The backcourt combination of Laura Donovan and Emma Weltz has been a steady presence for Queen's Women's Basketball in recent years. Since joining the Gaels ahead of the 2018-19 season, Weltz has played in 61 regular season games and five playoff games at the point guard position, while Donovan has played in 58 regular season games and five playoff contests on the wing.
 
The two formed a strong duo on the court even before their time playing for the Tricolour.
 
Donovan and Weltz first met in London, Ont. playing for Southwest Academy, a prep basketball program that plays in the Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association (OSBA), as well as NCAA USA scholastic events. They joined the program at the same time and quickly bonded.
 
"I knew some of the other girls on the team, just from London. And then when I met Emma, I think the first couple of days of practice we clicked really well as friends on and off the court," Donovan told GoGaelsGo.com. "We played well together. And we just became really good friends. "We'd go for dinner a lot, we both have a love of going out for dinner. And that's followed us through university."
 
"I knew one girl going in, from Sudbury," added Weltz. "But other than that, I really didn't know anyone going in. And I would say Laura, and all the other girls, made the transition so smooth and made me feel really comfortable. And these friendships are something we've carried throughout university too."


 
Donovan and Weltz both arrived at Southwest looking to further their basketball careers. Prior to her time at Southwest, Donovan, who is from London, played on the senior team at A.B. Lucas Secondary School from Grade 9-11. The team qualified for OFSAA all three years, winning the consolation final in Donovan's Grade 10 year and winning the Triple A final in her Grade 11 year. Donovan also played club basketball with the Ramblers since Grade 4.
 
Weltz came to Southwest from Timmins, Ont. where she played on the senior team at Gorman High School from Grade 9-11. The team qualified for OFSAA in Weltz's Grade 10 and 11 years and finished second in Single A in her Grade 11 year. Weltz also played for Timmins Select in the OBA, winning Division One in 2016.
 
The two found themselves on the court together a lot at Southwest, and found their games complemented one another's.
 
"Our style of gameplay, we always meshed really well," Donovan said. "Emma was the point guard for Southwest and I was a shooting guard. And she found me open a lot and got most of my assists."
 
"Laura would always hit the shots from the outside, so she made me look good," Weltz added.
 
While Southwest Academy was still a burgeoning program when Donovan and Weltz attended, and the team didn't find tremendous success the year Donovan and Weltz played with them, a number of players from the team went on to play university basketball.
 
When it came time for Weltz and Donovan to choose where their next stop would be, their friendship played a role in the two ultimately ending up at Queen's.
 
"I was looking at a few schools within Canada before committing here," said Weltz. "But after my first official visit, I was like, 'Yeah, this is it.' Everyone was so awesome. I love the coaches and the environment and the school as a whole. That's kind of when I knew that Queen's was the place for me."
 
"I remember when Emma committed to Queens, I wasn't sure exactly where I wanted to go yet. She was the first person that made me think about Queen's," said Donovan. "She's honestly most of the reason why I ended up at Queen's, because we had become such good friends at Southwest. She already decided she wanted to go into nursing, and I knew I wanted to do something in healthcare. When Emma committed to Queen's for nursing, I was like, 'know what, that sounds pretty fun. Maybe I'll do that too.' And I did exactly that. Followed her to Queen's and in nursing."
 
The two joined the Gaels for the 2018-19 season. The team finished the year with a 15-8 regular season record before losing in the first round of the OUA Playoffs. While both Weltz and Donovan started their Queen's careers coming off the bench, they still managed to continue their strong association on the court.
 
"I remember in first year Emma would always be the sub for our veteran point guard, and I would be the sub for the shooting guard," said Donovan. "We'd usually sub in around the same time and still get to play together. We've basically been able to be on the court together since first year because we'd be that second line sub in our first year."
 
"I'd say that connection has never drifted or never changed," said Weltz. "I can speak for both of us, I think, when I say we still love to play together." 
 
The two are now starters for the Gaels in their final year with the team. Weltz averaged 4.1 points and 2.3 rebounds a game while adding 32 assists in 23 regular season games as a rookie, and 7.8 points and 4.2 rebounds while adding 44 assists in 24 regular season games in 2019-20. Donovan finished with 5.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in 24 regular season games as a rookie and 11.0 points and 2.6 rebounds, while shooting .419 from the floor and .350 from three-point range in 2019-20.
 
Queen's finished the 2019-20 season 15-7 and advanced to the second round of the OUA Playoffs, eventually losing to the Rams, before the 2020-21 campaign was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


 
Weltz and Donovan returned for their senior seasons this year, helping the Gaels to a 9-5 record in the regular season and fourth place in the OUA East Division. Queen's defeated the York Lions 74-65 in the first round of the OUA Playoffs before falling to the Rams 67-58 in Round 2 this past Saturday.
 
"It's been really special both on and off the court," said Donovan. "Since grade 12 and since first year, we are basically in the same residence, in the same program, the same team, and then we've lived together since second year as well. So off court as well, our relationship has always been great. My best friend for sure. But on the court as well, I love that Emma plays with a fast pace, because I also like to run the court. I wish I was as fast as her, I'm not, but she's a fast point guard so I've always enjoyed playing with her and in that aspect."
 
"I literally think that's the perfect answer," said Weltz. "It's been so awesome, having that type of friendship and that kind of best friend throughout high school and into university. It's made the transition that much easier. And our friendship has continued to grow. And we're literally (so close), doing everything together all the time and it's just so special."
 
While the Gaels OUA Playoffs ended this past weekend, the team will return to the court later this month and end their season at the U SPORTS Women's Basketball Final 8, hosted by Queen's. Weltz and Donovan said the team is very excited to be given the opportunity to play for a national championship on their home court at the ARC.
 
"It's wild; it's so exciting. Our team talks about it, I think once a day. What we need to do to prepare and what these next coming weeks are going to look like. We're just really excited," said Weltz.
 
"Definitely surreal thinking about what the environment's going to be like with a home court for national championships," said Donovan. "We still have a lot of work to do leading up to it but we're super excited. It's going to be great."