By Annie Walker

3 20 2024

This Week’s Match

RISE (4-5) at Columbus Fury (4-4) // Wed., March 20 // 7 p.m. // Nationwide Arena

Watch: YouTube at 7 p.m.

Season Series: 2-0 Overall, 0-0 Away. Third of four meetings overall, first of two at Nationwide Arena

Noteworthy: Grand Rapids looks to knock off Columbus for a third time this season. The Rise won both prior meetings at home with a 3-0 sweep in their inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation match on Jan. 25 and a 3-1 victory on March 9. Columbus has lost its last two matches after winning four in a row. The winner of this match will hold third in the League standings behind Atlanta (8-3) and Omaha (8-4).

Resetting After Vegas: The Vegas Thrill turned the tables against the Rise on Sunday by becoming the first Pro Volleyball Federation team to complete a reverse sweep — losing the first two sets before winning the next three. Grand Rapids looked in control after taking the first two frames by the same score of 25-21, with the Rise hitting .357 across the two sets. Vegas scored the first four points of the third set and never looked back.

The Thrill locked in defensively and held the Rise to a .174 hitting percentage across the last three sets. Vegas had 12 of its 17 blocks in sets three, four, and five. Rise opposite hitter Emiliya Dimitrova was heavily targeted, as she was blocked seven times. Vegas middle blocker Layne Van Buskirk registered six blocks alone for the most rejections any opposing player has had against the Rise this season.

Caffey Returns: After being sidelined for four matches, Rise middle blocker Kayla Caffey returned to the court for the Rise on March 17 against the Thrill. Caffey subbed in during the second set and went on to rack up seven kills on 10 attack attempts. She also had two blocks and an assist in four sets played. Caffey is hitting a team-high .444 attack percentage and has two or more blocks in four out of the five matches she has played in this season.

Broom Getting Dusty: Since sweeping the Fury in the season opener on Jan. 25, the Rise have only played in four and five set matches. Sweeps have been uncommon for the entire League with only eight happening in the 36 matches played so far (22.2%). There have been 17 four-set matches (47.2%) and 11 five-set matches (30.6%).

Grand Rapids and Omaha are the only two teams that have completed a sweep this season and haven’t been swept themselves. Columbus, Vegas, and Atlanta comprise the three teams that have completed a sweep and have also been swept this year. The two teams that haven’t won 3-0 are Orlando and San Diego. The last eight Pro Volleyball Federation matches have all gone four or five sets, with the last sweep coming on March 4 when Atlanta took care of Vegas, 3-0.

Rise-Fury Connections: Former college teammates between the two squads include:

• Rise setter Mac Podraza played four seasons (2019-22) with Fury outside hitter Jenaisya Moore at Ohio State;
• Columbus middle blocker Kaitlyn Hord and Rise outside hitter Erika Pritchard played at Penn State together in 2021. Pritchard also played with Fury middle blocker Rainelle Jones at Maryland (2018-20). From 2012-14, Rise middle blocker Nia Grant and Fury outside hitter Megan Courtney Lush were also teammates at Penn State;
• Recently acquired Columbus setter Tori Stringer and Rise outside hitter Claire Chaussee played together at Louisville (2019-21);
• The Columbus Fury’s first overall pick in the 2023 college draft, Asjia O’Neal, was on the 2022 NCAA championship Texas team with Rise middle blocker Caffey.

One Extreme to The Next: The first two sets on March 9 between the Rise and Columbus Fury were complete opposites. Grand Rapids started strong and won the opening set by a 10-point margin, 25-15, for its largest set win this season. Columbus rebounded quickly and took the second set by 12 points, 25-13. That marked the largest deficit in a set loss this season for the Rise. Grand Rapids tipped the seesaw affair its way with a 25-17 third-set win, and then closed out the match with a come-from-behind effort to claim the fourth set by the minimum, 25-23.

On the Road Again: Coming off a rare full week with no travel, the Rise will face three road matches in nine days. This will be the second of three times this season that Grand Rapids plays three straight away matches. This trek will include stops in Columbus, Vegas, and Omaha. The Rise are 1-3 on the road this season, dropping three consecutive matches after picking up a win on the team’s first road trip to Atlanta on Feb. 9. In the three losses, the Rise were 1-5 in sets decided by two points.

Air Claire Strikes: In the month of March, Chaussee has been a go-to weapon for the Rise offense. She has crossed over the 20-kill plateau three times and is averaging 4.72 kills per set:

• At Orlando (March 1): 21 kills (.380), 11 digs, two assists, one block and one ace;
• At San Diego (March 4): 23 kills (.327), 10 digs and two aces;
• Columbus (March 9): Match-high 17 kills (.261), 14 digs, one block and one assist;
• Vegas (March 17): Season-high 24 kills (.315), 11 digs and two blocks.

Chaussee leads Grand Rapids in kills (163), total attacks (465) and aces (8). Chaussee, Dimitrova and Sarah Sponcil are the only three Rise players to play in every set so far this season. Chaussee ranks in the top five in the League in points per set (4.66, fifth) and kills per set (4.29, third).

Block Party: The Rise made their net-front presence known against the Fury on March 9. Grand Rapids set a new season high with 15 blocks in the four-set victory. Four players finished with three or more blocks: Marin Grote (4), Ashley Evans (4), Alyssa Jensen (3), and Dimitrova (3). Fittingly, the match ended with a Dimitrova block. The Fury were held to a .108 hitting percentage, including a first set where the Rise held them to -.063 and blocked them six times.

Grote leads the team with 33 blocks in nine matches. The Rise are 4-1 this season when they put up more blocks than their opponents while, inversely, they are 0-3 when the opposing team has more blocks.

Approaching Mini Milestones: Some notable numbers in reach as the Rise gear up for match #10:

• Symone Abbott: Five kills shy of 100;
• Claire Chaussee: 35 attack attempts from 500;
• Ashley Evans: 24 assists from 400;
• Marin Grote: Five kills shy of 50;
• Mac Podraza: 24 assists from 100.

COURTESY GRAND RAPIDS RISE COMMUNICATIONS