Beason, Blackwell Reunite on Omaha Supernovas for Second Pro Season

After the Omaha Supernovas signed 10 new players during the offseason, perhaps the biggest winner was Myla the dog.

Myla belongs to opposite Merritt Beason, who played her rookie year with the Atlanta Vibe before signing with the Supernovas in August. The former Nebraska All-American adopted her during her senior season and brought her to Omaha.

Beason’s roommate during her senior season was Leyla Blackwell, who also joined the Supernovas during the offseason. They now live in apartments down the hall from each other and are both caring for Myla again.

“I think people were more excited for her than they were for me,” Beason said about Myla.

The pair is reliving their year living together at Nebraska. They take Myla for walks, share car rides and hang out every day.

“We are basically roommates at this point,” Blackwell said. “We’re the only two people left carpooling to practice. We’re loving it. We are having so much fun.”

Both Beason and Blackwell were drafted by teams near where they grew up. Beason, a Gardendale, Alabama, native, played for the Atlanta Vibe, while Blackwell suited up for her hometown San Diego Mojo.

However, after becoming free agents, each was drawn back to the program where they spent the final part of their college careers. Beason said she’s excited to be back in Nebraska. Over the past few months, she’s attended several events, met volleyball fans and other community members and reconnected with people from her days with the Huskers.

“Nebraska has become my second home, truly, and it’s been really fun to just be back in the state and back in a place that celebrates volleyball players and female athletes to the level that Nebraska does,” Beason said. “I’m really excited to be back in this environment. It’s been really special.”

The reunion is part of general manager John Cook’s plan to sign players familiar to the Omaha fan base, starting with two former Huskers. He didn’t have to sell Beason or Blackwell on returning to Nebraska, as they are familiar with the crowds. In fact, they each received loud cheers when they returned to Omaha and were introduced during the startling lineups as opposition players.

Their rookie season began less than a month after their college careers ended, making for a challenging season that tested them physically, mentally and emotionally. Beason said she learned a lot from last year and enters this season in a better spot, ready to handle the rigors of the next several months. Blackwell said she joked with Beason that after the season ended in early May, she took the deepest exhale.

“Finally, we got to breathe and take a break and rest our bodies,” she said. “Coming into this season, just mentally refreshed and physically absolutely ready to go — no aches and pains, nothing really to complain about is making us feel way more energized.”

Beason is also bringing a new approach to the court after spending the offseason as the head coach at Gardendale High School. During her season on the bench, Beason gained a new understanding and grace for the previous coaches she had in her life.

She said she sometimes made substitutions to try to spark her team, but didn’t always have time to talk to the player removed from the game to explain why they were pulled and that it wasn’t a personal decision against them. Because of her time as a coach, Beason said she understands better the stress coaches face.

“That experience for me was one of the most rewarding,” she said. “ I learned so much about myself. I learned so much about the sport just seeing it from a different side, and loved having the chance to coach those girls.”

Blackwell’s jersey number also serves as a connection to the Huskers. The middle blocker wears 26 in homage to former Nebraska All-American Lauren Stivrins. Blackwell chose the number last season after they got to know each other during her time in Lincoln (She also played with Stivrins’s younger sister, Amber, at San Diego) and became close.

The pair played together last year during the Nebraska Alumni match. She says the jersey number helps her channel the emotional energy Stivrins brought to the court and bring a little extra fire to her play.

“When I was younger, and I was just starting to play competitive volleyball, I was absolutely obsessed with Lauren,” Blackwell said. “She was my favorite player ever, as I’m sure a lot of girls across the country can say. But getting to know her as a person has been an even bigger treat. I like embarrassing her sometimes and bringing it up and telling her I’m a really big fan, but she’s just been such a light in my life, and kind of like a big sister.”

Creighton Connection

The Supernovas also feature a Creighton reunion with four former Bluejays on their roster this season. Last year, Kendra Wait and Allison (Whitten) Holder were the only Creighton alumni on the roster.

Holder returns this year and is joined by three members of the Bluejays’ 2024 Elite Eight team: outside hitter Norah (Sis) TeBrake, Elise Goetzinger and Kiara Reinhardt.

Even though her college career wrapped up in 2024, Goetzinger is starting her first professional season this year. She completed her degree in biochemistry, which required in-person classes during the spring.

Goetzinger, who won a national championship with Kentucky in 2020, wanted to play last season and inquired about practicing with the Supernovas and LOVB Nebraska, but couldn’t make it work out. She got back in the swing during the fall, playing with Athletes Unlimited.

During her time off over the past year, she missed the endorphins from playing volleyball and working with teammates. While it’s taken a little bit to get into a routine with the Supernovas, Goetzinger said it’s been surreal being back on the court with TeBrake and Reinhardt.

“My heart is beaming because they’re just such selfless girls, and they care so much about people as humans, and they’re just such great people,” she said. “Getting to play with them again and getting to be on the same team is like a dream.”

During her year with the Bluejays, Goetzinger never played inside CHI Health Center Omaha, so she’s looking forward to playing in front of more than 10,000 fans.

“I am just really ready to compete again and be in an atmosphere where there’s just so much energy and excitement for getting to play a game again,” she said.

TeBrake was a first-round draft pick by Orlando and won a title with the Valkyries. After the Papillion-La Vista graduate became a free agent, she listened to offers from several teams. However, after speaking with her parents and her now-husband, they indicated they considered it an obvious decision.

On the second day of free agency, the Supernovas announced the signing of TeBrake to return to Omaha. She concluded her busy offseason by marrying Dylan TeBrake, a former Creighton pitcher in the Washington Nationals minor league system.

“Never in a million years would I have thought that I could play pro volleyball in my hometown,” she said.