OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha Supernovas (12-7) face the Grand Rapids Rise (10-9) for the third time this season on Friday, April 26 at the CHI Health Center in Omaha. The matchup is part of the Volleyball After Dark theme night with first serve set for 8:30 p.m. The first 5,000 fans will receive a custom Volleyball After Dark t-shirt.
Friday’s contest will be nationally televised as CBS Sports Network will provide coverage. It will also be the first of three appearances on the cable network for the Supernovas. Paul Sunderland and Madison Fitzpatrick will be 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.
Full match notes can be found here.
The Supernovas hope to bounce back once again after losing a five-set thriller Tuesday night in San Diego. Three Omaha players reached double-digit kills with Bethania de la Cruz posting a team-high 15 kills. Opposite and new signee Stephanie Samedy made her Supernovas debut and added 12 kills and 10 digs. Team captain Brooke Nuneviller recorded 10 kills on a .308 clip off the bench.
Despite Omaha’s seven losses, they remain the only team in the Pro Volleyball Federation to not have lost consecutive matches.
Grand Rapids enters Friday on a heater, winning four of its last five matches including back-to-back 3-1 wins over Orlando and Vegas. The Rise’s improved play has put pressure on Omaha’s spot at No. 2 in the league standings as a win would move Grand Rapids within one game of second place.
Although, the Supernovas have the chance to secure the season series with a victory after winning the previous two meetings. Omaha took home a four-set win for its first road victory in franchise history on Feb. 12 before winning 3-1 again at home on March 28. Both teams have a flair for the dramatic with four of their eight sets going extra points. Omaha has won all four including scores of 33-31, 30-28, 30-28 and 27-25.
De la Cruz enters Friday still leading the league with 26 aces in 19 matches. Omaha tops the league with 78 aces in 19 matches while also allowing the least aces with a 2.47 match average. Nuneviller leads the Omaha offense with 230 kills for the season which is eighth in the league.
The Rise counter with arguably the most dangerous attacking combo in the Pro Volleyball Federation in outside hitter Claire Chaussee and opposite Emiliya Dimitrova. Dimitrova (340) and Chaussee (318) are No. 2 and No. 3 in the league in total kills. Those two are a major reason why the Rise have the second-most kills in the league with 1,108 which translates to a league-leading 58.32 kills per match average for Grand Rapids.
Dimitrova has also stood out from a defensive standpoint as well, collecting the seventh most digs in the league with 233 which is more than Rise starting libero Sarah Sponcil who has 230.
The middle blockers for each team will also be another high point of interest. Friday will feature three of the top five block leaders in the Pro Volleyball Federation. The Supernovas’ Hristina Vuchkova leads that trio at No. 2 with 57 blocks in 16 matches which equates to a league-leading 3.56 blocks per match average. Grand Rapids middle Marin Grote sits at No. 3 in the league with 56 blocks while Omaha’s Tori Dixon is No. 4 with 50 blocks.
Omaha hits the road again after Friday, visiting the Columbus Fury for a Saturday night showdown on May 4 at Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m. CDT with Omaha making its second-straight appearance on CBS Sports Network. Fans can also listen to the Supernovas Radio Network spearheaded by its flagship station 93.7 The Ticket.
