The Veltman sisters’ personalities confront each other at every turn, every event and in almost any situation. Despite being just three years apart from each other in age, it is as if Lauren Veltman and Britney Veltman came from totally polarizing worlds rather than growing up together under the same roof in Brampton, Ontario.
Throughout the volleyball offseason, the two are distant, disparate, and in dire pursuit of distinct experiences. But over the course of their school year, the two find themselves inseparable while they complement each others’ play on the court at TMU.
“I find when [me and Britney] are actually playing volleyball or in a practice setting, we almost seem like we wouldn’t be opposites,” mentioned Lauren. The fifth-year is playing in just her second season with her sister at TMU, the first coming in Britney’s rookie year in 2019.
“Having to be on the court with [Lauren] and play alongside her is super fun,” said Britney, who like many of the Bold’s veterans, is loving the reunion with her older sister.
Having only played two years of her competitive volleyball career with Lauren – both coming at TMU – Britney has spent much of her first semester soaking up every available moment with her sibling both on and off the court.
Britney constantly gets asked by teammates, coaches, and even from the players she plays against in the OUA about what it’s like to be part of a rare familial feat on the court, and like the questions, her answer remains definite and humble.
Spoken from someone who understands just how rare the situation is and how fortunate she is to make up the half of it.
“Being on the same court as [Lauren] is a full-circle moment. I never thought that would be an option or opportunity,” mentioned Britney. “Even as the captain, I still look up to her and still think she’s a great role model to look up to,” she added.
Lauren’s final year of eligibility helped pave the way for one final reunion between the two sisters and turn an opportunity that once appeared to be lost – as a result of the canceled pandemic season – into a reality that resembles a limitless fever dream.
Having spent the entirety of last season playing professional volleyball in Sweden, Lauren decided to make her return to TMU with the chance of playing alongside her sister sitting atop the horizon of her mind.
“If I really want to do this, I [needed] to do it now,” mentioned Lauren about the decision to return to her roots at TMU. “Once [Britney] graduated, I know a little part of me would have decided not to do it,” she added.
The Veltman sisters on court together, celebrating a point with teammates.
For TMU’s oldest Veltman sister, watching the daily growth of her younger sibling has been the highlight of her season so far and has made the decision to come back home all the more worth it.
The first time the two played alongside each other at TMU in 2019 never offered the same emotion in which the two share now. With Britney spending an extended period of time on the sidelines as a rookie and Lauren playing top minutes as a third-year, the two sisters were unable to strike a tangible connection with one another while playing the game they love.
Returning to the same spot four years later, Lauren picked up right where she left off as a leader of the team, while Britney – who before was a shy, non-vocal rookie – constantly finds herself screaming louder than ever to help lead her team to victory.
Britney’s transition, not just as a player, but a person, has been a surreal experience for Lauren to wrap her head around as she works her way deeper into her fifth and final OUA season.
“It’s honestly really special and insane to see how much she has grown as a player and a leader of her team. I think that is one of the great things that I really try to appreciate while I’m [at TMU] is seeing how much she’s been able to grow and progress as a leader,” said Lauren.
Now being together at the peak of their careers, the two take turns leading the Bold to greatness and use their own techniques to do so. Where Lauren instructs the rest of the team what to do, Britney fills the gaps by showing her teammates how to do it.
It’s this complementing style that has unified the sisters together on the court and has helped the rest of the team stay on track with, and position them, closer to their seasonal goals for 2023.
Still, Lauren and Britney’s personalities away from the court continue to bash against one another as the season rolls along. Where Lauren is picky with the food she enjoys, Britney is open to trying anything that comes her way.
Nothing poses more of an impasse than the differing music tastes between the two sisters, with long car rides often becoming the battlefield for butting heads. Britney’s taste in pop, rap and alternative shares a spot with Lauren’s interest in heavy metal and country on the car’s ‘no-play’ list.
The siblings resort to their unified throwback playlist to keep from going at one another’s throats and help direct their punches towards the roof of the car rather than across the driver’s seat.
Yet despite the ability to find a compromise, the two remain on separate ends of their own planets. The game of volleyball and now playing it alongside each other for just the second time in their lives is merely an unprecedented feat.
A harmonized resemblance of a lunar eclipse. A moment of rarity, where bright shines through dark and opposites attract closer to one another than ever before.
Side-by-side, Lauren and Britney briefly hover at the top of the world, complementing each other as they produce a feat rarely seen. Here, the Veltman sisters reside. Similar, yet different – and creating something beyond comparison to anything else.