Offseason Conversation with Ali Bastianelli
September 26, 2024 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
Grand Rapids Rise News Release
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Get to know middle blocker Ali Bastianelli in the third edition of our "Offseason Conversation" series with the Grand Rapids Rise. Bastianelli, a native of Marysville, Michigan, talks about her volleyball journey and signing with the Rise, teaming up with former foes, excelling as an elite blocker and much more.
Welcome back to Michigan. Not quite as sunny as San Diego, but I'm sure it feels good to be back home. How have the last few months been for you after wrapping up the first Pro Volleyball Federation season with the Mojo?
Honestly, it's actually pretty cloudy out there [in San Diego]. Not going to lie. But the offseason has been really good. I have taken a lot of time to decompress with my family and just get used to being back in this area. As soon as the signing period opened to talk with coaches, [Rise head coach] Cathy George was the first coach I reached out to. She was honestly the only coach that I reached out to. Right away it was like, 'If I'm going to play another season, it's going to be at home in Michigan.'
With four other Michigan natives - Symone Abbott, Paige Briggs-Romine, Alyssa Jensen, and Carli Snyder - on the Rise roster, do you have any high school or club memories of playing with or against any of them?
I have played against or know all of them. Carli's high school, Dakota, was in my school's conference. So, I played against Carli for three years in high school as she was a year older than me. Paige, I know from club. We never got to play together but I knew of her coming up through the Legacy [Volleyball Club]. Symone, I played against in high school and again in college. We also played together at AU for one of our seasons. Then Alyssa and I played against each other when she was at Michigan State and I was at Illinois. So, yeah, a lot of experiences with them.
Any fun or interesting memories going against them?
My junior year, we played against Michigan State in the Sweet 16 and that was Alyssa's senior year. They beat us in four sets. I just remember them having like nine seniors on their team that year. They had a revolving door of seniors always coming onto the court, and that was a big part of our scouting report.
For Carli, it was always fun playing against her. Dakota is always a well-coached team. But, with Carli being a 6-foot-1 outside hitter going to Florida, it was kind of hard to stop her. So, most of our game plan revolved around trying to stop Carli. I know we lost one set 25-9 against Dakota. That was probably her senior year. So, I guess not a fun memory for me but a fun memory for her.
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Pro Volleyball Federation Stories from September 26, 2024
- Offseason Conversation with Ali Bastianelli - Grand Rapids Rise
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