OMAHA, Neb. — The Omaha Supernovas, the world’s leading professional volleyball franchise, opened the 2026 season in dominant fashion, bulldozing the San Diego Mojo on Thursday night in front of 9,538 fans at the CHI Health Center.
Freshly signed over the offseason, outside hitter and team captain Sarah Parsons set new franchise records in her first outing as a Supernova, tallying 17 kills (.325), three blocks, three digs and one ace for 21 points, which are new highs for points and kills in a three-set match. Having won six medals with Omaha head coach Luka Slabe with the U.S. Women’s National Team, Parsons was the offensive workhorse, recording 40 attacks — 15 more than second-place Merritt Beason. The former Nebraska All-American finished with seven kills, 10 digs, three blocks and one ace as the second-leading point scorer with 11. Fellow team captain Brooke Nuneviller channeled her inner libero — a position she played in college at Oregon — posting a match-high 16 digs while adding six kills and an ace.
Both Omaha middle blockers starred in their franchise debuts as Creighton alum Elise Goatzinger collected seven kills on a .545 clip with two aces and one block. Her counterpart, Janice Leao, had six kills (.333) and a block after signing from Columbus over the offseason.
Setter Sydney Hilley enjoyed the feeling of being back in Supernovas colors, dishing out 38 assists (12.67 A/S), six digs, two aces and one kill in her first match with Omaha since winning the inaugural MLV Championship in 2024. All-League libero Morgan Hentz sprawled her way to 11 digs and added three assists.
San Diego’s Grace Loberg led the Mojo with nine kills, while former Supernovas middle blocker Kayla Caffey put down eight kills with a block and an ace.
The Supernovas hit the road for the first time this season Saturday, facing the Columbus Fury (1-0), who defeated Atlanta on Thursday in four sets. First serve is set for 6 p.m. CST at Nationwide Arena. The match will stream on MLV’s YouTube channel and be carried statewide on the Supernovas Radio Network.
Key Notes
- Omaha’s seven aces tied the season high from the 2025 squad — a mark that was reached just once.
- Aside from the first-ever Supernovas match in 2024, Thursday’s crowd of 9,538 was the highest-attended weekday match in franchise history.
- Luka Slabe became the first head coach in team history to earn a win in his debut match.
Set One: Beason tallied her first career Supernovas kill to mark Omaha’s first point of the 2026 season. A pair of Mojo errors opened the door for Omaha, as Beason added her second kill and Goatzinger recorded a block for an early 5-2 lead. San Diego answered with a 6-0 run, capitalizing on three blocks to take an 8-5 advantage. Off the back of three San Diego attacking errors, the Supernovas answered with a 6-1 run of their own to reclaim the lead, 11-9. The Mojo quickly tied the set, but Goatzinger’s serve sparked a 4-0 run, highlighted by two blocks and a kill from Parsons, plus a Hilley stuff. After middle blocker Marin Grote sided out to snap the streak, Parsons followed with two kills to push the lead to 18-14. Loberg answered with a block and kill to trim the deficit to three. Both sides traded points before Parsons and Beason recorded back-to-back kills for set point (24-20). The Mojo didn’t flinch, using Loberg’s arm to score three straight points and cut the lead to one. Parsons responded, terminating from the left side to secure the deuce win, 25-23.
Parsons (six kills) and Beason (five kills) led the way offensively as Omaha hit .100 with four blocks and one ace. San Diego struggled at .075 with seven blocks and no aces.
Set Two: San Diego opened the second set with a 3-0 lead, quickly halted by back-to-back Parsons kills. An Omaha service error followed, but after a Beason kill, the teams traded points, keeping the Mojo in front, 8-5. San Diego hurt itself with a pair of errors while Beason and Goatzinger each scored to give Omaha a 9-8 edge. The Mojo responded with a kill from Jovana Brakocevic to tie it again. The teams remained deadlocked through the middle of the set before Parsons and Beason delivered consecutive kills, followed by a Goatzinger ace, for a 3-0 run and a 20-18 Omaha lead. A service error and a Maya Tabron ace tied it at 20, but another quick 3-0 spurt from the Supernovas put the set away. Parsons delivered set point, and Nuneviller finished from the left side for a 25-21 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Omaha found its rhythm offensively, hitting .405 with seven kills from Parsons (.389), along with two blocks and one ace. The Mojo hit .263, led by three kills each from Brakocevic and Caffey.
Set Three: The Supernovas opened the third with a Hilley ace, a Parsons kill and a Mojo hitting error before a Hilley serve into the net ended the run. San Diego later tied the set at 6-6 on a Caffey kill, but a Beason ace and another Parsons termination restored a two-point Omaha lead. From there, the Supernovas took control. San Diego struggled to generate offense, relying mostly on Omaha errors and a Brakocevic kill while falling behind 16-11. Parsons, Nuneviller and Goatzinger combined for a 3-0 run to extend the lead to 22-14. Former Nebraska standout Hayden Kubik checked in for her first professional action, but a hitting error gave Omaha match point. Opposite Morgan Lewis then sent a ball long, sealing a 25-16 third-set win and the sweep.
The Supernovas excelled offensively, hitting .346 with just two errors on 26 swings and 11 kills. Omaha served San Diego out of the building, recording five of its seven aces in the final set. The Mojo hit .207 with one block and no aces.
