{"id":58966,"date":"2025-07-12T06:59:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-12T06:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/58966\/"},"modified":"2025-07-12T06:59:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-12T06:59:10","slug":"how-twins-laveni-and-daviana-vaka-made-it-to-usl-super-league-deseret-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/58966\/","title":{"rendered":"How twins Laveni and Daviana Vaka made it to USL Super League \u2013 Deseret News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Twins Laveni and Daviana Vaka have been joined at the hip for most of their lives \u2014 and soccer careers.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s not unusual for siblings to play the same sport and even play on the same teams growing up, not many can say they\u2019ve been teammates at every level of the sport like Laveni and Daviana can. <\/p>\n

The twins, who grew up in Sandy, Utah, were teammates at the youth, high school (Juan Diego<\/a>), international (Tonga) and collegiate (BYU) levels, and this summer, they added professional teammates to that list.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Special Collector’s Issue: “1984: The Year BYU was Second to None”<\/p>\n

Get an inclusive look inside BYU Football’s 1984 National Championship season.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe love being together. We never get sick of each other,\u201d Daviana Vaka said.<\/p>\n

But the opportunity to be professional teammates wouldn\u2019t have happened without the inseparable twins carving their own paths.<\/p>\n

Finding a new home\"\"BYU\u2019s Daviana Vaka battles against Colorado in August of 2022. | Jaren Wilkey, BYU <\/p>\n

When BYU lost to North Carolina in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, it marked the end of the Cougars\u2019 season and the Vaka sisters\u2019 streak as teammates.<\/p>\n

While Laveni (\u201cLava\u201d) Vaka stayed in Provo for another season, Daviana (\u201cDavi\u201d) Vaka elected to use her remaining two years of eligibility for a fresh start at another program.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was our first time in 21 years separating,\u201d Daviana Vaka said.<\/p>\n

She felt she needed to play more consistent minutes than she was getting at BYU if she wanted to reach her goal of playing professionally, and that meant she\u2019d have to leave BYU and her sister.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn order to go pro, I had to find a better environment for me to play to the best of my ability,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

So, she transferred to the University of Florida. <\/p>\n

At Florida, Daviana Vaka rejuvenated her career. She felt she was able to play confident and free again, something she said she hadn\u2019t done \u201cin a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing able to feel free is what really helped me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Daviana Vaka earned All-SEC First Team and All-Southeast Region Second Team honors for her 2023 season. She also received the nickname \u201cSwamp Queen.\u201d<\/p>\n

She finished up her collegiate career with the Gators in October 2024.<\/p>\n

The road to professional soccer\"\"BYU\u2019s Laveni Vaka outruns Gonzaga during a match in October 2022. | Christi Norris, BYU <\/p>\n

While her sister left for a new beginning in Gainesville, Laveni Vaka stayed in Provo for the 2023 season. <\/p>\n

That year, the Cougars went on to the NCAA semifinal, and Laveni Vaka earned First Team All-American and All-Big 12 First Team honors and was a semifinalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy, which goes to the country\u2019s top players.<\/p>\n

Though she flourished on the field and was happy to see her twin blossom at Florida, Laveni Vaka struggled personally with the distance between them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI struggled really hard. I gained a lot of weight when she left. It was really hard. It was kind of like twin separation anxiety almost, so I kind of had to find myself a little bit,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

While apart, the sisters FaceTimed and texted every day, and the pain of separation eventually improved. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve gotten really close because of it,\u201d Laveni Vaka said.<\/p>\n

In January 2024 \u2014 just over a month after BYU\u2019s semifinal loss \u2014 Laveni Vaka was in Anaheim, California, to attend the 2024 NWSL draft in person. <\/p>\n

With her family, including her twin, by her side, Laveni Vaka waited nearly all night to hear her name called. <\/p>\n

Then with the second-to-last overall pick in the draft, expansion club Bay FC called her name<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the Bay FC opportunity didn\u2019t last long, with the team waiving the former Cougar during the preseason. <\/p>\n

\u201cGoing into camp, I wasn\u2019t confident, and so it was kind of just hard overall getting waived,\u201d Laveni Vaka said.<\/p>\n

Other teams expressed interest in her, but the center back faced a bigger decision: Did she even want to continue playing?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a matter of like, \u2018Do I really want to continue playing soccer?\u2019 because my confidence was so low and, it was really just like taking a step (and) believing in myself if I wanted to continue playing,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

In May 2024, she signed with Fort Lauderdale United FC in the USL Super League \u2014 the U.S.\u2019s second Division I professional women\u2019s league alongside the NWSL \u2014 for the team and league\u2019s inaugural season.<\/p>\n

