This Week’s Match
RISE (8-12) vs. Vegas Thrill (8-11) // Sat., April 5 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: 96.1 The Game at 6:45 p.m.
Watch: CBS Sports Network at 7 p.m.
Season Series: 1-2 Overall, 0-1 Home. Fourth of four meetings overall, second of two at Van Andel Arena
All-Time Regular Season Series: 4-3 Overall, 1-2 Home
Noteworthy: The Rise have played three-set (won 3-0), four-set (lost 3-1), and five-set (lost 3-2) matches against the Thrill this season. Both teams have won six sets, with the Rise outscoring Vegas by 13 points (285-272). Vegas won the season opener on Jan. 10 in a reverse sweep. A Rise win would give Grand Rapids 20 all-time sets won against the Thrill, the most the team has won against any opponent in the League.
Late Surge Required: The Rise enter Saturday's contest against the Vegas Thrill four matches back of a playoff spot, with just eight matches remaining. Although the Rise don’t control their own destiny, they still have a significant influence on the playoff race, as their final seven matches will all be against teams currently in the four postseason spots: Omaha Supernovas (twice, 14-5), Atlanta Vibe (once, 14-8), Indy Ignite (twice, 12-8), and Orlando Valkyries (twice, 12-8). The Rise are a combined 2-7 against those teams this season, with a five-set win at home against Orlando (Jan. 30) and a road sweep at Atlanta (Jan. 19).
Record-Setting Night: The Rise set multiple team records on March 28 against the Columbus Fury, including the longest match in franchise history, lasting 2 hours and 54 minutes.
Rookie setter Camryn Turner made her first professional start, delivering a team-record 55 assists while also adding 20 digs. Fellow rookie Elena Oglivie contributed 28 digs, breaking the previous team record by two. As a team, the Rise finished with 86 digs, tying the franchise’s all-time high.
Outside hitter Carli Snyder also topped her own team record, registering six aces in the win. In doing so, she surpassed teammate Marin Grote for the most career aces in a Rise uniform, with a total of 25. The team finished with nine aces overall, setting yet another franchise record.
Two New Faces: In the past two weeks, the Rise added two players to their roster. On March 27, they acquired rookie 6-foot-2 opposite hitter Devyn Robinson, who was waived by the San Diego Mojo. A first-round pick (5th overall) in the 2024 PVF Draft, Robinson was a three-time AVCA All-American at Wisconsin. After starting the season on injured reserve, she made her pro debut on Feb. 2.
On March 31, the Rise signed outside hitter/opposite hitter Eleanor Holthaus. A native of Richmond, Minnesota, Holthaus had a standout career at Iowa State and has played professionally in Puerto Rico and Germany — most recently with SC Potsdam. She was a four-time All-Big 12 First Team selection and finished her collegiate career with 1,516 kills, ranking fifth all-time at Iowa State.
Oglivie Eyes Rise Dig Record: Rise rookie libero Oglivie is just 25 digs shy of breaking the franchise single-season dig record set by Emiliya Dimitrova. Oglivie, with 250 digs so far this year, earned the starting libero spot four matches into the season. Dimitrova set the record with 275 digs during her final pro season with the Rise last year.
Rotating the Rotation: Whether out of necessity or a need to mix things up, Rise head coach Cathy George isn’t afraid to use her entire roster. Ten players have appeared in at least 40 sets this season, compared to just nine last year. Snyder is the only player to start every match and leads the team with 78 sets played. Twelve players have played in at least 10 matches this season.
Sneaky Turner: Rookie setter Turner started both matches last week, totaling 101 assists, 33 digs, and 13 kills on 23 attempts (.522). Her dump kill consistently caught opponents off guard. She has 26 kills on 51 attack attempts this year, for a team-high .431 hitting percentage.
Fourth Set Blues: Grand Rapids has dropped the fourth set in five straight matches, with four losses decided by a 25-22 score and the other by 27-25. The Rise started the season 3-1 in the fourth set but have since gone 1-8. Despite this, they’ve only been outscored 299-296 in the frame for the season.
The Great Wall: Through 20 matches, the Rise lead the League in total blocks (241) and blocks per set (3.05), thanks in part to standout blocker Ali Bastianelli, who ranks second in the League with 56 blocks. For comparison, the Rise had 243 blocks in 26 matches played last season. On March 2, Grand Rapids set a PVF record for blocks in a three-set match with 18 in a win over Vegas, also tying the team’s record for most blocks in any match. They matched the milestone on March 9 with another 18-block performance in San Diego.
Bastianelli has recorded at least one block in 18 straight matches, with three or more blocks in nine matches. She needs 13 more blocks to match Grote's record mark of 69 from last year.
Rise-Thrill Connections: Reunions when Grand Rapids takes on Vegas:
- Rise middle blocker Bastianelli and setter August Raskie played with Vegas Thrill opposite hitter Willow Johnson and outside hitter Grace Loberg last season with the San Diego Mojo. Johnson also played with Raskie at Oregon for three seasons (2016-18).
- A pair of PVF champions are on opposite sides, with Paige Briggs-Romine, the outside hitter for Rise, facing her former Omaha Supernovas teammate Kendall White. However, White was placed on the season-ending injury reserve on Feb. 21.
- Vegas setter Alisha Childress is from Leland, Michigan. Last season, she was recognized with PVF's first Most Inspirational Player award. She broke the PVF single-match record with 72 assists against the Rise on Jan. 10.
Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Rise