Ignite Rise to the Occasion, Claim Comeback Win at Grand Rapids

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PVF Indy Ignite

Ignite Rise to the Occasion, Claim Comeback Win at Grand Rapids

March 15, 2025 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
Indy Ignite News Release


GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The tenacity of the Indy Ignite shined bright in their comeback victory today at Grand Rapids. On the heels of an energy-zapping five-set loss two nights prior, the Ignite rallied after dropping the first set to the host Rise, winning by scores of 22-25, 25-20, 25-19, 25-22.

The triumph nudged the Ignite back above the .500 mark for the season at 9-8, also moving them into a third-place tie with Atlanta in the Pro Volleyball Federation standings ahead of the Vibe's match later today. Grand Rapids fell to 7-10 on the season.

Indy appeared sluggish in the opening set with the Rise after suffering an emotional reverse-sweep loss to league-leading Omaha less than 48 hours earlier. Grand Rapids led the first set 24-16 before the Ignite flickered to life, staving off six straight set points before falling 25-22. Though they dropped the set, the entire Indy team was revitalized with the late spark.

"Anytime you can build momentum even in a losing situation in a set, it's big deal," Ignite head coach George Padjen explained. "Volleyball is very momentum driven, so it was important for us to get those points running at the end of game one. It definitely let everybody kind of relax a little bit, understand that we're very capable of getting a win on the road."

The second set was tied 15-15 when the Ignite ran off five straight points to take control. Opposite hitter Azhani Tealer, who set PVF records for points (35) and kills (31) in the match against Omaha, sealed the 25-20 second-set win today with her fifth kill of the set. Making her first start of the season, outside hitter Carly Skjodt added three kills, a block and was one of three Indy players with a service ace in the set.

The third set was deadlocked at 14 when the Ignite went on another explosive run, outscoring the Rise 10-3 to put it out of reach. Outside hitter Anna DeBeer scored the last three points on kills during the run, then her kill attempt ruled a block touch by Grand Rapids sealed the third-set win for Indy, 25-19.

Determined not to let the match go to a fifth set, Indy never trailed in the fourth. A 6-1 run sparked by two blocks from middle blocker Lydia Martyn and a service ace each by middle blocker Caroline "CC" Crawford and setter Sydney Hilley pumped the Ignite to an 11-5 lead. Grand Rapids kept battling, however, and closed within a single point four times late in the set, the last at 23-22. The Ignite then scored the final two points - the match-ender on Skjodt's team-leading 15th kill - to wrap up the victory.

"It was so much fun," Skjodt said of the chance to start and see extended playing time. "I just love playing volleyball and this group is super fun to compete with every day in practice. Grand Rapids runs a super-quick offense, so we really just were trying to get our bearings that first set. Once we kind of settled in and started being the aggressors a bit more, I think that's when we started running those points towards the end and that momentum helped us for the rest of the match."

To go along with her season-best kills performance, Skjodt added two blocks and an ace to total 18 points, and she had eight digs. Padjen said Skjodt's performance in recent practices earned her a shot to start.

"Carly does a good job every day and you're cutting hairs when you talk about players at this level," he said. "They all are very talented and I think that her day-to-day work in the gym has paid off. It's been really strong the past couple weeks. We saw an opportunity to get someone in with some great playing experience.

"She definitely had a hell of a day today. I was incredibly happy for her that she got the opportunity and took advantage of it."

DeBeer also totaled 18 points with 13 kills, three blocks, two aces and 11 digs. Tealer (14 points) and Martyn (11 points) scored in double figures for Indy as well, Martyn upping her league-leading kill percentage by connecting on eight of 14 attempts (57.1%). Hilley did her typical masterful job distributing to her offensive weapons, handing out 47 assists.

As a team, the Ignite registered an impressive kill percentage (43.8%) and kill efficiency (28.1%). Defensively, they were strong at the net with 14 blocks, one off their season high.

"We talk about it all the time in the gym, always taking big swings and never really backing down to anyone," Skjodt said. "The whole team just did a really great job of that today going after it. Like defensively blocking and obviously attacking and Syd set a great offense so we all were put in really great positions."

Indy returns home to host the Columbus Fury (5-11) on Thursday. Tickets for the match at Fishers Event Center are available at Ticketmaster via the Ignite website. The 7 p.m. ET match is also available to stream free on the Roku Channel.



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