First-Place Supernovas Host Grand Rapids Ahead of Colossal No. 1 vs. No. 2 Showdown with Atlanta

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PVF Omaha Supernovas

First-Place Supernovas Host Grand Rapids Ahead of Colossal No. 1 vs. No. 2 Showdown with Atlanta

April 16, 2025 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
Omaha Supernovas News Release


Omaha Supernovas outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller eyes the ball
Omaha Supernovas outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller eyes the ball
(Omaha Supernovas)

OMAHA, Neb. - The first place and postseason bound Omaha Supernovas, Nebraska's professional volleyball team and first Pro Volleyball champions, return to Omaha to begin a four-match home stand starting with the playoff-hungry Grand Rapids Rise on Thursday, April 17 at 7 p.m. CDT, before battling the rival Atlanta Vibe on Saturday, April 19 at 6 p.m. CDT.

Thursday's match will be broadcast statewide on News Channel Nebraska and streamed on VBTV, while Saturday's will be streamed worldwide on the Roku Channel. Both matches can also be heard on the Supernovas Radio Network.

The Supernovas face a Rise team fighting for its postseason life, currently sitting fifth in the league standings and 2.5 games out of a playoff spot. Grand Rapids is coming off a crucial five-set win over the Indy Ignite last Saturday, in which the Rise tied the PVF record for most blocks in a match with 24 - including nine from Ali Bastianelli. With their final five matches coming against current playoff teams, the Rise will be looking to pull off upsets in hopes of defending their runner-up finish from last season.

Awaiting Omaha on Saturday night is the league's hottest team - the rival Atlanta Vibe - riding a PVF-record 10-match winning streak dating back to March 1, when they were 6-8 and outside the top four. Atlanta joined the Supernovas last Saturday as the second team to clinch a spot in the 2025 PVF Championship in Las Vegas on May 9 and 11.

The Supernovas are coming off a weekend where they became the first team in the league to clinch a postseason berth, thanks to a four-set victory over the Vegas Thrill last Thursday. Opposite Kelsie Payne starred in the win, racking up 22 kills on a .396 hitting percentage along with 11 digs, four blocks, and one ace. Her 27 total points tied the PVF season high for most in a four-set match. Despite a 3-1 setback to San Diego the following Saturday, Omaha still sits in first place with a 16-6 record and has won four of its last five matches.

Game Details

Matchup: Omaha Supernovas (16-6) vs. Grand Rapids Rise (10-13)

When: Thursday, April 17 at 7 p.m. CDT

Where: Kiewit Court at CHI Health Center, Omaha, Neb.

Watch: News Channel Nebraska / VBTV | Broadcast Crew: John Baylor (PxP), Nancy Metcalf (Color Analyst)

Listen: Supernovas Radio Network | Broadcast Crew: Grant Hansen (PxP), Renee Saunders (Color Analyst)

Match Notes

Season Series: Omaha leads 2-0 | Third of four meetings, two of two at CHI Health Center.

All-Time Series: Omaha leads 6-1 (March 30, 2025, last matchup, 3-1 Omaha).

Game Details

Matchup: Omaha Supernovas (16-6) vs. Atlanta Vibe (16-8)

When: Saturday, April 19 at 7 p.m. CDT

Where: Kiewit Court at CHI Health Center, Omaha, Neb.

Watch: Roku Channel | Broadcast Crew: A.J. Kanell (PxP), Madison Fitzpatrick (Color Analyst)

Listen: Supernovas Radio Network | Broadcast Crew: Grant Hansen (PxP), Renee Saunders (Color Analyst)

Match Notes

Season Series: Omaha leads 2-0 | Third of four meetings, two of two at CHI Health Center.

All-Time Series: Tied 3-3 (February 8, 2025, last matchup, 3-1 Omaha).

...

Supernovas-Rise Connections

Three former Rise players face their old franchise in Caffey, Mac Podraza and Gómez, who all signed with Omaha during free agency.

Rise outside hitter Paige Briggs-Romine returns to Omaha after signing with Grand Rapids over the offseason. She won the 2024 PVF title with the Supernovas.

Brooke Nuneviller and Grand Rapids setter August Raskie crossed paths for one season at Oregon in 2018.

Rise libero Valeria León has a deep history with the Omaha roster, which includes being teammates with Reagan Cooper last season in Columbus. She also faces former Buckeyes and current Supernovas Podraza and Emily Londot, but only Podraza and Londot overlapped as teammates.

León was also teammates with Supernovas setter Natalia Valentín-Anderson and assistant coach Gina Mancuso-Prososki on Leonas de Ponce in the Puerto Rico League for the 2016-2017 season. She played with Valentín-Anderson again on Llaneras de Toa Baja in 2018-2019.

Valentín-Anderson also spent time as teammates with Rise attacker Symone Abbott for one season in France on Saint-Raphael Var in 2018-2019.

Fellow Kansas alumni and Supernovas middle blocker Toyosi Onabanjo played with Rise setter Camryn Turner for two seasons (2023-2024) compared to Cooper's one (2023).

Opposite Kelsie Payne and Rise middle blocker Marin Grote were teammates and the only two Americans on Sigortashop in the Turkish League for the 2022-2023 season.

Kaitlyn Hord reunites with León after spending last season in Columbus and faces Erika Pritchard, who she spent one season with at Penn State in 2021.

Supernovas-Vibe Connections

PVF Draft No. 1 overall pick Merritt Beason spent her last two college seasons in Lincoln playing for Nebraska, leading the Huskers to a National Championship appearance and one National Semifinal. She was teammates with current Supernovas Lindsay Krause (2023-2024) and Ally Batenhorst (2023).

