BOISE, Idaho — They've shared everything together for the last 18 years, from classes, to friends and hobbies.
"And now we're sharing your valedictorian speech," Borah High School twins Katherine and Joseph Neisen said on stage Tuesday night.
Whether it's class grades or sports competitions, the Neisen's have always been competitive.
"We would get so upset over that game," Katherine told KTVB as Joseph told Katherine, "Well, you would get upset."
"I would get upset because I was losing," Katherine said in return.
But with their final high school grades, only one of the twins came out on top.
Katherine graduated Valedictorian, with her brother Joseph right behind her as Salutatorian.
For years, their GPAs had been tied.
"I got a B in A.P. Language because I didn't turn in a few assignments," Joseph said about his first-semester junior year.
Katherine said it was a fight until the end because she almost got a B in A.P. Government during her last semester. If she did, they would have tied in grades and been Co-Valedictorians together.
The school made an exception by allowing both Neisens to speak at graduation. They wrote one speech together.
"It was a lot of us laughing and trying to find jokes we thought were funny," Katherine told KTVB.
Academic excellence is a trait that runs in the Neisen family. Their older brother, James, was Valedictorian when he graduated from Borah High School two years ago.
Their dad was also salutatorian at Sandpoint High School, they said.
"Valedictorian nepotism, I guess," Katherine said to KTVB.
The Neisen twins share one favorite hobby together - high school band. At Borah, their band instructor, Matt Clay, left a lasting impact on their lives.
"The perfect band director, in my opinion," Joseph said.
"Having the Neisens in the program has been great," Clay said. "They're really great flute players... I think they're hard on themselves, sometimes too hard, but it's okay, that's what makes them good."
The Neisens both became leaders of the program, and many of the other band members look up to them, Clay said.
Come this fall, the twins will each be in different states for college. The first time living apart from each other.
Katherine plans to pursue a career in music at the University of Denver. While Joseph will attend Howard University to pursue a career in computer science on full scholarship, they told KTVB.
"We're going to be like a six- or seven-hour plane ride apart, so it's going to be a big change," Katherine said.
She pleaded with her brother to get better at responding to texts before they headed to college.
"I'm really bad at it," Joseph said.
What they'll miss most is being physically so close. But, they look forward to visits and holiday breaks where they can be together again.
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