Rise Battle to Bitter End, Dealt Heartbreaking Five-Set Loss in Atlanta

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PVF Grand Rapids Rise

Rise Battle to Bitter End, Dealt Heartbreaking Five-Set Loss in Atlanta

April 26, 2025 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
Grand Rapids Rise News Release


Grand Rapids Griffins on game night
Grand Rapids Griffins on game night
(Grand Rapids Rise, Credit: C. Evans/Atlanta Vibe)

ATLANTA - The Grand Rapids Rise showed remarkable resilience on Saturday night, rallying from a two-set deficit on the road and setting a franchise record with 103 digs before narrowly falling to the red-hot Atlanta Vibe in a thrilling five-set marathon match by set scores of 25-23, 25-22, 21-25, 23-25, 15-13.

Atlanta extended its PVF-record winning streak to 12 matches to stay in the race for the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Pro Volleyball Federation playoffs, while Grand Rapids now faces postseason elimination with just one more loss or an Indy Ignite win.

The Rise got off to a slow start, falling behind 8-3 early in the match. Down 21-16, Grand Rapids put together a 3-0 run with Carli Snyder at the service line, sparked by an ace. Middle blocker Ali Bastianelli then fought off two Vibe set points with clutch kills before Micaya White sealed the set, 25-23, with a kill. Rise opposite hitter Eleanor Holthaus led the way with six kills (.294) in the opening frame, while Atlanta uncharacteristically held a 3-1 edge in blocks.

Grand Rapids entered the match as the best blocking team in the League, averaging 3.20 blocks per set. Atlanta ranked sixth at 2.24 blocks per set. The Vibe ended up outblocked the Rise, 13-9, in the match.

Atlanta also claimed the second set, 25-22, after the Rise had held the lead early on at 8-5 and 11-8. Aiko Jones had five of her nine kills in the frame, including the most important one on set point to put the Vibe up 2-0.

Rise outside hitter Erika Pritchard made her rotation debut in the third set, contributing to an offensive surge as one of four players to finish with double-digit kills. Bastianelli led the charge with a season-high 20 kills (.432) on 37 swings, surpassing her previous best with kill No. 13 to tie the third set at 13-13. Snyder and Holthaus each finished with 13 kills, while Pritchard added 11 more.

An ace from rookie setter Camryn Turner gave the Rise an 18-14 lead in the third set, and Grand Rapids carried that momentum through to the end. Pritchard sealed the frame with an emphatic block, closing it out 25-21.

Turner set a franchise record with 58 assists in the defeat, while also recording a season-high 21 digs. Fellow rookie Elena Oglivie also shattered her own team record, finishing with 30 digs. Snyder added a season-high 24 digs and became the first Rise player this season to reach 100 sets played. She now needs just four more sets to match Marin Grote's 2024 mark of 106 sets played in a season.

Grote provided a spark off the bench on Saturday, starting in both the fourth and fifth sets for Grand Rapids. She finished with three kills on five swings, along with a block that put the Rise up 19-16 in the fourth frame. Kills from Pritchard and a joust won by Turner at the net helped the Rise close out the set by the narrowest of margins, 25-23.

Pritchard opened the fifth and final set with her 10th kill, but Atlanta quickly built a three-point cushion at 9-6, capitalizing on a Rise service error and a block from last year's No. 1 overall draft pick, Merritt Beason, who played only in the fourth and fifth sets.

Grand Rapids fought back, closing the gap to within a point at 10-9 and 11-10, but three kills from Pia Timmer pushed the Vibe's lead back to three at 14-11. The Rise fought off two Atlanta match points with Bastianelli's 20th kill and third block, but an attack error that went long ultimately ended the high-pressure match, 15-13.

Notes

Atlanta improved to 6-2 in five-set matches this season, the Rise dropped to 4-4.

The Vibe had three players finish with double-digit kills: Timmer (14, .293), Leah Edmond (14, .149), and Khori Lewis (13, .478).

Snyder notched her 10th double-double of the season, finishing with 13 kills and 24 digs, while also contributing one of three Rise aces in the match. Holthaus and Turner accounted for the other two aces.

Bastianelli recorded three more blocks, bringing her total to a league-leading 84 blocks on the season.

Grand Rapids was 2-0 all-time against Atlanta in five-set matches before Saturday's defeat. The Rise had previously defeated the Vibe in five sets both during the regular season and in the PVF semifinals last year.

The Rise were on the verge of completing the franchise's second-ever reverse sweep, the first of which came earlier this season on Jan. 26, when they rallied to defeat the Columbus Fury 3-2 on the road.

Grand Rapids finishes the 2025 season with a 5-9 road record and dropped to 1-7 this season (1-12 all time) when losing the first set away from home.

Photo Gallery

Box Score

GR 23 22 25 25 13 - 2

ATL 25 25 21 23 15 - 3

Team Leaders

GR: Kills - Ali Bastianelli 20, Carli Snyder 13, Eleanor Holthaus 13; Assists - Camryn Turner 58, Elena Oglivie 5; Aces - Snyder 1, Holthaus 1, Turner 1; Blocks - Bastianelli 3, Alyssa Jensen 2; Digs - Oglivie 30, Snyder 24, Turner 21.

ATL: Kills - Pia Timmer 14, Leah Edmond 14, Khori Louis 13; Assists - Marlie Monserez 48, Mia Tuaniga 8, Morgan Hentz 7; Aces - McKenna Vicini 2, Timmer 1, Aiko Jones 1; Blocks - Vincini 4, Monserez 3, Louis 2; Digs - Hentz 23, Monserez 17, Jones 14, Edmond 13.

A - 2,037

Record / Next Match

Grand Rapids: 11-15 / Wed., April 30 vs. Orlando Valkyries, 7 p.m.

Atlanta: 18-8 / Thu., May 1 at Indy Ignite, 7 p.m.




Images from this story

Grand Rapids Griffins on game night
Grand Rapids Griffins on game night
(C. Evans/Atlanta Vibe)		   

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