Rise Rally Behind 18 Blocks For 3-1 Road Win In Atlanta
ATLANTA, March 13, 2026.- Despite missing former starting middle
blockers Rhamat Alhassan and Leah Meyer due to injury, the Grand
Rapids Rise outblocked the Atlanta Vibe, 18-9, en route to a 3-1
road victory Friday night at Gas South Arena.
Grand Rapids dropped the opening set 25-19 but responded by winning
the next three 25-23, 25-23, 25-19 to secure its third road win of
the season and second victory over Atlanta this year. It marked just
the second time in franchise history the Rise have overcome a 1-0
deficit on the road in 18 matches.
Middle blocker Alyssa Jensen led the net-front presence with six
blocks, tying a career high, with half of them coming in the fourth
set. Rookie Candela Alonso-Corcelles added five blocks, also a
career high, and outside hitter Carli Snyder had three.
Yet
it was the Vibe that took the first set without recording a single
block. Instead, Atlanta won the serve-receive battle with four aces
and hit .375 as a team. The Vibe won five of the final six points to
claim the opening frame, 25-19.
Atlanta setter Averi Carlson continued to find Aiko Jones, who
finished with a match-high 24 kills on a .311 hitting percentage.
Jones also added 11 digs and a block. MLV 2024 MVP Leah Edmond was
the only other Vibe player to reach double-digit kills with 11 but
was held to a .019 hitting percentage and was blocked six times.
The
Vibe took four of the first five points in the second set, but a 4-0
Rise run with an Elizabet Inneh ace quickly turned the score. Grand
Rapids finished with four aces and a season-low five service errors.
Atlanta didn’t manage to pick up another ace after having four in
the first set.
Tied
at 18 in the second set, Rise setter Camryn Turner shined on
back-to-back plays, recording her second kill of the match and a
last-ditch pancake dig that set up Snyder’s third block. Atlanta
called a timeout, but Alonso-Corcelles blocked them again coming out
of the break, and Snyder added a kill to extend the late-set 4-0
spurt.
Atlanta fought off two set points before Paige Briggs-Romine evened
the match at 1-1 with a kill to win the second set by the minimum,
25-23.Grand Rapids scored four of the first five points of the third
set in a role reversal. The Rise twice held a five-point cushion,
but Atlanta fought back to tie it at 18. Briggs-Romine’s 10th kill,
followed by a Vibe serve into the net, gave Grand Rapids a 25-23 set
win. It was only the fourth third-set win in 16 matches this season
and marked the first time this year they have won consecutive sets
by two points.
The
fourth set belonged to Jensen. The former Michigan State standout
and third-year Rise veteran scored six of the first 14 points with
three kills and three blocks. Grand Rapids led by as many as nine
points at 19-10 and closed out the set 25-19, earning their third
win in the last four matches.
Alonso-Corcelles had four of her career-high nine kills in the
fourth set, along with two of her five blocks. Snyder and Alonso-Corcelles
both got a team-high 15 points, followed by Briggs-Romine (14),
Jensen (12), and Berkeley Oblad (10) in double figures.
Atlanta takes the road for the team’s next match against the Dallas
Pulse on Sunday, March 15.
Grand Rapids face Dallas Pulse on Wednesday, March 18. | 
