Omaha Supernovas
 | |
| Sport | Volleyball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2023 |
| First season | 2024 |
| League | Pro Volleyball Federation |
| Based in | Omaha, Nebraska |
| Arena | CHI Health Center Omaha |
| Colors | Pink, light blue, purple, navy blue |
| Owner | Nebraska Pro Volleyball (Chris Erickson, Danny White & Jason Derulo) |
| President | Diane Mendenhall |
| Head coach | Laura "Bird" Kuhn |
| Championships | 1 (2024) |
| Playoff berths | 1 (2024) |
| Website | supernovas.com |
The Omaha Supernovas are a professional indoor volleyball team based in Omaha, Nebraska. The team competes in the Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF). The Supernovas began play in the league's inaugural 2024 season. The team plays their home games at CHI Health Center Omaha.
History[edit]
On April 12, 2023, Omaha was announced as one of the cities to get a Pro Volleyball Federation franchise for the league's inaugural season, led by an ownership group headed by Omaha businessman Danny White and R&B/pop singer Jason Derulo.[1] The Supernovas name, logo and colors were announced on July 20.[2]
The first match of the Supernovas’ season and the inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation game was played on January 24, 2024, at home. In a 5-set match, the Supernovas lost to the Atlanta Vibe by a score of 26–24, 25–23, 25–17, 25–19, 15–13.[3] The attendance mark of 11,624 set a record for both a women's professional volleyball match in the United States, and in the Pro Volleyball Federation.
The previous attendance record for a women's professional volleyball match in the United States was 10,213 fans, at an Olympic qualifier on January 9, 2016. The contest, held at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska, was a 3–0 U.S. Women's National Team victory over the Dominican Republic. It concluded the NORCECA Olympic Qualification Tournament and earned the United States a berth in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.[4]
2024 Season[edit]
The Omaha Supernovas have announced head coach Shelton Collier will serve as an Advisor to the Organization and named assistant coach Laura “Bird” Kuhn as the interim Head Coach. Additionally, former Creighton volleyball standout, Jazz Schmidt joins the Supernovas’ coaching staff as an assistant coach and operations assistant.
During its championship run in the inaugural PVF season, the Supernovas became the league's shining star, hosting 134,969 fans across the 15 matches held at the CHI Health Center. That includes a whopping 9,656 average mark for the 12 Supernovas’ home matches, plus the 19,094 spectators who attended the PVF Semifinals and Championship.
The Supernovas erased any doubt that professional volleyball could happen in the United States with their 9,656 match average the No. 1 mark amongst professional volleyball teams in the world.
Omaha broke many of its own attendance records across its historic season, starting with 11,624 fans attending the first-ever PVF match on Jan. 24 between Omaha and the Atlanta Vibe. That mark was broken a few weeks later on Sunday, Feb. 18 as 11,918 fans showed up to watch the Supernovas take on the Orlando Valkyries. The newest and most current attendance record was set on Saturday, March 16 with 12,090 spectators packing into the CHI Health Center to see the Supernovas beat the Valkyries in four sets.
In total, Omaha hosted crowds of 10,000 people or more in seven of the 15 matches hosted at CHI this past season, including five-digit crowds in six of the 12 regular season contests.
The Supernovas took advantage of the partisan crowd, going 9-3 at home during the regular season before winning two-straight at CHI to become the inaugural champions. [5]
| DATE | OPPONENT | FANS |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, Jan. 24 | Atlanta | 11,624[7] |
| Saturday, Feb. 3 | San Diego | 11,403 |
| Wednesday, Feb. 7 | Vegas | 9,076 |
| Sunday, Feb. 18 | Orlando | 11,918 |
| Thursday, March 14 | Atlanta | 8,114 |
| Saturday, March 16 | Orlando | 12,090[8] |
| Thursday, March 28 | Grand Rapids | 7,505 |
| Saturday, March 30 | Vegas | 10,315 |
| Thursday, April 4 | Columbus | 7,411 |
| Saturday, April 20 | San Diego | 11,303 |
| Friday, April 26 | Grand Rapids | 7,107 |
| Thursday, May 9 | Columbus | 8,009 |
| TOTAL | 12 Matches | 115,875 |
| Average | 9,656 | |
| PVF Semifinals | San Diego | 8,416 |
| PVF Championship | Grand Rapids | 10,678 |
| TOTAL | 15 Matches | 134,969[9] |
2024 Roster[edit]
Current as of April 21, 2024.[10]
| Number | Player | Position | Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Natalia Valentín-Anderson
|
Setter | 5'10" |
| 2 |  Sydney Hilley
|
Setter | 6'0" |
| 3 | Kendall White
|
Libero | 5'7" |
| 5 | Brooke Nuneviller
|
Outside hitter | 5'10" |
| 6 | Tori Dixon
|
Middle blocker | 6'4" |
| 7 | Gina Mancuso-Prososki
|
Outside hitter | 6'1" |
| 10 | Jess Schaben-Lansman
|
Outside hitter | 6'2" |
| 11 |  Hristina Vuchkova
|
Middle blocker | 6'2" |
| 12 | Kyla Swanson
|
Middle blocker | 6'4" |
| 13 | Paige Briggs
|
Outside hitter | 5'10" |
| 14 | Nia Kai Reed
|
Opposite hitter | 6'2" |
| 15 | Allison Mayfield
|
Outside hitter | 6'1" |
| 18 |  Bethania de la Cruz
|
Outside hitter | 6'2" |
| 23 | Gabby Thompson
|
Libero | 5'7" |
| 25 | Maggie Cartwright
|
Opposite hitter | 5'11" |
| 81 | Danielle Hart
|
Middle blocker | 6'3" |
Practice squad[edit]
| Number | Player | Position | Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | Sophie Davis
|
Middle blocker | 6'2" |
References[edit]
- ^ "Pro Volleyball Federation Team Coming to Omaha". Pro Volleyball Federation. 2023-04-12. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
- ^ "Nebraska Pro Volleyball Reveals Official Team Name: OMAHA SUPERNOVAS". Pro Volleyball Federation. 2023-07-20. Retrieved 2024-01-19.
- ^ Collier, Clayton (2024-01-25). "Omaha Supernovas open with 5-set loss to Atlanta Vibe in epic Pro Volleyball Federation debut match". Retrieved 2024-01-26.
- ^ "SMASHED! First Pro Volleyball Federation Match Sets Attendance Record". Pro Volleyball Federation. 2024-01-25. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
- ^ "Supernovas Welcome Over 134,000 Fans in Championship-Winning Inaugural Season". Pro Volleyball Federation. 2024-06-04. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
- ^ Omaha Supernovas. "Omaha Supernovas Match Notes" (PDF).
- ^ Sjuts, Kevin (2024-01-25). "Record crowd welcomes Pro Volleyball Federation's inaugural season". www.1011now.com. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
- ^ Parsons, McKenzy (2024-03-17). "Omaha Supernovas, defeat Orlando Valkyries, break another attendance record". KETV. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
- ^ "Supernovas Welcome Over 134,000 Fans in Championship-Winning Inaugural Season". Pro Volleyball Federation. 2024-06-04. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
- ^ "Roster". Omaha Supernovas.
External links[edit]
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