WE HAVE A SEASON THREE
The first week of August has bestowed upon us leaks of a “merger”, official announcements from the league, and free agency news galore. We put forth our perspective on the MLV name change (and the logo…) and what we think happened with Omaha’s return to the league, we review the changes to the salary structure, and talk reactions to day one of the free agency period.
It looks like we’re an MLV podcast now.
Let us know your questions, reactions to these changes, and things you want us to talk about on next week’s pod! As always - you mustn’t forget to be the captain of your own court.
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Our final episode of PVF Season two! You may have been PVF-less for the last week but we’re here to help you bring back the good times with memories of the playoffs. We talk through the two semi-final matches as well as the championship: Nikki regales us with Vegas tales (including what ABO means), Kelly wonders what’s happening with Omaha next year, and Ian’s microphone was a bit screwed up.
Thanks for coming along with us this year! Keep an eye out for an occasional episode drop during free agency. As always, drop us your questions anytime!
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After discussing the all-league team make ups, we come up with our own award categories, mainly based on ~*VIBES*~. Nikki fills us in on some Volleytalk forum drama and we hold a brief in-memoriam for the bottom four teams. Gone, but never forgotten.
Can’t wait to see you all in Vegas!
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Our first Official Media episode that includes press conference Q&A with coaches?! We might be journalists after all.
In the second-to-last week of the PVF, the playoff picture became more clear: Indy official took the fourth slot - but not until after we saw them play Orlando live from Fishers. Shout out to the Ignite Comms team who made us feel SO welcome, we are so grateful to you! We talk our reactions from the match including arena vibes and reactions to seeing and hearing these players in-person for the first time. Let us know what you think of Nikki’s questions for the coaches - she might be able to do it again in the playoffs.
Then we do a quick rundown of some other impressive matches from this week. We’re so excited to see how the second season in PVF history finishes up!
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We’re back! There was a lot of volleyball to cover over the last 2 weeks. That’s overwhelming, so we barely talk about that! Ian tries to keep us on track with his bucket organization system as we discuss the final push for the last playoff spot. Kelly admits to some infidelity and Nikki gets fired up about some jewelry.
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Warning to the listeners, Nikki is mad this episode. She’s mad at Orlando’s staff, she’s mad at Vegas’s coaches, and she’s mad at the PVF transactions rules. She’ll be back to her optimistic cheerleading ways next time, maybe.
We have a lot of drama to talk through this week, which we DO appreciate the PVF for. We discuss Adora Anae’s transfer, her false start for Vegas, and Shime’s absence from the transactions page. Then, tea on some speculations and rumors for 2025!
Match analysis: once again, Nikki is mad… about Orlando’s performance. We chat through Columbus’s surprising win against Indy and the crushing performance Grand Rapids handed Vegas.
SPRING BREAK next week, so we’ll be taking the week off from recording. Pour one out for week 14 - consider this our official moment of silence for Adora’s missing jersey number. Catch ya for week 15!
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Surprise! In-season player interview! And a rare video pod for yall! We LOVED getting to chat with Courtney Schwan of the Orlando Valkyries. We start this episode by getting to know her a bit better, and then review ORL’s Week 12 match against Indy with her.
From there, we discuss the transactions drama (but recorded before the April 1 deadline so… we’ll have more thoughts on those final moves for you next week). Then, we get into some match reviews and talk through Atlanta’s hot 8-match win streak, what’s going on with Grand Rapids hot-and-cold play, and Omaha’s wins while back to their OG lineup. We’re starting to see some differentiation between the top 4 and bottom 4… but do we have our playoff group yet?
Thanks for sticking with us this season! See ya next week!
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Today on Court Captains, Ian teaches all of us a new phrase!
Kelly’s theory of mid-season transactions from overseas players proves to be correct ahead of the April 1st trade deadline, marking the return of Nootsara Tomkom. We chat about how Tealer continues to be an unstoppable force and we hypothesize if Fury has a fighting chance to move up in the standings. Oh and of course there’s the oh so casual topic of pregnancy in professional sports.
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Spoiler: some of us DO think we’re journalists!
