When senior defender Emily Sonnett and senior forward Makenzy Doniak walked into the interview room, they were laughing hysterically, joking with one another. Following introductions, they immediately plunked themselves down into two large armchairs. After getting comfortable, Doniak looked at the camera and said, “Is this it? Are we doing this? Oh wow, OK.”
“That’s rolling?” Sonnett asked. “This is Makenzy Doniak,” she said, with barely a moment’s pause.
“And this is Emily Sonnett,” Doniak said without hesitation, looking up with a smile.
“And this is about our friendship,” Sonnett said with a smirk.
Loose and comfortable in front of the camera as they answered questions, the two smiled as they recounted how they first met. Doniak grinned as she looked over at Sonnett.
“It was kind of love at first sight,” she said.
Like all true love stories, theirs began in O-Hill Dining Hall.
“I think we first met at O’Hill,” Sonnett said. “We ate breakfast with our whole class, and we just went from there.”
Not only has Doniak and Sonnett’s close friendship shaped their social and overall experience at Virginia, it has also had a significant impact on their on-field relationship.
“I think we compliment each other a lot on the field,” Sonnett said. “I think [Doniak] leads more by example, and I’m more verbal and a louder voice. So having that the past four years, I think that has been huge, because I learn from her and, you know, she learns from me.”
Doniak also said she thought their ability to complement each other was an important aspect of their relationship on the turf.
“In practice, we always hope to be on the same team, but it never usually works out,” Doniak said. “So we always usually go against each other, which is, it ends up being a good thing, because it makes us better. We are both pretty competitive, so … I say we complement each other pretty well.”
When asked about their favorite moments together on the field, Sonnett pointed to their game at North Carolina State two seasons ago. That day, Sonnett assisted Doniak on a goal.
“I would like to say that I have contributed a little bit to Makenzy Doniak’s goals,” Sonnett said, looking over at Doniak.
“That was fun,” Doniak said with a smile.
When asked what her favorite moment was, Doniak could not remember any one in particular.
When the interview was over, Sonnett asked Doniak her own question: “Anything else about me that you would like to...”
Doniak cut her off. “I love Emily,” she announced.
“Aw, OK,” Sonnett said with mock surprise.
“She is a great person,” Doniak added, and Sonnett laughed.
“She is a great person,” Sonnett said. “I completely agree,” she added.
“She is funny,” Doniak said. “I am like the brains, though. I will like say something under my breath, and she will say it out loud and everyone will laugh.”
“Right,” Sonnett said.
No matter where the joke comes from, the laughter is always present with this dynamic duo — so is the leadership.
“Us both being captains, I think us growing in the game on the field and helping each other, that has been a huge part of just leadership-wise and taking it, you know, as far as we possibly can,” Sonnett said.
The senior pair is ready to keep the laughter, and the leadership, rolling all the way to the College Cup, and hopefully the NCAA title game.
“We have gotten to the tournament before, but both of us want to win this time,” Doniak said.
The No. 1 seeded Cavaliers, under the leadership of their fun-loving yet driven captains topped Howard 7-1 in the first round of NCAA play Friday. They host UNC-Wilmington this coming Friday at Klӧckner Stadium.
Read More
Five Takeaways from Virginia’s Spring Game
By Peter Kriebel | 14 hours agoVirginia football is shaping up to make significant progress in 2024, led by an array of newcomers and promising underclassmen.
Women’s swimming and diving — the newest NCAA dynasty
By Grace Gould | 18 hours agoIn the end, regardless of which school is heralded as the greatest of all time historically, it is glaringly obvious that Virginia is the greatest women’s swimming school of the modern era.
No. 6 women’s lacrosse gets revenge on No. 14 North Carolina
By Matthew Ryeom | YesterdayThe Cavaliers' big third quarter propelled them to a key victory over the Tar Heels.
