The Omaha Supernovas put their fans through the wringer Wednesday night.
But by the end of the day, Omaha had secured a spot in Saturday's Pro Volleyball League championship match. And they were given a chance to win a $1 million bonus.
The Supernovas came from behind to win 20-25, 16-25, 25-18, 25-8, 15-11 in front of 8,416 exhausted fans who left CHI Health Center at 11:20 p.m. I got it.
Omaha advances to face Grand Rapids in the final Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
“I'm so proud of this team,” Omaha coach Laura Bird said. “They are resilient, and I think they wrote the definition of that.”
Stephanie Samedi had a franchise-record 30 kills, making a huge contribution to the victory. She scored five points in a 15-point final set, propelling Omaha to the championship.
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“It's so cold that she just does her job,” Bird said. “She's been like that ever since she came to the gym.”
Samedi was acquired late in the season as the team needed reinforcements due to injuries.
“We could have done more tonight and wanted to play for each other,” she said. “We want to work at a high level.”
The game ended in a 2-2 tie, with Omaha taking a narrow 8-6 lead on Samedi's ace. San Diego tied it at 9-9 at the end, but a 3-0 run gave the Supernovas the lead.
A block from Bethania De La Cruz brought Omaha close to victory, and a kill from Brooke Nuneviler sealed it.
Nuneviller finished with 15 kills and Delacruz with 11. Sydney Hilly, who entered the match in the second set, had 46 assists.
“Our main message was just to believe,” Hilley said. “When we were behind, we just talked about the fact that the third set was a clean slate and we were going to play with freedom and joy.”
San Diego led for much of the first set, but Omaha tied it at 14-14. Mojo quickly made it 19-16, leading to a Supernova timeout.
Omaha never got close, and San Diego took the first set on a Lindsay Vander Weide kill.
Mojo continued to apply pressure in the second set, sprinting to a 6-0 lead. Omaha got within 13-10 of him, but San Diego continued to attack while silencing the Supernova crowd, opening up a 19-12 advantage.
Omaha stringed together some points late, but Mojo won by nine points on a kill from Allison Bastianelli.
Things started to turn around for Supernovas in the third set, opening up an 8-3 advantage. San Diego won four straight points, but was just one step away.
Omaha continued to extend its lead, ending the set with Samedi's kill, his 23rd of the match.
Supernovas rode the momentum to a 17-point victory in the fourth set. Omaha went home with a 16-4 lead on him, and Mojo's service error took the set, tied the match, and excited the crowd.
This set the stage for the final set and Omaha's eventual victory.
Vander Weide and Temi Thomas Alaria each had 11 kills for Mojo.
Hilley said the Omaha fans gave the team a boost, which it will need again Saturday.
“This crowd is amazing,” she said. “That’s one of the reasons I love being a supernova.”
Grand Rapids 3, Atlanta 2
The team that finishes first in the Professional Volleyball Federation regular season will not be the playoff champion.
Grand Rapids Rise defeated Atlanta Vibe in five sets in the first PVF semifinal Wednesday at CHI Health Center. Fourth-seeded Grand Rapids won 25-20, 19-25, 25-20, 23-25, 15-8 to advance to Saturday's final at 3:30 p.m.
The Rise will face the winner of Wednesday night's semifinal game between the Omaha Supernovas and the San Diego Mojos. He will distribute a $1 million bonus to the winner of the championship match.
The match ended in a 2-2 tie, but Grand Rapids dominated the fifth set with 15 points. Rise led 6-1, 8-3, 10-5.
Atlanta pulled within five points late in the game, and Grand Rapids took the final three points to end the game.
Claire Chausset led the way with 22 kills, including the one that closed out the victory. Emilia Dimitrova chipped in 19 kills and Erica Pritchard chipped in 15 kills.
Anna Lazareva finished the regular season in first place with 19 wins and 5 losses, matching top seed Vibe with 17 kills.