Lots of action in week 10 as Omaha storms back to the top of the table and Orlando’s streak is broken by San Diego. Atlanta is having a mid-season power move and Vegas a mid-season crisis. Grand Rapids takes two losses at home, Columbus gets a sweep, and Indy holds on to the 4th spot for now.
Kelly and Ian are tested on the actual team court captains of each team in the PVF, and then Nikki does a ~positive~ Dear PVF because we do love the PVF!!!!
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A lot of chatter chatter in this episode. Nikki loves to love letter in this podcast, so first she begins with a little ode to Kelly being a great volleyball player. Then Ian matches our adult volleyball league commitment with a commitment of his own - reading the many rules pages of his upcoming fantasy baseball league. Wish his team luck!!
After Ian’s scorner, we do a full meander through the league action from week 9, from Grand Rapids’s great week to Atlanta fighting back, with Vegas’s inconsistency leading to a bit of a slip n’ slide. Don’t miss our shares of gossip interspersed throughout the match analysis!
Also for the record, Footloose came out in 1984 so that was a joke. Most of these players were not born… and weren’t even born for another twenty years. Just Ian showing his old a&& again :) Unless you count the remake?
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We are just about halfway through PVF season two if you can believe it! We do a little check-in on the commercials (and their soundtracks) that Ian asked so nicely for in his Dear PVF. Per usual we review transactions, Ian’s scorner, and week 8 match analysis.
We have loved seeing Orlando get to the top, and are starting to see Atlanta get back to their standard form. Vegas is in the midst of a losing streak, Indy is still getting healthy, and Omaha did a sweep/swept combo. Don’t miss Nikki’s long-winded love profession for Chompoo or Kelly singing that Valkyries song.
Time stamps:
Start to 8:55 - A Dear PVF topic check-in
8:55 to 16:17 - Ian’s scorner
16:17 to 19:12 - Standings and transactions
19:12 to 43:50 - Match Analysis
43:51 to End - Week nine schedule and closing
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Reactions to week 7 of the PVF comin' at ya! We review transactions (we’re a day behind the live transactions, Mojo basically undid everything they did last week so, sorry about that!), speculating on injuries based on instagram activity, Ian’s scorner, and talk through our thoughts from the all-star game. Nikki instructs all her little sisters - um, we mean the players - to not look at social media comments. You’re all doing so good! Don’t worry!
Warning to anybody listening with kids around, maybe especially don’t do that this week! Tiger Woods' shenanigans are mentioned. We’ll let you be the judge.
All-star game thoughts lead to a discussion around “connections” made in practice, and what the “red zone drills” looked like for Nikki & Kelly back in the day. Then we talk about all the other regular season matches from the week - Columbus gets their shit together, Orlando stays strong, Indy tries to figure things out without Lek, and Vegas has a bit of a messy match.
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Today we’re talking all about Nikki’s valentine’s gift mishap – oh and some volleyball, sure.
We answer some fan questions, including a lengthy discussion on rotations (who knew it was such a rich subject area?). We also dive into some discussions about team depth, roster management, and how injuries are shaping the playoff race.
A highlight of the week was Columbus taking down Vegas in what we thought was going to be another reverse sweep from Vegas, but they just couldn’t swing it. We’ve got another jam packed Thursday schedule this week. Which match up are you most excited for?
(PS Kelly is sorry for her crass humor at the beginning, but it just had to be said)
Timestamps:
0-5:15 - Valentine's gift mishap
5:20-17:35 - Listener questions
17:40-21:16 - Injuries and transactions
21:22-27:21 - Scorner
27:22-45:50 - Match chat
45:55-End - Dear PVF and Wrap up
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Did yall see that transactions page drama this week? We chat through that in the context of some official word from the league on the 24-hour practice squad claim period. Spoiler alert, Omaha wants to keep all 3 of their setters! We also do a fun little bit about potential player movement and our thoughts on trades in this league. Nikki thinks there needs to be a fun little trade next month, for the sake of the league. JFYI… she is mostly kidding. Don’t come for her. Megan Lush is definitely staying in Columbus.
Then we go through week 5 matches and our reactions. We continue to scratch our heads a bit on the two libero situation, but hey, Orlando is thriving, so maybe we’re old and out of touch. We’re pumped to see CLB get their first win, hoping Atlanta can get it together, and interested to see how Indy can shift for next week.
