Luisa (CAS’26) (left) and Lilli (CAS’26) Welcke, sophomore forwards on the BU women’s hockey team, have combined for 16 points (7 goals, 9 assists) to date in their first year with the Terriers. Photos by Jon Ratner

Varsity Sports

“Telepathic” Twins: Lilli and Luisa Welcke Are Elevating BU Women’s Hockey

Sisterly bond proves an advantage during sisters’ debut season as Terriers

The BU women’s hockey team jokes that identical twins Lilli and Luisa Welcke have telepathic powers. 

Lilli (CAS’26) and Luisa (CAS’26) are best friends, roommates, and—of course—teammates. Naturally, they do just about everything together. 

On the ice, the forwards from Heidelberg, Germany, play on the same line. Off the ice, they are frequently together, sharing the same friends, laughing at the same jokes, and discovering new museums and coffee spots in Boston together.

“We’ve always had chemistry, because we know each other so well,” Luisa says. “The more we played with each other, the better that connection got.”

Before one practice this fall, Luisa realized the battery on her electric scooter—a popular form of transportation for BU athletes—needed charging. Naturally, she hopped onto the back of Lilli’s scooter, and the twins cruised off to practice at Walter Brown Arena together. 

“They’ve definitely been resourceful,” women’s hockey head coach Tara Watchorn (CAS’12) says with a laugh. 

The sisterly bond has served the Welckes on the ice, too. Watchorn elected to play the sisters on the same line at the beginning of the season, and that decision has enabled their chemistry to shine. 

“It was always on my mind to play them together,” Watchorn says. “I do think that they’re dynamic together.”

In BU’s second game of the season, a matchup with a nationally ranked Northeastern team on October 7, the twins made something out of nothing in the offensive zone. Luisa drove hard to the net and Lilli flicked a perfect saucer pass to her twin sister, creating a scoring chance.

“It happened so quick where we were like, ‘How did [Lilli] see that,’” Watchorn remembers. “You see it a lot in practice, but that first one, that early in the season, really stands out to me.” 

The connection has become commonplace. In a power play during BU’s last game of the fall semester—a 5-1 win over Providence College—Lilli feathered a nifty pass to Luisa, who drove the net and tapped home a goal. 

“They like to be playmakers and creative with the puck; they always know what they want to do before they get it,” Watchorn says. “When you talk about playing in the offensive zone, that’s exactly where you want them.”

Advancing through the youth ranks in their native Heidelberg, Lilli and Luisa didn’t always get the opportunity to share the ice at the same time—even when they were on the same team. Both sisters wanted to play forward, but their team only had space for one forward and one defenseman. So, Lilli and Luisa would switch positions every period to keep the opportunity even. 

Eventually, as the twins graduated to higher-level and better teams, they began to play together as forwards on the same line. This year, in their debut season with the Terriers, Lilli has played center and has shown herself to be of the team’s best at winning face-offs. Luisa, a winger, has proven herself a creative offensive talent who thrives below the top of the circle. 

“We just understand each other very well on the ice,” Lilli says. “We have a similar playing style.”

In Germany, where soccer is king, ice hockey is somewhat obscure—at least it was when the twins were growing up. As a result, the sisters were forced to play on local boys’ teams, since there were no youth women’s programs nearby. 

“We were the only kids who played hockey,” Lilli recalls. “In Germany, when you tell people that you play hockey, they think that you’re talking about field hockey because it’s a bigger sport than ice hockey is here.” 

In fact, the twins had no intentions of becoming hockey players until they discovered the sport by accident. Lilli and Luisa played tennis as kids, and planned on attending a local tennis camp one summer. But the camp was fully booked, and only one sport had spots remaining: ice hockey. The rest is history. 

The Welckes played on boys’ youth hockey teams in Germany for the next eight years, before traveling to North America to further their hockey careers. They first landed at the Kent School, a private boarding school in Connecticut, for the 2018–19 season, before spending the 2019–20 campaign at Ridley College, a prep school in Ontario, Canada. 

Simultaneously, they suited up for the German national team, playing at the International Ice Hockey Federation’s U18 women’s world championships in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. They also competed for Germany at the 2022 and 2023 IIHF women’s world championships. 

“They’ve earned a wealth of experience and you can just tell that they’re so driven and want to grow. And they love the game and they’ve really grown, strength-wise and how they play the game,” Watchorn says. 

The sisters initially committed to Ohio State University, but landed at Maine, where they both earned Hockey East All-Rookie and All-Academic Team honors after combining for 43 points their freshman season. That winding journey has led them to BU this year.

When Lilli and Luisa decided to enter the transfer portal after their freshman season at Maine, BU—and its proximity to downtown Boston—stood out. 

“We grew up in a city, and we just really enjoyed Boston,” Lilli says. “Obviously being right in the city, that allows you to do different things, like get coffee, or just enjoy the city. We really like that aspect of BU.” 

When it comes to the hockey futures of Lilli and Luisa, Watchorn says “the sky’s the limit”—especially with Boston’s new Professional Women’s Hockey League in full swing. 

“They’ve earned a wealth of experience, whether it’s international play or at the D1 level,” Watchorn says. “They’re going to have long careers if they want them. There’s no doubt in my mind.”

But, for now, the Welckes are focused on enjoying their time in Boston and performing for the Terriers—together.

Fans can catch Lilli and Luisa in action when the BU women’s hockey team battles Boston College in the 45th Dunkin’ Women’s Hockey Beanpot semifinals Tuesday, January 16, at Harvard’s Bright-Landry Hockey Center. Puck drop is slated for 4 pm. Tickets start at $10.