The Orlando Valkyries, its entry in the Pro Volleyball Federation, returned home from Sunday's league championship in Henderson, Nev. feeling like a million bucks.
That's because the team, in its second season, claimed the PVF championship Sunday with a four-set victory over the Indy Ignite. The win came with a $1 million prize to the winning organization.
After an 8-16 in the team's inaugural season, Coach Amy Pauly led the Valkyries, who play home matches at Addition Financial Arena at UCF, to an 18-10 record and the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. They took down the No. 2 seed Atlanta Vibe in Friday’s semifinals to reach the title match.
“This group has been so special to coach this season. Through the ups and downs, these girls never wavered, and I’m so proud for how hard they fought,” Pauly shared following Sunday's victory. “I’ve coached for a while, and this has been such a fun team to be a part of. I can’t wait to bring this trophy back to Orlando and continue building on our fanbase even more.”
“Coming back for a second season, I knew how good this group could be with the pieces that we added,” middle blocker Kaz Brown said. “We all gelled well super-fast together and everything took off from there. Looking back to the beginning of the season and where we are now, I’m just so appreciative of everything.”
The 25-21, 25-19, 19-25, 25-15 Orlando victory aired live on the CBS Sports Network. Setting a season-high with 15 blocks, Orlando made it extremely difficult for Indy to find their rhythm and get something going. Lindsey Vander Weide stepped up in a big way, matching a career-high and posting a team-high five blocks as she helped set the tone for the rest of the team to follow. Brittany Abercrombie, named the PVF’s Most Valuable Player earlier in the PVF gala weekend, delivered yet another sensational match, posting 27 kills. Abercrombie set PVF records for kills, kills per set, attacks and points in 2025.
