SAN DIEGO, Cali. — The Grand Rapids Rise dropped a hard-fought 5 set match Monday night in California.
The Rise roared out in set one, taking it 25-16. Emiliya, Dimitrova, Claire Chaussee, Symone Abbott, and Nia Grant all contributed to multi-point runs, the longest being the set's final 6 points, setting a new franchise record for consecutive points scored.
The second and third sets were dominated by the Mojo's, going 25-19 and 25-17.
It wasn't all bad news in those sets, middle blocker Alyssa Jensen logged her first professional league kill in the second set, and Morgahn Fingall made her professional debut after being picked 4th overall in last year's college draft. Fingall got her first kill late in the third set.
Twelve of the fourteen players on the Rise active roster played in Monday’s match.
Set four saw the Rise battle back from an early 9-5 deficit, then take a late lead to win 25-22. Strong defense at the net led the comeback, with Dimitrova, Abbott, and Marin Grote all logging key stops.
San Diego controlled the pace of play in set five, putting the match away with a 15-9 final.
Both Dimitrova and Chaussee finished with a double-double. Dimitrova managed 21 kills and 14 digs, Chaussee set a new personal season high with 23 kills to go with 10 digs and two aces. Setter Ashley Evans also joined the double-double club with 41 assists and 11 digs.
The Mojo blocked the Rise a season-high 13 times, which limited the Grand Rapids offense to a .233 attack percentage.
The Rise fall to 3-4 on the season, the first time the women have been below .500. Two of the loses came to San Diego. The Mojo's have just two wins on the season.
Monday's are not kind to the Rise. The club is 0-2 that day of the week.
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