Midseason 2025 PVF Rookie Update

Here's a look at the status of some notable PVF rookies.

The Atlanta Vibe ensured that this year’s PVF draft started off with a bang, swapping two first round picks to cut the line and pick first overall. With that selection, they took opposite hitter Merritt Beason, who has slotted into their lineup as a six-rotation hitter and a secondary offensive option behind superstar teammate Leah Edmond. In that role, she secured a spot as an All-Star. She’s proven to be a hot and cold hitter, and the Vibe are willing to lean on her heavily when she’s on, but they have the quality depth to give her a short leash on other nights. Overall, she’s hitting .174 on 504 attempts with 13 aces.

The Indy Ignite may have traded away the first pick, but they didn’t have to wait long to get on the board, swiping outside hitter Anna DeBeer just one spot later. Unfortunately, DeBeer sustained an ankle injury while playing against Pitt in the NCAA semifinals and was subsequently placed on short term injured reserve to open the PVF season. She’s played in nine games since being reinstated from STIR and been a decent rotational hitter, racking up 80 kills. She’s looked wild, though, and hit 44 errors in that time, dragging her hitting efficiency down to just .153.

Camryn Hannah, an outside hitter who Vegas picked fourth overall, made the All-Star game on the back of a strong first two months in the Federation. She’s gotten into double-digit kills on more than half of her games this year. However, many of those performances came prior to the All-Star break and as the Thrill have crumbled as of late, Hannah has looked less impressive as well. Perhaps a more composed version of setter Alicia Glass Childress will coax out the best in Hannah as the season marches forward.

I have never been bashful about my love for middle Khori Louis, and she’s borne plentiful fruit for the Vibe as their second of two first round picks. As the third option in the Vibe offense, she leads all the league in efficiency and trails only Lydia Martyn in kill percentage. Louis is no one-trick pony — her 36 blocks also places her on the leaderboard. The only question that can be raised is whether she’s benefitting from defenses focusing their attention on Leah Edmond, who took home last year’s MVP. Any way you slice it, though, she’s been one of the best rookies in the Federation.

Remaining first round picks Norah Sis, Raven Colvin, Devyn Robinson and Toyosi Onabanjo have seen little action during the season. Between them, only Raven Colvin has gotten notable court time, serving as Grand Rapids’ fourth middle on the depth chart. She’s looked completely terminal in her limited appearances, yet she’s unable to unseat defensive masters Ali Bastianelli and Alyssa Jensen as the running mate to All-Star Marin Grote.

Here’s an assortment of other interesting rookies from around the Federation:

The Orlando Valkyries may have made the best value pick in the draft when they pulled middle blocker Natalie Foster in the second round. She’s taken to the Federation smoothly, and has found herself on the leaderboard for Kill Percentage, Hitting Efficiency, Service Aces and Toal Points. Her serve is both deadly and precise, and she unlocked the right mindset to put it to work during her final college season. She’s the only PVF player to cross the 40-ace threshold so far, and is on pace to blow past 50 as well. In my mind, she’s a leading Rookie of the Year candidate.

One of the few late rounds picks to get significant run this season has been Nina Cajic, who the Ignite scooped up in round four and plugged in as one of their primary hitters. She’s capable of playing both the left and right sides and has filled the shoes of both Anna DeBeer and Lekator Member-Meneh while they were sidelined with injuries. Cajic isn’t the most efficient hitter on the whole, but she can put some smoke behind the ball and will run wild over opposing defenses on occasion.

Undrafted free agent Lydia Martyn is emerging as quite the find for Indy, as the former Oklahoma Sooner is playing the best ball of her life this season. She’s presently the league leader in kill percentage, and though her role on offense as a backup middle blocker admittedly isn’t huge, she looks unstoppable at times. Martyn was a player I was aware of predraft, but opted to leave off my watchlist in favor of a number of middles who the Federation showed no interest in. Oops.

A fan favorite, outside hitter Charitie Luper has been a workhorse for the Vibe this year. She’s admittedly been a streaky player, but hitting .224 on 420 attacks makes her a more valuable performer than many of her fellow rookies. Her strong start to the year landed her on the All-Star roster, and it’s no coincidence that her own midseason slump occurred as the Vibe experienced their tragic 7-game skid. She was a crucial part of their breakout game in Grand Rapids and will figure heavily into their plans going forward.

Opposite hitter Naya Shime was the second pick of the Rise and has taken over as their primary right side option since the departure of planned starter Sherridan Atkinson. She looked like a capable replacement before suffering an injury that kept her off the court for five matches and hasn’t looked quite right since returning. The Rise will need her to come alive down the stretch, as they’ve had a frustrating season so far, but a spot in playoffs is still a possibility.

Columbus drafted Raina Terry with their first pick and dropped her into their roster in a starting role, but she’s been largely inefficient on a sputtering Fury squad. She’s had moments of brilliance, including a recent 18-for-38 showing, but those moments are unable to buoy her overall performance. She’s hitting .178 across 465 offensive touches, which is just not good enough for a player with such a large role. It’s possible she’s suffering from their inconsistency at the setter position and may connect better with the recently added veteran, Nootsara Tomkom.

It’s a similar story for Kaylee Cox, who has been struggling alongside Terry in Columbus. She’s racked up 438 attempts on the ball, but is hitting just .158 on the season. Cox hits for too many errors, and despite being force fed the ball, has reached double digit kills in just seven of her 17 matches played. I don’t understand why the Fury have built their roster with Isabella Rapacz and two rookies to lead the charge. With no real Plan B, things have blown up in their face as they’ve slid to last place in virtually every offensive category.

The small school surprise on draft day was Wichita State middle Morgan Stout, who Vegas selected in round four. I anticipated her to hold down a spot on the practice squad as a developmental piece for the Thrill, but instead, she’s become a trustworthy rotational middle who has looked remarkably effective during her court time. She’s hitting .340 on 159 attacks, contributing 7 aces as well. She may not be a centerpiece of the team, but she’s been a pleasant surprise for a Vegas team that has been short on pleasant surprises this year.

The Rise also scored in round four, picking up the player who would eventually become their answer at libero in Elena Oglivie. Jena Otec, who Grand Rapids were planning to roll with when the season began, failed to keep her job and Oglivie beat out Valeria Leon to fill her spot. Despite those circumstances, Oglivie is presently fourth among liberos in total digs and routinely gets the opportunity to show off her hands as opposing teams force the first ball to setter August Raskie.

On Sunday, the Orlando Valkyries signed setter Melani Shaffmaster to their practice squad. The former Golden Gopher had long set her eyes on an overseas career and spent her first professional season playing with Aonnne Amazones of A1 Ethniki in Greece. She had essentially signed onto a sinking ship, and though the club narrowly managed to avoid a winless season, they finished bottom of the table. Standing at 6-foot-3, she’s able to capably challenge the block and be ferocious with the setter dump. The Valkyries are settled with Pornpun Guedpard as the starter, but they’ve had no stability among Guedpard’s backups and Shaffmaster could challenge for reps in that role.