Supernovas Host Ignite in Historic First Stripe-Out on Saturday

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PVF Omaha Supernovas

Supernovas Host Ignite in Historic First Stripe-Out on Saturday

March 21, 2025 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
Omaha Supernovas News Release


OMAHA, Neb. - The first-place Omaha Supernovas, Nebraska's professional volleyball team and first Pro Volleyball Champions, will host the Indy Ignite for a Saturday night showdown in the franchise's first-ever Stripe-Out, a marquee matchup between two of the top teams in the Pro Volleyball Federation.

First serve is set for 6 p.m. CDT at the CHI Health Center as the match will be nationally broadcast on FS1, reaching 70 million homes across the country.

The match can also be heard on the Supernovas Radio Network.

Saturday's match sponsor is Teammates.

The Stripe-Out is presented by Pella.

The Supernovas come off one of the most impressive weekends in franchise history, pulling off their second-ever reverse over Indy on March 13 before beating the Orlando Valkyries for the first time in 2025 with a four-set win on March 15. The two road wins kept Omaha's place at the top of the PVF standings while matching a franchise-best four-match winning streak. Plus, it was the sixth-consecutive road victory for the Supernovas, which extends the franchise record.

Indy hopes to earn its first-ever win over Omaha after being reversed swept by the Supernovas last week at the Fishers Event Center. The Ignite are 7-2 all-time at home with the only two losses being to Omaha. Indy comes to CHI following a five-set win over the last-place Columbus Fury Thursday night. Setter Sydney Hilley dished out 68 assists in a balanced offensive attack as five different players reached double-digit kills. Reigning PVF Player of the Week Azhani Tealer spearheaded that effort with 17 kills while Carly Skjodt and Lydia Martyn each added 16.

Game Details

Matchup: Omaha Supernovas (12-4) vs. Indy Ignite (10-8) | Saturday, March 22 | 6 p.m. CDT | CHI Health Center, Omaha, Neb.

Watch: FS1 | Broadcast Crew: Paul Sunderland (PxP), Holly McPeak (Color Analyst)

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

Match Notes

Season Series: Fourth of four meetings, two of two at CHI Health Center

All-Time Series: Omaha leads 3-0 (March 13, 2025, last matchup, 3-2 Omaha).

From Bench to Brilliance

Trailing 0-2 to Indy last Thursday, head coach Laura "Bird" Kuhn went to the bench for a trio of new players in outside hitter Ally Batenhorst, setter Mac Podraza and opposite Kelsie Payne. The move ultimately sparked the franchise's second-ever reverse sweep as well as a four-set win over Orlando two nights later.

Batenhorst was the shining star of the three, pounding 16 kills on a .282 clip with eight digs against Indy. She improved that performance against the Valkyries pouring in a career-high 24 points on 22 kills (.362), one block and one ace alongside eight more digs.

In total, the rookie attacker finished with 40 points (5.0 P/S), 38 kills (4.75 K/S), .326 hitting percentage 16 digs (2.0 D/S), one block, one ace and a lone assist across eight sets.

Podraza averaged 9.75 assists per set including a 37-assist, four-dig outing against Indy. The cherry on top was leading the offense to a .455 hitting percentage in the decisive fifth set against the Ignite. She added a double-double against Orlando with 41 assists and 10 digs while also securing the match-ending block.

Payne tallied a total of 17 kills, 10 digs, two blocks and one ace. She was mighty against Indy with eight kills on a .421 clip, while adding a season-best nine kills against Orlando.

Nuneviller Makes History

Supernovas outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller eclipsed the 500-kill mark in her Supernovas career on 3/13 at Indy and now sits with a total of 529 kills in her two seasons with Omaha. With 18 digs on Saturday versus the Valkyries, she became the first player in PVF history to achieve 500 kills and 500 digs. 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 1,003. Middle blocker Kaitlyn Hord is three blocks away from becoming the third player in PVF history to record 100 stuffs. She recorded 42 blocks in 72 sets last season in Columbus.

The Dig Patrol

The Supernovas have been one of the best defensive teams in the league as they currently sit fifth in the PVF in digs per set (16.34) and eighth in total digs (948). However, Omaha has played the fewest number of sets in the league with 58 which is due in part to a league-leading seven sweeps.

Libero Camila Gómez leads that effort with a team-high 222 digs (3rd in PVF) and 3.83 per set (3rd). 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 right behind her teammate with 213 digs (fourth in PVF) and 3.67 per set (4th). She leads all PVF attackers in both categories.

Road Warriors

The Supernovas have the biggest home court advantage in pro volleyball, but they've also been mighty on the road. That includes the league's best road record at 8-2. Omaha and Orlando (4-3) are the only teams in the PVF to have a road record at .500 or above. The Supernovas have won six-straight road matches including four straight overall which are both franchise records.

Offensive Blastoff

The Omaha Supernovas offense has rounded into form with a .243 team hitting percentage - second in the PVF.

Omaha has posted hitting percentages of .250 or above in 10 of the 16 matches this season. The Supernovas offense reached that mark only nine times across the entire 2024 season.

There's only been seven times in franchise history that the Supernovas have recorded a team hitting percentage of .300 or above wth three of those coming in the 2025 season.

Hording the Net

Omaha middle blocker Kaitlyn Hord has been the premier blocker in the PVF so far in the 2025 season. The former Husker and Nittany Lion leads the league in both total blocks (55) and blocks per set with a 0.96 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 third in hitting percentage with a .341 clip through 173 attacks with 69 kills and only 10 errors, which is fewest among middle blockers.

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