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We’re talking Sunday Funday this week! All teams played on Sunday, taking advantage of the no-NFL-Sunday. We had some great sweeps and surprises (Mojo took a set from the Vibe for the first time EVER?!)
Some other highlights include Thrill making their way to the top of the standings. Omaha was swept for the first time by Orlando, who put on a great showing all week. Grand Rapids is hitting their stride after some roster changes. We speculate who Columbus will finally win against and Nikki comes at you with a brand new “Dear PVF” hot take.
You don’t wanna miss this one, we only used a *few* sports metaphors along the way!
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As Ian so aptly put it, no new professional volleyball leagues were announced this week, so we’re back to business as usual recapping the PVF action!
We feel Ian’s really hitting his stride with Ian’s Scorner - what do yall think? Since there were only five matches in week 3, we talk through each one of them. From recounting Indy’s first loss in program history to the Mojo, to Rise’s major roster changes. From speculating what’s happening with Columbus, to reviewing the incredibly tight Vegas/Orlando match. We’ve got you.
We’ve also officially branded our weekly request to the league. You’re gonna like this jingle.
We had lots of fun with this one! Thanks for being here :)
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Hey Captains. Business as usual around here. Nothing to see. No Notes app announcements to decipher. All is cool.
No we’re kidding. For the first half of this episode, we recount all the drama of the MLV (Major League Volleyball) announcement. It’s major - haven’t you heard? We give the play-by-play, and all the information that’s been shared on the league so far, along with our perspectives, fears, and frankly, brutal mockery, which we do not anticipate will stop at any time.
The second half, we talk highlights from PVF week 2 game play. There are a lot of matches to cover, so we might not get to all of them on each episode this season, but we’ll always make sure to talk through Ian’s Scorner as well as our main takeaways, excitements, and key stats. And to be honest, we’ll probably give one main complaint to the league each week too - this week, it’s a polite request to make sure the Standings page is accurate :) Thanks PVF, love you!
The YouTube chat is kinda toxic lately, huh? Maybe see you there, maybe not.
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Captains, hello. PVF is here. Are you not entertained?
On the pod this week, we give our thoughts on the league overall so far. From the production and announcers to the starting lineups and team performance analysis of every team, we’ve got plenty of thoughts on week one. A few highlights: Ian has the vision, with Indy turning it around and finishing off Orlando in their opener. Kelly thinks it’s really fun to see all these players in new jerseys! Nikki needs the PVF swirling logo to take less time between the reply and the live feed.
See you in the YouTube chat!
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Hey Captains! For the first time in PVF history, the second season is about to begin!!!
Our season preview is all about the talent! We update you on the latest that’s happened with the league since the draft, and then chat through our top two players of each position in the league that you should keep an eye on during opening week. Then we speculate on who’s making the big bucks, which rookies we think will be able to make an impact this year, and our biggest question marks for what we’re curious to see this season.
Finally, we give you our predictions for who will come in at the top of the table this season - but of course, we reserve the right to cheer for every team and support anyone who makes it happen.
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Welcome to Court Captains! We’re happy you’re here.
If you’ve heard about women’s pro volleyball in the United States and you want to learn more, you’re in the right place. We’re here to provide a breakdown of the pro leagues in the US as of the 2025 season. We’ll tell you how each league operates, how many teams and players each league has, as well as league roster rules. We share information that we have on salaries, how the season goes in terms of regular play, tournament play, and playoffs - plus, where you can watch these matches. We also go into the founders of each league and the investment/business structure, so you can learn more about how these leagues came about.
Who are we and what do we know? Two of us played volleyball in college and one of us is a volley newbie who loves all the sports. Between us, we’ve been in the volleyball world (playing youth club volleyball, NCAA, coaching club, and playing adult USAV) for over 4 decades. We are a weekly PVF podcast - so we can’t say we’re completely unbiased, but these are our honest opinions of these leagues after months of research!
We hope you’ll tune in for our weekly episodes and stay up to date with all the PVF action this season!
Follow us on Instagram for our commentary and updates: @courtcaptainspod
Got a question or comment? Email us at: courtcaptainspod@gmail.com
