type of mindset we were looking for to build a new direction for our program.”

Higinbotham heard back from a number of programs, “but after several weeks communicating with Portland State coaches Katie Burton and Maureen Whitney, meeting the team and touring the campus, my family and I made the decision that Portland State was the right fit for me and my future.”

She’d always wanted a college experience that was new and different in its environment, she said, “and PSU provided that. I fell in love with the unique campus, the welcoming team, the coaches and the overall PSU community.” She felt she could have an impact on the soccer program.

But, her academic goals also had a big impact on her decision.

“Portland State’s School of Social Work is one of the best in the region and it’s accredited by the Council on Social Work Education, social work’s governing body,” she said.

Once that decision was made, there was no turning back, even when the new OSU coach told recruits their scholarships were still secured. “I had to have the difficult conversation with their new coach that I was choosing to de-commit from OSU and play for Portland State. It was a very hard decision that took multiple weeks of deliberation, and I was very grateful to have an incredible support system of family and friends that helped me make the right call.” 

And, in hindsight, it was the right call.

“My time at Portland State has made a profound impact on my life and I’m incredibly grateful I had the opportunity to be a student-athlete here,” Higinbotham said.

Among her goals was for the Vikings to make the NCAA playoffs. While that didn’t happen, she lists the 2023 season as a highlight of her soccer time here. In the Big Sky tournament quarterfinals that year “we were down (to Idaho State) 1-0 at halftime, and came back to win the match 4-1 and move on to the semifinals (that was the game where she scored the goal and two assists).”

As she finishes her Master’s in the Social Work program this spring, she’s thinking of her career after soccer. First, though, she’d like to pursue professional soccer in Europe for a while.

“A dream of mine since I was young has been playing professional soccer overseas before I fully invest myself in my career as a social worker. While I’m exploring this possibility, I’ll continue to coach youth soccer at Westside Metros FC and pursue short-term experience in the field of social work,” she said.

Higinbotham said she chose social work because it reflects her academic interests of social justice, community service and leadership. The field “is change driven, values human potential and serves vulnerable populations.”

Her time at Portland State “has helped me prepare for the future by making invaluable connections, developing my skill set as a professional and learning to advocate for myself and others. I’m incredibly grateful to be a Vik.”

And Whitney thinks that preparation will serve her well.

“Sienna possesses transformational and servitude leadership skills. She has added a lot to our program during her five years here and has been instrumental in helping us move the program in the direction we want to go. We’ve been lucky to have her. After seeing what she did in her five years here, we’re excited to see what she does with her future. The possibilities are limitless.”