This Week’s Match
RISE (11-12) vs. Omaha Supernovas (15-7) // Sun., May 12 // 5:30 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: 96.1 The Game at 5:15 p.m.
Watch: CBS Sports Network at 5:30 p.m.
Season Series: 0-3 Overall, 0-1 Home. Fourth of four meetings overall, second of two at Van Andel Arena
Noteworthy: Grand Rapids and Omaha square off in the final match of the 2024 Pro Volleyball Federation inaugural regular season. Both teams have already clinched a postseason berth in the four-team Pro Volleyball Federation Championship happening May 15-18 in Omaha, Nebraska, at the CHI Health Center. The Rise snapped a three-match losing streak on Sunday by sweeping the San Diego Mojo. The Supernovas have won three straight and will host the Columbus Fury on Thursday, May 9, in their regular-season finale before coming to Grand Rapids. This will be the third Grand Rapids’ match (second at Van Andel Arena) being broadcast nationally by CBS Sports Network.
Omaha Bound: With a 3-0 win over the Mojo on May 5, the Rise clinched a postseason berth next week in Omaha. Seeding for the final two spots has yet to be decided. Grand Rapids could end up as the No. 3 seed and face the Supernovas twice in four days, or slot in as the No. 4 seed and go up against the top-seeded Atlanta Vibe, whom they’ve defeated twice in four tries.
San Diego earned the final postseason spot on Tuesday night with a 3-0 win over the Fury. The Mojo will be the No. 3 seed in the playoffs if they win either of their last two regular-season matches against the Orlando Valkyries on Thursday or at Columbus on Saturday. Should San Diego lose both of those contests, the Rise could then step in and take the No. 3 seed with a victory over the Supernovas on Sunday in the regular-season finale.
Heading into the Sunset: After a 17-year career, opposite hitter Emiliya Dimitrova is retiring from professional volleyball at the end of this season. The Rise captain currently leads the League in kills per set (4.31) and is second in points per set (4.81). Dimitrova made her pro debut in 2007 with Slavia Sofia in Bulgaria when she was 16 years old. She had played for 13 different club teams in six countries (Bulgaria, Italy, Turkey, Romania, Japan, and France) before coming to the United States in 2023. In her future endeavors, she aims to pursue a career as an elementary school teacher while expanding her family in Bulgaria with her husband, Rise assistant coach Denis Dimitrov.
Motherly Instincts: After playing on St. Patrick’s Day on March 17, Grand Rapids will take to the court Sunday on a second public holiday this season: Mother’s Day. Rise players Dimitrova and Holland, Michigan, native Alyssa Jensen are both mothers with young daughters. Rise head coach Cathy George has two sons, T.J. and Conner, who are both Michigan State graduates.
Dig Dug High Score: Four Rise players have a realistic opportunity to finish the regular season with the most digs on the team. At the start of April, libero Sarah Sponcil looked like she was going to have the most by a landslide. But, since then, Camila Gómez has taken over the starting libero duties over the last nine matches. That has allowed Claire Chaussee (248), Dimitrova (247), and Ashley Evans (233) to catch up with Sponcil, who now is third on the team with 237 digs.
Set for Success: Rise setter Evans is on the cusp of making history as the first Pro Volleyball Federation player to reach the 1,000-assist plateau. Evans currently leads the League with 960 assists this season (10.91 per set) and is averaging 41.7 assists per match. She recorded a double-double in both matches against San Diego this past weekend with 42 assists and 19 digs on May 4 followed by 34 assists and 11 digs on May 5. Evans has 12 double-doubles this season, which is tied for second most on the team with Dimitrova. Chaussee leads the way with 15 double-doubles this season.
Spike Control: The Rise hit .296 in the playoff-clinching sweep over San Diego. It was their second-highest attacking percentage this year, with a season-low 11 attack errors. It was also the team's best hitting percentage in a win and only the third time they have hit over .275 this season. Marin Grote (6 kills, 0 attack errors, 15 swings, .400), Erika Pritchard (10-1-23, .391), and Dimitrova (13-2-29, .379) were the leading catalysts in powering the Rise's efficient offense. Grote had a team-high .543 hitting percentage across both matches against the Mojo this past weekend with 19 kills and no attacking errors on 35 attack attempts.
Then There was One: The only team the Rise hasn't beaten this season is the Omaha Supernovas. Grand Rapids has gotten agonizingly close in three attempts, with seven of the nine sets that they have lost being decided by four points or less — including four of them by two points. The last meeting between the two teams lasted five sets on April 26 in Omaha. The Rise won the second and fourth sets before dropping the fifth frame, 15-7. Across the three head-to-heads, Omaha is averaging more kills (66-61.7), attacking errors (23-20), digs (83.3-79), aces (4.7-3.3), and serving errors (11-8.7) per match. The Supernovas also boast a slightly higher hitting percentage (.232 to .226).
Mini Milestones Tracker: The following achievements were accomplished in the May 5 match against the San Diego Mojo:
- Chaussee: Team-leading 375th kill;
- Dimitrova and Kayla Caffey: 30 blocks this season;
- Grote: Fifth match hitting .400 or better (minimum 10 attack attempts) — most on the team, and no other Rise player has achieved this feat more than two times.
Set-By-Set Breakdown: A look at how the Rise have fared across the different sets:
- First Set: 16-7 with a +54 point differential (563-509);
- Second Set: 13-10 with a -12 differential (517-529);
- Third Set: 8-15 with a -10 point differential (535-545);
- Fourth Set: 9-10 with a -5 point differential (442-447);
- Fifth Set: 2-4 with a -13 point differential (67-80).
With one regular-season match remaining, Grand Rapids has a +14 point differential (2,124-2,110) and is 48-46 across all sets played. The Rise are 10-16 in sets decided by the minimum of two points and 22-19 in sets decided by five points or more.
Rise – Supernovas Connections: Paths that will cross again when Grand Rapids faces Omaha:
- Omaha interim head coach Laura "Bird" Kuhn was the head coach at Texas A&M from 2018-22 and brought in Rise player Gómez from Miami Dade College (NJCAA) to be her starting libero for the Aggies' 2019 season.
- Rise setter Evans, along with Supernovas' players Brooke Nuneviller and Danielle Hart, have played/trained with the United States women's indoor volleyball national team that has qualified for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
- Omaha outside hitter Maggie King was a five-year starter, four-time First Team All-MAC member for the Western Michigan women’s volleyball team from 2019-23.
Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Rise