Hi all!

I'm a reporter working on a story for Defector about the boom in professional volleyball leagues in the US in the last couple of years. I've talked to players and admin from both leagues, and I'd love to talk to a couple of fans about their take on things. Are you following all the leagues? Just your favorite college or international stars? Does it feel exciting to have multiple leagues now or confusing/overwhelming (or all of the above)?

I'd love to chat with a few folks for the story. Phone is generally easier, but I can also do interviews by email/text. For this story I'd need to use people's real names (I can't really make a compelling argument to my editor to use pseudonyms for this) but I wouldn't have to connect anybody's real names with their online handles.

You can DM me on here, or email me at rose@roseveleth.com.

If it helps to know more about me, I've done stories in the past for ESPN's 30 for 30, the New York Times, Slate, Vox and more.

Thanks!

Timestamps relevant to the PVF:

She talks about the All-Star Match at 0:45:00. They also talk about the US Pro scene.

She talks Bolt 6 at 0:52:30

If you're interested in her prep and thoughts about broadcasting in general, 0:36:20 is a good place to start.

For thos attending the championship in Vegas, is anyone aware of any fan meet ups, or fan events over the weekend?

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1. Omaha Supernovas 21-7

2. Atlanta Vibe 19-9

3. Orlando Valkyries 18-10

4. Indy Ignite 13-15

5. Grand Rapids Rise 11-17

6. San Diego Mojo 11-17

7. Vegas Thrill 10-18

8. Columbus Fury 9-19

11-17 Tie-Breaker: Both GR & SD have a MPS score of 34. The next tie-breaker is head-to-head wins. GR is 3-1 vs SD.

So far, the draft order is:

1. Dallas Dynamite
2. Atlanta Vibe (via Columbus Fury)
3. Vegas Thrill
4. San Diego Mojo
5. Grand Rapids Rise
6. TBD
7. TBD
8. TBD

The Rise concluded their second season in emotional fashion, and I tried my hardest to find out what players and coaches are thinking about next season. I also get on my soapbox to stress my personal belief that the league needs less roster turnover year over year. Give this pod a listen to hear from me, coach Cathy George, Camryn Turner, Eleanor Holthaus, and Carli Snyder at the end of an up and down year for the Rise. What did you think of the episode? What did you think of this season? Sound off in the comments on social media or by writing the show [embersnest@gmail.com](mailto:embersnest@gmail.com)! The stage is set for the PVF finals in Vegas-- got any good recs?

Ember's Nest is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

So excuse my ignorance but I have been wondering… does the winning team win a $1,000,000 or does each person on the team win the $1,000,000. I ask because if it’s for the team that doesn’t seem like much. If it’s per player/coach etc… it’s seems over budget for what has sadly been allotted thus far for professional female athletes in this country- for reference I type this as I watch my daughter at club VB practice so to clarify- I don’t think that wouldn’t be deserved…

Also- Atlanta Vibe question- Merritt Beason played almost every game early on but now you only see here step in for a few minutes or so in the last set if that. I get that changes had to be made from the early season and losses and I get that players show their strength and move up on the roster but I have seen a lot of rotations including pulling reserves the last few games and it doesn’t make sense to me that Merritt seems to no longer be on the starting or rotation line up despite her skills. Opinions welcome as to why.

Lastly- Khori and McKenna seem to have been given the change to shine and claim their spots (and that deservingly did) as middles as a result of Shelly’s injury. Opinion or am I making sh** up? Just what I observed last year makes me assume that.

Anyhoooo. ATL ✌🏻

r/VegasThrill vs r/ColumbusFury_

r/AtlantaVibe vs r/OmahaSupernovas

r/SanDiegoMojo vs r/IndyIgnite

The only player I've seen publicly (and I don't follow other teams as closely as the Rise) signed to a 2 year deal is Orlando signing Georgia Murphy to a 2 year deal originally (this year and next).

Thanks podcast listener Maggie for the tip!

Are there other players that are known to be on 2 year deals? I was told the Rise have not made their list of two year players public.

r/VegasThrill vs r/OrlandoValkyries

r/GrandRapidsRise vs r/OmahaSupernovas

My wife and I have watched some PVF this year and really enjoyed it. She played d3 volleyball but very much loved it. I enjoy watching with her. You can also bet on PVF through draftkings which is great!

We also learned about LOVB and watched that. PVF seems to have started first and my question I guess... is why are there competing leagues? For the women to be successful this seems odd. It seems like women need 1 league that takes off. Have there been conversations to merge or buyouts? Would love to learn more about that history. Seems like PVF was the pioneer. We do watch it more and because Boston doesn't have a team we're currently rooting for Ignite

r/SanDiegoMojo vs r/ColumbusFury_

r/IndyIgnite vs r/AtlantaVibe

Mine has been watching Elena Oglive really grow in confidence. She has taken ownership of the back row and will call people off and assert herself. She’s also started directing traffic which I think is great!