By Aaron Hutton for VolleyballMag.com
When all the women’s pro volleyball leagues are up and running, two cities will have two competing franchises.
Already there were two announced in Atlanta, one each by the Pro Volleyball Federation and League One Volleyball.
Previously, PVF told us about its team in Omaha. Now, LOVB announced it, too, will have an Omaha team.
We’ve also got some PVF news and a couple of interviews.
LOVB
The Omaha announcement brings the total number of LOVB cities announced to five (also Atlanta, Houston, Madison and Salt Lake City) with one more expected before the inaugural season starting November of 2024.
The Omaha team will be affiliated with LOVB’s Premier Nebraska club program.
From the LOVB/Omaha news release
“This market embodies our community-up approach in action and we are thrilled to be introducing a whole new level of competition to passionate fans in the region,” LOVB CEO Katlyn Gao said.
” … Premier Nebraska. The league’s pro athletes will train alongside the club’s players, giving club athletes the opportunity to learn from, witness, and build even stronger ties with pro players they admire. Currently the highest ranked club with an all female leadership group, Premier Nebraska continues to make its mark on the sport as one of only three clubs in 2023 to qualify a team in the highest division of each age group for USAV Girls Junior Nationals.
“LOVB’s announcement will also further the league’s ties to some of the greatest athletes in the region … (including) Justine Wong-Orantes and Kelsey Robinson, who both hail from the University of Nebraska. The league also has a relationship with NIL athletes like Lindsay Krause, Lexi Rodriguez and Harper Murray. Lindsay, a Premier alum, is currently an outside hitter for the famed Husker program. Lexi is the 2021 AVCA National Freshman of the Year and two time AVCA All American, and Harper is a freshman outside hitter, and the Gatorade National Player of the Year. These athletes will connect with the local LOVB clubs, through in person clinics, and appearances as well as virtual connections.
“At Premier, we pride ourselves in our people, our product, and our relationships, and now as the anchor club for LOVB’s pro league in Nebraska, we are incredibly humbled to be bringing an all new path to pro volleyball to the city of Omaha,” said Shannon Smolinski oft Premier. “As volleyball continues to grow at all levels,…
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