This Week’s Match
RISE vs. Atlanta Vibe // Sun., Feb. 18 // 4 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: 96.1 The Game at 3:45 p.m.
Watch: YouTube at 4 p.m.
Season Series: Second of four meetings overall, first of two at Van Andel Arena. The Rise won the first match on Feb. 9 in Atlanta, 3-1, by set scores of 25-20, 21-25, 25-22, 25-22.
All-Time Series: 1-0 Overall, 0-0 Home
Noteworthy: Grand Rapids plays an opponent it has already faced for this first time in the franchise’s history. The Vibe (4-1 overall) enter the match with the best record in the League and look to avenge their lone loss handed to them by the Rise.
So, We Meet Again: For the third time in this inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation season, two teams will face each other for a second time. Atlanta had the first League rematch on Monday, Feb. 12, when it beat Orlando again to improve to 4-1 overall. The Omaha Supernovas and Vegas Thrill will also have played twice after their upcoming match this Thursday. Vegas won the first affair, 3-2.
In the first meeting between the Rise and Vibe, Grand Rapids won sets one, three, and four on the road to dethrone previously unbeaten Atlanta. The Rise had more kills (54-52), blocks (10-9), aces (4-2), and a better hitting percentage (.237-.213). Three Rise players finished with double-digit kill totals: Symone Abbott (16), Emiliya Dimitrova (13), and Claire Chaussee (12). The team's .424 attack percentage in a 25-22 third set win remains a season high.
Recoup and Reload: The Rise are coming off a four-set marathon loss to the Omaha Supernovas on Monday, Feb. 12. It was the franchise's first loss but a spectacle for the home crowd. After the Rise won the opening set and kept their streak alive of winning the first set in every match so far this season, the Supernovas fended off 11 set points to take the next two frames 33-31 and 30-28. The second set took 41 minutes from start to finish. The duration of the entire match was two hours and 42 minutes — the second-longest match in Pro Volleyball Federation history despite only going four sets.
Mini Milestones: The following minor individual achievements were eclipsed on Monday against the Omaha Supernovas:
- 50 Kills, 150 Attack Attempts: Claire Chaussee
- 100 Assists: Ashley Evans
- 50 Digs: Sarah Sponcil
- First Double-Double: Symone Abbott and Ashley Evans
- First Five-Plus Block Match: Marin Grote
- First 20-Plus Dig Match: Sarah Sponcil
Mac’s Debut Match: Rise setter Mac Podraza made her first appearance for Grand Rapids in the fourth set against Omaha. She subbed in for starter Ashley Evans, who had tossed up 43 assists and added 10 digs and three blocks. With the Rise trailing 10-4 in the frame, Podraza came in and helped spur on a rally to get Grand Rapids within a point four times at 18-17, 19-18, 20-19, and 21-20. However, the Rise couldn't overtake and extend the match to a fifth set. Podraza finished with nine assists, four digs and a block. Out of the 14 players on the active roster, 11 have now played in at least one set for the Rise.
Vegas Claims Sauer: The Rise had outside hitter Kenna Sauer claimed off their practice squad Tuesday and added to the Vegas Thrill’s active roster. Sauer was selected as the 18th overall pick in the third round of the inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation draft held in December. The Ankeny, Iowa, native played for three different colleges during her five-year collegiate career: Houston (2023), Texas Tech (2021-22) and Missouri (2019-21). In 112 college matches, Sauer accumulated 1,233 kills, 900 digs, 197 blocks, and 73 aces. Sauer was a three-time All-Big 12 First Team selection and was named a 2023 AVCA Third Team All-American. Sauer became the first player in Pro Volleyball Federation history to be claimed off a team’s practice squad.
Award-Winning Vibes: Atlanta picked up the first two Pro Volleyball Federation weekly award winners to start the season with two different players. Adora Anae of the Orlando Valkyries prevented a Vibe three-peat by winning this week’s weekly award.
- Week 1: Alli Linnehan, OH, Atlanta Vibe. Linnehan started every set of both five-set matches for the Vibe, posting 2.0 kills per set in the victories over Omaha and Orlando. She led the team with 23 digs in the team’s win over the Valkyries, the most of any Atlanta outside hitter for this week.
- Week 2: Leah Edmond, OH, Atlanta Vibe. Edmond helped the Vibe to a sweep of the San Diego Mojo in the Atlanta home opener, as her team improved to 3-0 on the season. She tallied 16 kills in only three sets (5.3 per set), hitting at a .407 clip.
- Week 3: Adora Anae, OH, Orlando Valkyries. Anae aided her team to a 1-1 week, as she led both teams in points in each outing while starting every set. Against the Vegas Thrill, she recorded 18 points (13 kills, two blocks, three aces) as Orlando notched its first victory of the season.
Rise – Vibe Connections: Atlanta Vibe head coach Todd Dagenais graduated from Central Michigan ('95) and spent five seasons with the Michigan State women's volleyball team from 1998-2003 serving as the associate head coach. He left the program before Rise head coach Cathy George took over as MSU's head coach in 2005.
The Rise don't have any players from Georgia, and the Vibe don't have any players from Michigan, but there is some familiarity between the players. Claire Chaussee and Tori Dilfer-Stringer played together at Louisville (2019-21), and there are a several players who played with/against each other in the Athletes Unlimited Pro League.
Crowd Support: The Rise followed up a sellout crowd of 7,805 fans for the franchise’s first match on Jan. 25 with 4,060 spectators inside Van Andel Arena for a Feb. 12, Monday night showdown against the Omaha Supernovas. The YouTube stream of Monday’s match currently has over 50,000 views. The Feb. 9 match at Atlanta has over 42,000 views and the home opener has 76,000-plus for a three-match total over 168,000 views. More than 585,000 viewers have streamed Pro Volleyball Federation matches on YouTube this season.
Two Franchises, Two Wins: Feb. 9 marked the first time in nearly 17 years that two DP Fox Sports & Entertainment franchises won on the same night. On March 4, 2007, the Griffins won 3-1 at Rochester and the Arena Football League’s Rampage triumphed 44-42 at Colorado. The two teams last played on the same date on April 5, 2008. The next time the Rise and Griffins play on the same date will be March 1, with the Griffins at home against Iowa and the Rise at Orlando.
Photo by Mark Newman