OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha Supernovas, Nebraska’s professional volleyball team and first pro volleyball champions, hosted another historic crowd Saturday night at the CHI Health Center, welcoming 12,514 for the fifth-largest crowd in U.S. pro volleyball history, despite a 25-27, 19-25, 18-25 setback to the Atlanta Vibe (17-8).
With Saturday’s crowd, the Supernovas (17-7) have now hosted the 14 most attended professional volleyball matches in U.S. history, including 18 of the top 20. Five of the top eight have come during the 2025 season alone, which has seen Omaha’s home average rise to 11,241 fans per match through 12 home contests. Across franchise history, the Supernovas are responsible for six crowds exceeding 12,000 and have drawn more than 11,000 fans 11 separate times.
Despite the loss, the Supernovas remain ½ game ahead of the Vibe for first place in the PVF with a game in hand. Omaha, Atlanta and Orlando have all secured their spots in the PVF Semifinals, which is set for May 9 at Lee’s Family Form in Vegas.
The Supernovas’ offense was held in check with a .188 team hitting percentage, as superstar outside hitter Brooke Nuneviller led the way with a 11-kill, 11-dig double-double. Reagan Cooper added eight kills and eight digs while opposite Kelsie Payne put up similar numbers with seven kills and six digs. Ally Batenhorst came off the bench and hammered down three kills on five swings in relief.
Rookie middle blocker Phoebe Awoleye played well in her second-straight career start, collecting five kills on a .417 clip with a block and one dig. Kaitlyn Hord chipped in a kill and produced two of the team’s eight blocks. Setter Natalia Valentín-Anderson gave out 21 assists and 10 digs. Mac Podraza racked up 10 assists, one block and one kill in two sets of playing time. All-star libero Camila Gómez posted 10 digs and a pair of assists.
Aiko Jones and Leah Edmond were the two-headed monster for the Vibe as Jones racked up a match-high 13 kills on a .571 clip while Edmond finished with 12 kills (.308), nine digs and a pair of blocks. Atlanta hit .345 with seven blocks and one ace to extend their PVF record winning streak to 11 matches.
The Supernovas are next in action next Friday, April 25 on Kiewit Court at the CHI Health Center for a special “Volleyball After Dark” doubleheader. The Creighton and Omaha college volleyball programs will play in a spring match at 5 p.m. CDT before the Supernovas host the Columbus Fury at 8 p.m. CDT. The Supernovas’ match will be broadcast statewide on News Channel Nebraska and can also be heard on the Supernovas Radio Network.
Key Notes
- With her 11-kill, 11-dig performance on Saturday, Brooke Nuneviller recorded her 15th double-double of the season which is second most among attackers in the PVF. Plus, it was her 14th consecutive match with double-digit kills.
- Rookie Phoebe Awoleye has excelled in her first two career starts, combining to produce 10 kills (.360) and three blocks across six sets.
- Atlanta setter Marlie Monserez set a PVF record with 46 assists—the most ever in a three-set match. The Vibe’s 53 team assists also marked a league record for a three-set contest.
Set 1: The match kicked off with a service error from Atlanta, giving Omaha the first point. Jones answered for the Vibe with a kill to tie the score. Omaha quickly regained the lead as Awoleye hammered a kill on a slide before Khori Louis responded with a kill for Atlanta. Payne and Nuneviller each registered a kill for Omaha before an Edmond kill kept the Vibe within striking distance. After a few errors on both sides, Micaya White put down a kill to push the Vibe ahead. Omaha responded with a pair of blocks from Hord and Payne to take an 8-5 lead into the media timeout. Louis and Edmond answered with kills for Atlanta, but Payne added two kills of her own. Then, the Vibe went on a four-point run featuring kills by Edmond and Jones, along with two Omaha errors to take a 13-11 lead. The Supernovas fought back with two kills from Cooper and a block from Payne. Setter Marlie Monserez threw down a kill for the Vibe before Hord and Jones traded kills to tie it at 15. Then, Jones added another kill for the Vibe, but Omaha sided out with an Atlanta attacking error. Awoleye answered with a kill for Omaha before Edmond struck again for the Vibe. Nuneviller kept the Supernovas in it with a kill, but Louis posted a block. Cooper added another kill for Omaha before Anna Dixon found the floor with her first kill to extend Atlanta’s lead to 22-19. Nuneviller and Payne both posted kills, but two Omaha errors gave the Vibe match point at 24-22. Cooper kept things alive with a kill and Nuneviller followed for the team’s fourth block of the set to force a timeout at 24-23. A Vibe attack went wide to tie the score at 24, but an Omaha service error gave Atlanta another shot at set point. Nuneviller answered by tooling the block. However, Jones and Edmond sealed the set for the Vibe with back-to-back kills to take the first set 27-25.
