Unbeknownst to me at the time of this recording I was coming down with a hard case of Influenza A, so forgive my less coherent thoughts than usual! In this episode I discuss both Grand Rapids vs Atlanta and Grand Rapids vs Columbus.

It was interesting to me how very little carried over from the Atlanta win to the Columbus win, even with some exciting things along the way like holding Leah Edmond to just 11 kills or the debut of Raven Colvin!

What do you think led to the victories? What will you be looking for going forward? Sound off on Spotify, Reddit, Instagram, or by writing the show at [email protected]. Ember's Nest is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Now, time to rest up for both the Rise and me!

The Rise falling to 0-3 were somehow not the biggest story of the night for the team as what is in my mind the bell-weather franchise of the PVF, the Omaha Supernovas, announced their departure. I have many thoughts on this, some of which you can hear here, but most of which I'll share when I have more time to compose my thoughts. The original recording of this episode was perhaps a little too passionate!

There were some positives once again from Grand Rapids, but some of the problems that plagued the team against Vegas and Omaha continued into this match against Indy. Listen in to hear more about that.

This was the first episode of the podcast to get some community feedback and thoughts discussed, and it was my favorite segment! If you want to share your thoughts on the team, email the show [email protected], or comment on Instagram (Ember's Nest Podcast) or Reddit!

The opening weekend of the PVF is here! Attendance is up, matches are competitive, and all is well for the league... just not the Rise! After getting reverse swept in Vegas, the Rise return home to a record crowd only to be swept by the defending champs.

Despite the results I see encouraging signs from this Grand Rapids team, and luckily they still have time to figure out how to best fit these talented players together. The matches were still full of surprises, good and bad. I thought blocking is trending in the right direction but we still have too many plays out of system and too few attacks from the back row. I break down both games in this episode of Ember's Nest.

What's your takeaway from the opening weekend? Sound off by writing the show, [email protected], commenting on Spotify or Reddit, or giving the show a shout on Instagram @embersnestpod!

In an Ember's Nest first, here I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Marin Grote who is entering her second season as Middle Blocker for the Rise. Marin had a strong season last year as she was #3 in the PVF in blocks, but it's clear in my time with Marin that the focus is squarely on next season.

It was a joy to chat with Marin about the new squad, how she feels about playing against her sister in the PVF, and Sarah J Maas of all things! I hope you the listener enjoy listening to the pod as much as I enjoyed making it. As always, leave your feedback on Reddit, Spotify, or write the show at [email protected].

There's plenty to cover for the Rise in this one-- in 48 hours the Rise not only sign 3 coaches for this season but potentially draft their future as well. It's a flurry of moves and there's no better place to hear about it and voice your opinion than the Ember's Nest podcast. Write the show at [email protected] to have your opinion voiced!

Grand Rapids comes away with the upset victory behind fantastic defense and key contributions from Marin Grote, Kayla Caffey, and Ashley Evans alongside the usual stalwarts of Dimitrova and Chaussee! This rollercoaster of a match was back and forth, but in the words of Ashley Evans, the pressure was on Atlanta and Grand Rapids just made their adjustments to win the game. The Bolt6 challenge system was also expertly utilized by Grand Rapids to help swing this one to them.

Will you be in Omaha? Are you having a big watch party at home? Sound off on Reddit, Spotify, or now Instagram @embersnestpod! What did you think of the first of two 5 set semifinal matches?

Grand Rapids Rise prevail over Omaha for the first time this season in Dimitrova's final match as a member of the Grand Rapids Rise. With the win, Grand Rapids has at least one victory over every playoff team. What lessons can be learned from this one and what does Grand Rapids need to score the upset over Atlanta? I discuss it here, but I'd love to hear from you by writing the show at [email protected], engaging on Reddit or Spotify.

Ember's Nest is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio,