OMAHA, Neb. — In the first ever Professional Volleyball Federation championship game, the Grand Rapids Rise fall to Omaha in three straight sets.
The four seeded Rise earned a spot in the finals, with a chance to win one million dollars, after beating top ranked San Diego on Wednesday in the semi finals.
Claire Chaussee and Emiliya Dimitrova led the Rise with 12 points each in the championship match. Grand Rapids finished the season 13-13.
Playing on their home court and in front of a favorable crowd, the Supernovas (18-8) lifted the championship trophy, celebrated in the confetti, and collected the $1 million bonus after winning by set scores of 25-13, 26-24, 25-22.
Grand Rapids (13-13) entered the postseason as the fourth and final seed but pulled off a five-set upset against the top-seeded Atlanta Vibe in the semifinals on May 15. Three days later, the Rise came up short in their quest to become the first-ever Pro Volleyball Federation champions.
Omaha came out swinging with a lethal .615 hitting percentage on 17 kills, one attack error, and 26 swings in the opening set. Four different Supernovas had three or more kills, with three of them — Stephanie Samedy (4-for-4), Bethania De La Cruz (3-for-3), and Hristina Vuchkova (3-for-3) — hitting a perfect 100%. Brooke Nuneviller also had a team-high six kills (.500).
Rise captain Emiliya Dimitrova, who was playing her final professional match before retirement, scored the first point of the match with a kill that clipped the line. However, that moment turned out to be one of the few bright spots for the Rise in a 25-13 set one victory for Omaha.
A closer second frame was tied 17 times as the two teams continuously kept trading points. A kill from middle blocker Kayla Caffey and the only Rise ace of the contest by setter Ashley Evans put Grand Rapids two points away, 23-21, from leveling the title match at one set apiece. The Supernovas responded with a side-out kill from Samedy and another put down from De La Cruz. Tied at 24-24 after Rise outside hitter Claire Chaussee was awarded her eighth kill following a video review for an Omaha block touch, the Supernovas made sure not waste another set point. De La Cruz provided a side-out kill and Tori Dixon sealed the set at 26-24 with her second of two blocks. Omaha outblocked Grand Rapids, 7-4, in the match.
Omaha scored the first three points of the third set. Grand Rapids played catch up for most of the frame before a pair of Omaha attack errors allowed the Rise to finally draw even at 19-19. Dimitrova’s 12th and final pro kill kept the score level at 20-20. Omaha scored its final five points with a kill each from Nuneviller and Vuchkova, plus three Rise miscues — two serving errors and one attack error. The Supernovas won the final set 25-22.
The Rise ended with their second-fewest kills (37) this season with a .182 hitting percentage. Dimitrova (.235) and Chaussee (.212) both finished with a team-high 12 kills. Dimitrova also had 11 digs for her 13th double-double this season. Evans, who split time with Mac Podraza, tossed up 20 assists in the loss to finish with a League-best 1,073 for the inaugural season. Libero Camila Gómez collected 10 digs, giving her 11 matches with double-digit digs this year.
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