The Supernovas hit .161 with four blocks as Nuneviller, Cooper and Payne all registered four kills apiece. Atlanta hit better at .189 with one block. Jones powered the Vibe attack with six kills with Edmond adding five.
Set 2: Atlanta took the first point off an Omaha attacking error, but the Supernovas quickly responded with a kill from Awoleye. The Vibe answered with a kill from Jones, and Nuneviller tied it up at 2-2 with a kill of her own. McKenna Vicini then found the floor for her first point of the match, followed by a kill from Edmond to give Atlanta a 4-2 lead. Cooper added a kill for Omaha, but a pair of kills from Edmond and Louis put the Vibe up 6-3. Omaha sided out with an Atlanta service error, but Louis and Edmond continued to control the net for Atlanta. Nuneviller kept Omaha in it with a kill, but White’s kill extended the Vibe’s lead to 8-5. White posted another kill to keep the lead at three, but Awoleye jumpstarted a 3-0 run with a kill and block, plus a Cooper kill to give Omaha a 10-9 lead. White and Vicini added kills for the Vibe to retake the lead, but Valentín-Anderson tallied a kill to tie the set again. A flurry exchange of points followed before Louis and White connected on back-to-back swings for a 17-15 Atlanta lead. Nuneviller cut the deficit to one with a kill, but White put down two more kills to give the Vibe a 19-16 advantage. Payne answered with a kill, but Vicini came back with one of her own for Atlanta. Cooper added another kill, but Atlanta pushed ahead with kills from Taylor Head and Jones. A block by Louis extended the lead to 23-17 – forcing a Supernovas timeout. Hord posted a block for Omaha out of the break, but Edmond and Jones finished off the set with a kill each, securing a 25-19 win for Atlanta and a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Supernovas hit .235 with two blocks. Nuneviller and Cooper put down three kills each. The Vibe hit a staggering .472 with two blocks as well. Edmond and White spearheaded the Atlanta attack with five kills apiece.
Set 3: The Vibe started the set strong with a kill from Edmond, but Payne quick replied with a kill to tie the set. White was a catalyst for a 6-1 Atlanta run as she compiled two kills while Jones added a kill and block to force an Omaha timeout at 7-2. Out of the break, Nuneviller and Cooper each recorded kills before Monserez put down a kill of her own. Edmond added a block for the Vibe to make it 9-4. Podraza stepped up for the Supernovas off the bench with a block, but Vicini’s kill pushed the Vibe to a 10-5 lead. Nuneviller slammed down another kill, but Louis and Jones kept the pressure on Omaha with a kill and an ace. Then, Batenhorst subbed in late and added a kill for the Supernovas. Emily Londot and Podraza created some momentum with back-to-back points, but a quick 4-1 run from Atlanta built the lead to 17-10 Vibe. Batenhorst added another kill and Nuneviller followed by putting away an overpass. The Vibe responded with a four-point run with kills from Vicini, Edmond and Jones, along with a block from Edmond to make it 21-12. Awoleye sided out for Omaha with a kill before Vicini and Nuneviller exchanged points. Merritt Beason made her presence known late with a pair of kills for Atlanta to push the lead to 24-14. Omaha mounted a late rally with a 4-0 run fueled by Londot and Batenhorst kills, plus a block. Atlanta closed out the set 25-18 on an Omaha service error, securing the 3-0 win for the Vibe.
The Supernovas hit .184 with two blocks as Nuneviller once again led Omaha with four kills. The Atlanta offense caught on fire again with a .467 clip in the set with four blocks and its lone ace in the match. Vicini put down four kills on six swings for a .667 clip to lead the Vibe.
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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.
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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.