Soccer player Coley Sidloski is participating in the annual #WePlayFor3 tournament in 2022. Credit: David Cleveland
If Coley Sidloski could describe her older sister, Ally, in one word, it would be “resilient.”
Every game, Ohio State women’s soccer player Coley Sidloski wears the number 3 on her back in honor of Ally Sidloski, who tragically passed away in May 2021. Three was the number passed down from sister to the other.
After a day of sailing with her friends, Ally Sidloski, 21, was hanging from a swimming platform attached to the back of the boat. Unknowingly, carbon monoxide vapors escaped from its exhaust. Ally Sidloski slipped into the water unconscious and drowned, according to the Cincinnati Investigator.
The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office confirmed that carbon monoxide poisoning contributed to the drowning, according to the article. Carbon monoxide poisoning is among the top five causes of annual boating-related deaths, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
In his memory, the Sidloski family launched the “We play for 3» to educate people about carbon monoxide in outdoor spaces, advocate for legislation, encourage others to live like Ally Sidloski lived, and provide scholarships to student-athletes who have embraced her story.
“What happened was a tragedy, and it was hard on my family, but what gives me peace and the peace of my family is allowing what happened to inspire other people to become more like Ally, like the great person she was, because of the foundation,” Coley Sidloski said.
Growing up in Strongsville, Ohio, with her mother, father and two older sisters, Coley Sidloski was exposed to soccer from a young age. Coley Sidloski’s father, David, played Division I soccer at Cleveland State for four years and coached his two older daughters, Katie and Ally, in travel soccer, as well as Coley Sidloski on his club team, the Cleveland FC, she said.
“It was 10 straight years of one of my kids playing varsity football at Strongsville High School,” Tracie Sidloski said.
Katie Sidloski went on to play at Indiana State, Ally Sidloski played at the University of Cincinnati, and Coley Sidloski is a forward for Ohio State.
The number 3 was Ally Sidloski’s number, but this number was a common theme in his college football career.
“She was injured most of those three years in Cincinnati. She had three knee surgeries in three years and only played three games,” Tracie Sidloski said.
Tracie Sidloski said having Ally Sidloski on the team was critical.
“She was more of an advocate for student-athletes,” Tracie Sidloski said. “She was a leader, a cheerleader for her team. She was like the mother hen when someone else was hurt.
After Ally Sidloski’s passing, her strong ties within the Cincinnati student-athlete community were evident. Tracie Sidloski said the hashtag “WePlayFor3” started trending and has only gotten stronger.
As support, the “We Play for 3” foundation has a scholarship at the University of Cincinnati.
“Each year the university selects a soccer player to receive our scholarship,” Tracie Sidloski said. “We present it to them during their annual “play for three” matches.”
The foundation also awards scholarships to Strongsville High School girls soccer players. During Coley Sidloski’s senior year at Strongsville, her good friend Libby Zacharias won the scholarship.
“I played soccer with her (Zacharias) for 15 years,” Coley Sidloski said. “So it’s cool to see someone who knows Ally personally and honors her name in that regard.”
Ally Sidloski is remembered by all who knew her as the quintessential people person, Coley Sidloski said.
“She had such a positive impact on the team, and not just on the team but in life,” Coley Sidloski said. “She had so many friends and just – she had so much love for everyone.”
Coley Sidloski said the No. 3 football jersey is now retired at Strongsville High School and Cincinnati.
To support the We Play For 3 Foundation or help advance the Sidloski family’s mission to raise awareness about carbon monoxide poisoning, visit their website. here.
