OMAHA, NEB. – Coming off a 2-0 road trip, the Omaha Supernovas (15-7) are set to host the Columbus Fury (8-14) at the CHI Health Center on Thursday, May 9 at 7 p.m. CDT for Omaha’s regular season home finale. Thursday will be Fan Appreciation Night as the first 5,000 fans will receive a team signature poster from the Supernovas.
Thursday’s match will be televised by News Channel Nebraska with John Baylor and Nancy Metcalf on the call.
The match will also be broadcast live on the Supernovas Radio Network, featuring its flagship station 93.7 The Ticket. The broadcast will also be live on 95.7 The Boss (Omaha), KRVN (Lexington), KOLT (Scottsbluff), and KTIC (West Point). Award-winning broadcaster Derrick Pearson and AVCA High School Coach of the Year Renee Saunders will provide commentary.
The Supernovas have already locked in their spot as the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Pro Volleyball Federation Championship to be held in Omaha on May 15 and May 18. Omaha will play in the later semifinal on Wednesday, May 15 at 8:30 p.m. All four teams are now known with the league-leading Atlanta Vibe, Grand Rapids Rise and San Diego Mojo joining the Supernovas in Omaha.
The Fury had a chance to make the postseason, but by losing to the Mojo in four sets on Tuesday, May 7, it allowed San Diego to secure the final postseason berth. The Mojo need to win one of their next two matches to earn the No. 3 seed over the Rise.
Omaha has a chance to win the season series on Thursday after winning the last two matchups. The Fury dominated the Supernovas in their home opener on Feb. 21 coming out with a 3-1 win as Reagan Cooper posted 22 kills. Omaha responded with a 3-1 win of its own on April 4 at the CHI Health Center with Supernovas outside hitter Bethania de la Cruz racking up 26 kills on a .585 clip which were both franchise records. Omaha went back to Columbus on Saturday, May 4 and came away with another victory as de la Cruz hammered down 21 kills while setter Natalia Valentín-Anderson dished out 55 assists and 17 digs.
Valentín-Anderson has been the major catalyst for Omaha’s season best three-match winning streak as the Puerto Rico native earned the two road wins as the starting setter, averaging over 12 assists and four digs per set in that span. That included two incredible diving saves against the Thrill with her efforts making No. 2 on the SportsCenter’s Top 10. She was also the fourth Supernova to earn weekly honors by being selected as the Pro Volleyball Federation Player of the Week.
The Supernovas continue to be the best serving team in the Pro Volleyball Federation. Omaha leads the league with 4.05 aces per match posting 89 aces in 22 contests. That includes de la Cruz who leads the league with 30 aces. Columbus enters Thursday last in the Pro Volleyball Federation with 2.86 aces per match as the season total for the Fury stands at 63 aces in 22 contests. Outside hitter Ivania Ortiz DeJesus leads the Fury with eight aces on the season.
Omaha middle blockers Hristina Vuchkova and Tori Dixon are one of the most lethal middle combos in the league. Vuchkova has a team-high 64 blocks which equates to a league-leading 3.37 blocks per match average. Dixon isn’t too far behind with 60 blocks, but both middle blockers co-own the franchise record with six blocks in one match as Dixon equaled that mark against Grand Rapids on April 26.
De la Cruz has stepped up her game in the closing stages of the inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation regular season. The Dominican Republic native struggled from Feb. 21 through March 30, averaging 5.6 kills on a .113 hitting percentage in eight matches. Since the calendar has turned over to April, the Omaha attacker has taken her game to new heights averaging 17.75 kills on a .318 clip in eight contests including a franchise-record 26 kills twice in back-to- back contests.
The Fury are without franchise middle blocker Asjia O’Neal who was called up to the U.S. Women’s National Team to prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics. However, opposite Kendall Kipp has been one of the best players in the league since her arrival on April 12. The Stanford graduate is averaging 4.27 kills per set on a .193 clip across eight matches.
Rookie Reagan Cooper is another lethal weapon for the Fury as she’s posted 308 kills on the season which is tied for fifth in the league. She’s been a key contributor for the Fury against Omaha as the rookie has earned at least 17 kills in each of the previous three meetings. Cooper is averaging 4.11 kills per set on a .278 hitting percentage to go with 2.39 digs per set. Former Nebraska Volleyball player Kaitlyn Hord leads the middle group for Columbus with a team-high 40 blocks and 104 kills on a .337 clip.
Omaha wraps up its regular season on Sunday, May 12 when they visit Grand Rapids for the fourth and final time this season. The Supernovas will make their third appearance on CBS Sports Network with first serve set for 4:30 p.m. CDT at Van Andel Arena.