\u201cI chose to just take that step with Fort Lauderdale, and I\u2019m really glad I did because it\u2019s really boosted my confidence and pushed me to continue my soccer career,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u2018What are the odds?\u2019<\/p>\n

When Laveni joined Fort Lauderdale, both twins were finally playing in the same state again.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we found out Lava was going to Fort Lauderdale, we were like, \u2018What are the odds that we\u2019re both in the state of Florida?\u2019 It\u2019s just crazy. God\u2019s timing has showed a lot in our careers,\u201d Daviana Vaka said.<\/p>\n

But in March, Laveni Vaka tore her ACL in Fort Lauderdale\u2019s match against Brooklyn FC, ending what had become a breakout rookie season.<\/p>\n

She had started each of the 18 matches up until her injury, tallying 65 clearances, 14 blocks and five interceptions and boasting a 89.4% passing accuracy rate with her 873 completed passes. <\/p>\n

Those numbers were enough to earn Laveni Vaka All-League Second Team honors despite missing the last three months of Fort Lauderdale\u2019s season, which ended with a loss in the championship.<\/p>\n

\u201cLava was really shocked, but we weren\u2019t surprised. If she didn\u2019t tear her ACL, she would definitely be first team,\u201d Daviana Vaka said.<\/p>\n

Laveni Vaka\u2019s injury inadvertently opened the door for a twin reunion. <\/p>\n

Roughly two years after their final season together at BYU, an opportunity presented itself for the sisters to be teammates again.<\/p>\n

After Daviana Vaka\u2019s collegiate career ended in October, she trained with Fort Lauderdale for a couple of weeks. The team invited her back in January, but she declined in order to take a short break from playing and wait for the next free agency signing period.<\/p>\n

Then her sister tore her ACL.<\/p>\n

Laveni Vaka\u2019s injury left a hole in Fort Lauderdale\u2019s roster, so she told the team that her sister would be in town to visit and help take care of her if they were interested in giving her another look.<\/p>\n

Fort Lauderdale added Daviana Vaka on a week-long trial and later signed her to the roster, reuniting the twins on the same team again.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s rare to be on the same team in college, but like, let alone professional,\u201d Daviana Vaka said. \u201cSo I was really excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

Being teammates again was a goal for the sisters, she added, as well as \u201cto actually be able to play together on the back line\u201d now that they both play center back. <\/p>\n

But that dream lineup will have to wait.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Daviana Vaka signed with Sporting Club Jacksonville, a new USL Super League team,<\/p>\n

Her signing means the twins are no longer teammates, but it will keep them playing in the same state once Laveni Vaka, who is three months post-surgery, is healthy again.<\/p>\n

Making history for Tonga<\/p>\n

The Vaka sisters\u2019 soccer careers are historic and not just because they\u2019re twins.<\/p>\n

When Bay FC drafted Laveni Vaka, she became the first female professional Tongan soccer player. A year later, Daviana Vaka became the second when she signed with Fort Lauderdale.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was never our intention to ever be the first or the second,\u201d Daviana Vaka said. <\/p>\n

In fact, they didn\u2019t learn Laveni Vaka was the first until an internet search after she was drafted. It has since become a title that Laveni takes seriously.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want to be able to represent my culture in the most respectful way that I can and be a role model for those little girls and little boys as I possibly can be, and just show them back in the islands, like what\u2019s possible with soccer and education and how far they can go,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The sisters had been representing Tonga long before the 2024 draft night as members of the Tongan national team.<\/p>\n

In 2022, they traveled to Fiji to play for Tonga in the OFC Women\u2019s Nations Cup, a World Cup qualifying tournament. There, Daviana Vaka scored her first national team goal on an assist from her twin. <\/p>\n

The sisters\u2019 story has caught the attention of parents and even members of the Samoan national team, who have shared with the sisters how much of an inspiration they\u2019ve been.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t see a lot of people who look like us in this sport. You might see them in basketball or softball or volleyball, but never soccer,\u201d Daviana said.<\/p>\n

From BYU and Florida to the USL Super League, the twins have experienced firsthand where the sport can take them. They hope their journeys can inspire other Tongans, especially their national team teammates, to chase their soccer dreams, too, Daviana Vaka said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always tell those girls … it\u2019s so rewarding what soccer can do for you and if they have a dream to play in the States, to keep playing the game of soccer because it can take you anywhere you want.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Twins Laveni and Daviana Vaka have been joined at the hip for most of their lives \u2014 and…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":58967,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[974,221,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-58966","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-news-feed-national","9":"tag-soccer","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-united-states","12":"tag-unitedstates","13":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114838973023270710","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58966"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58966\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58967"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}