Atlanta head coach Kayla Banworth is one of the best players in Nebraska Volleyball history. A former walk-on, Banworth transformed into one of the best players in program history under John Cook from 2007-2010. She developed into an Olympian, winning eight medals during an illustrious international career including a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. She later returned to Lincoln to be an assistant coach from 2017-2019, helping NU win its fifth national title in school history (2017).

Vibe middle blocker Taya Beller was a two-time D2CCA All-America First Team selection at Wayne State in Nebraska. Heralding from Lindsay, Nebraska, Beller attended Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family High School.

Ally Batenhorst will reunite with former USC setter Mia Tuaniga when the two face off on Saturday. The two were teammates in L.A. for the 2024 college season.

Omaha setter Natalia Valentín-Anderson played with Vibe middle Shelly Fanning and attacker Leah Edmond for one season on Valencianas de Juncos in the Puerto Rico League in 2021-2022. Staying in Puerto Rico, Fanning was later teammates with Kayla Caffey on Criollas De Caguas for the 2022-2023 season.

Atlanta outside hitter Pia Timmer and Reagan Cooper spent one season together at Washington State in 2019.

Postseason Bound!

The Supernovas became the first team in the league to punch their ticket to the 2025 PVF Championship in Vegas following Omaha's win over the Thrill and Orlando beating Grand Rapids on 4/10.

The first-place Supernovas will defend its title for the PVF Semifinals on May 9 before the Championship "Match for a Million" on May 11 back at Lee's Family Forum in Vegas.

The Supernovas (16-6) overtook the 2024 Atlanta Vibe to become the fastest team in PVF history to secure a playoff spot. Atlanta did so with 79% of the season complete while Omaha secured its ticket with 75% of the 2025 season finished.

Bouncing Back

The Supernovas have been the most consistent team through the first two seasons in the PVF, suffering a multi-match losing streak only once. That losing streak occurred earlier this season with losses to Vegas and San Diego on Jan. 17 and 19. Since that 2-2 start to 2025, Omaha is 14-4.

Milestones to Watch

K. Hord: 6 blocks away from becoming Omaha's all-time blocks leader.

N. Valentín-Anderson: 6 digs from 400 in her Supernovas career.

K. Caffey: 6 blocks from 50 on the season.

B. Nuneviller: 19 digs from 600 in her Supernovas career. 35 points from 700 points with Omaha.

Nuneviller & Hord Make PVF History

Nuneviller eclipsed the 500-kill mark in her Supernovas career on 3/13 at Indy and now sits with a total of 612 kills in her two seasons with Omaha. With 18 digs on 3/15 versus the Valkyries, she became the first player in PVF history to achieve 500 kills and 500 digs. Middle blocker Kaitlyn Hord became the third player in PVF history to reach 100 career blocks with four stuffs against Indy on 3/22. Plus, with a solo block in the first set against San Diego on April 12, Hord broke the PVF single-season blocks record, surpassing the previous mark of 70 set by former Omaha middle blocker Hristina Vuchkova during the Supernovas' 2024 championship-winning campaign. Setter Natalia Valentín-Anderson also reached a milestone against Indy, recording her 1,000th career assist with the franchise. Her Omaha career total stands at 1,186.

A"Nune"ther Level

After averaging over 12 kills and digs per match last season, Nuneviller has raised her game for the 2025 season.

Nuneviller enters Thursday third in the PVF in kills per set (3.83), fourth in kills (306), and fourth in total points (330).

The Chandler, Arizona native is one of only five players in the league this season to record 20+ kills and 15+ digs in a match. That was on opening night when she poured in 22 kills and 17 digs while hitting .340.

The Oregon product has been averaging 13.9 kills and 12.6 digs per match through 22 contests this season.

Nuneviller put up 14 kills and 14 digs Sunday at San Diego for her 14th double-double of the season, which ranks second among all attackers in the PVF.

Caffey Chaos

In matches with at least 10 swings, Caffey became the first player in PVF history to hit over .400 in six-straight matches when she did so from March 5 at Columbus to March 30 versus Grand Rapids.

During that span the Chicago native compiled 61 points (2.77 P/S), 40 kills (1.82 K/S), 15 blocks, six aces and a .420 overall hitting percentage.

Caffey has been serving as a maestro, putting down eight aces in the last four matches. That's seen her catapult up the league leaderboards ranking fifth in aces with a team-high 16. Plus, she's 9th in kill percentage (.399) and just outside the top ten in blocks with 39.

Hording the Net

Hord has been the premier blocker in the PVF so far in the 2025 season. The former Husker and Nittany Lion is tied for the league lead in total blocks (71) and ranks third in blocks per set with a 0.90 mark. Hord's seven blocks in the five-set win over the Atlanta Vibe on opening night set a Supernovas single-match record. She is also one of five players in the PVF to record seven or more blocks in a match this season. The Kentucky native also sits fifth in hitting percentage with a .332 clip through 226 attacks with 91 kills and only 16 errors, which is fewest among middle blockers.

The Dig Patrol

The Supernovas have been one of the best defensive teams in the league as they currently sit third in the PVF in digs per set (16.66) and seventh in total digs (1,333). However, Omaha has played the fewest number of sets in the league with 80 which is due to its league-leading eight sweeps.

Libero Camila Gómez leads that effort with a team-high 327 digs (2nd in PVF) and 4.09 per set (2nd). Her 31 digs against Atlanta in the season opener broke a single-match franchise record. That total is tied for the second-most digs recorded in a single match in PVF history.

Nuneviller, who is a former libero, is second on the team behind her teammate with 277 digs (sixth in PVF) while her 3.46 per set is fifth in the league.




Images from this story

Omaha Supernovas outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller eyes the ball
Omaha Supernovas outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller eyes the ball
   

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