Ignite looking to clinch playoff spot this week

Despite going through a four-match winless streak, the Indy Ignite continue very much alive in the race for the fourth and last spot in the playoffs of the 2025 Pro Volleyball Federation league, and they will have a good opportunity to confirm their presence in the postseason this week.

With back-to-back home matches against the Orlando Valkyries and the San Diego Mojo set to happen between Friday and Sunday during the 16^th and penultimate week of the regular season, the team from Indiana will chase victories in both encounters, as these results would secure them a spot in the playoffs.

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The Ignite are currently in fourth place in the PVF standings with 12 wins and 12 losses, and 38 points accumulated with four more matches to be played in their regular season schedule. To secure a spot in the postseason without depending on other results, they need to get to at least 14 victories and 42 points, which they would accomplish with wins by any score this week.

The team from Indiana will open their weekly schedule on Friday, facing the third-placed Orlando Valkyries (14-10), at 19:00 local time (23:00 GMT), at the Fishers Event Center. Two days later, at 15:00 local time (19:00 GMT), they will return to the same venue to meet the sixth-placed San Diego Mojo (9-15).

The last two weeks have been difficult for the Ignite in the PVF as they lost their last four matches in the league. Two of those defeats were against fifth-placed Grand Rapids Rise (11-14), who gained new life with the results and now appear as the main threat for their playoff run, despite having only three matches left.

“We just have to execute a little better,” opposite Azhani Tealer said after their most recent upset, on Saturday, against the Rise. “This is hard and it's only going to get harder if we're going to do this (qualify for the playoffs), so we’ve got to figure out how to win and how to play cleaner down the stretch.”

With 344 points scored, Tealer is the Ignite’s leading scorer in the season and ranks third in the league. Other key players for the team in this week’s matches will be setter Sydney Hilley, who leads the league in assists with 1,129, and libero Elana Scott, who appears in fifth place in digs (302).

More matches on Friday

The match between the Ignite and the Valkyries is not the only one scheduled for Friday, as two other duels will take place on the same day, with league leaders Omaha Supernovas hosting the Columbus Fury at 20:00 local time (1:00 GMT, Saturday) and the Vegas Thrill playing at home against the Mojo at 19:00 local time (2:00 GMT, Saturday).

Saturday will have only one match, with the Atlanta Vibe meeting the Rise at 20:00 local time (00:00 GMT, Sunday). The weekend action will come to an end on Sunday, when the Supernovas play the Thrill at 15:00 local time (20:00 GMT) and the Valkyries battle the Fury at 18:00 local time (22:00 GMT).

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