Omaha Supernovas
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Omaha Supernovas, Nebraska's professional volleyball team and first pro volleyball champions, used team grit and superb performances from its pins to complete a 25-21, 25-23, 25-22 sweep over the Grand Rapids Rise (0-2) Sunday night at Van Andel Arena in a Rise record crowd of 8,706.
The trio of Natalia Valentín-Anderson, Brooke Nuneviller and Reagan Cooper spearheaded an improved Omaha (2-0) offense from opening night that hit .253, compared to a .187 hitting percentage on Friday against Atlanta. Valentín-Anderson — Puerto Rico's starting setter in the 2016 Rio Olympics — dished out 42 assists, 11 digs, four kills and an ace in an all-around performance despite worse passing from two nights ago.
She also recovered from a hard face-to-face collision with Nuneviller in the second set. Both her and the Oregon product shook it off as Nuneviller went on to finish with 15 kills on a .353 hitting percentage with 19 digs. Cooper recovered from a rough opening night to end with a match-high 16 kills (.273) and 12 digs with an ace.
Kayla Caffey led all Omaha middle blockers with seven kills on a .235 clip with five digs. Kaitlyn Hord was limited offensively with three kills, but came up with a pair of blocks to move her season total to nine in two matches. Kelsie Payne tallied seven kills on the night while Ally Batenhorst killed three balls on five swings in the place of Nuneviller in the second set. Libero Camila Gómez recorded 12 digs and three assists.
2024 Greek League MVP Sherridan Atkinson led the Rise with 12 kills on a .344 clip with eight digs and one block. Erika Pritchard came off the bench for 12 kills on a .417 hitting percentage with 11 digs in two sets.
Full stats can be found here.
Key Notes
- The Supernovas move to 5-1 all-time against the Rise which is its second-highest win percentage against any team in the PVF (.833). The only one higher being Orlando in which Omaha is unbeaten against (4-0).
- Dating back to last season's PVF championship, it's the second-straight win for Omaha over Grand Rapids.
- Valentín-Anderson has found major success against the Rise. In three career matches versus Grand Rapids, the Puerto Rican has averaged 12.63 assists and 4.0 digs per set along with eight kills and one ace in eight sets.
- Since last season's championship match, Nuneviller has posted at least 12 kills and 15 digs in three-straight matches.
Set 1: The Rise took an early 3-2 lead, but a Cooper kill and ace resulted in a 3-0 run for a 5-3 lead. That advantage grew to 8-5 with a trio of kills from Nuneviller, Payne and Caffey. Grand Rapids kept within arm's reach with a few errors from Omaha and an Atkinson termination. After being tied at 12, a 3-0 run from the Supernovas off a pair of Nuneviller kills kept the momentum rolling. An extended rally ending in a Cooper kill snowballed into a 4-1 run for Omaha to take a commanding 21-15 lead. Cooper succeeded on her second swing of a rally to give Omaha set point before a net violation ended the opening set with a 25-21 Supernovas victory. Cooper teed off for seven kills on a .353 hitting percentage while Nuneviller and Caffey tallied four of their own.
Set 2: The second set began like the first with tight back-and-forth action, but Omaha gained the early advantage with a 4-0 run jump started by two Rise hitting errors and kills from Batenhorst — who came in for an injured Nuneviller after the collison with Valentín-Anderson — and Cooper. The Supernovas were startled from the hard impact with its two core players as Grand Rapids middle blocker Ali Bastianelli came off the bench to serve a 6-0 run to give the Rise an 11-9 lead. Cooper followed up with two kills and an ace from Valentín-Anderson to regain the edge. Neither team would gain a lead larger than two points for the rest of the set, and Grand Rapids took the upper hand with a kill from Carli Snyder to give the Rise a 23-22 lead. Then Nuneviller went into overdrive, terminating on her next three swings for a trio of points to give Omaha a 25-23 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Set 3: Trailing 4-2 early, the Supernovas rallied off a 4-0 run from two Nuneviller kills, a Valentín-Anderson tally and a Payne ace to take a 6-4 lead. Cooper extended her match-leading kill total with two more to put the score at 9-6 Omaha. Pritchard found an offensive groove off the bench for the Rise with two kills and a block from rookie setter Camryn Turner and Alyssa Jensen for Grand Rapids to take a 15-14 advantage. Tied at 21 in the redzone, the Supernovas once again elevated its play in crunch time as Caffey and Cooper executed on swings to give Omaha match point. A Cooper attack set up a tough out-of-system set for Jensen — a middle blocker — who's effort resulted in a four-hit violation, giving Omaha a 25-22 set win and a second consecutive sweep of the Rise.
After finishing a perfect opening weekend, the Supernovas continue its two-match road swing with a visit to the Vegas Thrill on Friday, January 17 with first serve set for 9 p.m. CST. The match will be streamed live on the PVF's YouTube Channel.
Omaha returns home two days later to face the San Diego Mojo on Sunday, January 19 at 3 p.m. CST with Nebraska Public Media providing television coverage.
Every match this season can be heard on the Supernovas Radio Network, led by its flagship station KCRO 660 AM as part of Walnut Media. The SRN can be heard in five states with the support of its affiliates in KXCB Bluffs Country 106.5 FM, Boomer Radio 106.7 FM, ESPN Tri Cities, KNCY in Nebraska City, KGMT in Fairbury and KSID-AM in Sidney.
ABOUT OMAHA SUPERNOVAS
The Omaha Supernovas are the premier home of professional volleyball, boasting the No. 1 Pro Volleyball average attendance in the world. The Supernovas 2025 season will begin in January. The team is owned by global music sensation Jason Derulo and entrepreneur Danny White, Co-Founder of City+Ventures, an investment and business acceleration organization headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.
ABOUT PRO VOLLEYBALL FEDERATION
Pro Volleyball Federation is the leading professional volleyball league in the United States. PVF sets the standard for the sport, offering the largest number of franchises, unmatched attendance, extensive broadcast coverage and substantial championship prize money. It combines top-tier talent, including NCAA stars and international athletes, with cutting-edgeproduction and technology to provide fans with an unmatched viewing experience. As a vital link between collegiate volleyball and the professional stage, PVF is dedicated to shaping the future of the sport and increasing visibility for its athletes. For more information, visit ProVolleyball.com.