New Indy Ignite Head Coach Lauren Bertolacci Ready for 2026 Season
Writer / Mark Robinson
The Indy Ignite came tantalizingly close to achieving the unthinkable in the inaugural season for the women’s professional volleyball franchise, advancing to the championship match of the 2025 Major League Volleyball playoffs before bowing out. It was a heralded accomplishment for the league’s new kid on the block.
That, however, was last season, and the Ignite’s sights are now laser-focused on how to take that next step to the top of the MLV ladder. The journey begins now, with the 2026 season opening Jan. 10 on the road at Dallas. Indy opens its home schedule Jan. 24 against Omaha, the first of 14 matches slated for Fishers Event Center, the sparkling arena filled with energy and loyal Ignite fans urging their team on to victory each time out.
Much of the core roster that led the Ignite to the MLV championship match last May has returned, including All-MLV First Team pick and opposite hitter Azhani Tealer, 2025 rookie standouts Lydia Martyn (middle blocker), Elena Scott (libero) and Anna DeBeer (outside hitter), and outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh, who was well on her way to becoming an all-league selection before an ankle injury cut short her season.
There’s also new fire burning within the Ignite, and it starts at the top. Indy named Lauren Bertolacci, a longtime successful pro coach in Europe, as the team’s new head coach in July.
Bertolacci’s philosophy has been simple from the outset.
“Getting to the championship final was a huge achievement, and of course we want to take that next step,” Bertolacci says. “For me, the way forward is clear. We’re going to play bold, aggressive and fast. We want to put pressure on teams, score points and play with a big personality and character.
“It’s very interesting for spectators when we’re enjoying ourselves, being the aggressors and pushing the pace and style of the game,” the Australian native adds. “Most importantly, you score more points that way. You win games when you score more points, you let your mind be free, and you can really get in there and just play. I want to build an ‘Ignite way’ of volleyball — a clear identity that we can lean on every time we step on the court. If we stay true to that style, good things will happen.”
To that end, Bertolacci and the Ignite staff have bolstered the returning talent by adding more size and skill to the roster through free-agent signings last summer and the college draft in November. The team has been working hard in training camp, which began in December, to achieve that identity and be ready to go when the first serve is launched on the 2026 season.
The added size to the roster can’t go unnoticed. Of the free agents, middle blocker Alexandra Botezat stands 6-foot-6, opposite hitter Camryn Hannah 6-2 and outside hitter Kayla Lund 6-0. In the MLV draft, the Ignite used their first-round selection to take 6-6 middle blocker Cara Cresse, a Fort Wayne, Indiana, native who was teammates with Ignite returnees Scott and DeBeer at the University of Louisville. With a pair of fourth-round picks, Indy chose outside hitters Taylor Landfair (6-5) and Emoni Bush (6-3). In the second round, Indy landed libero Emma Halter, who starred at Indianapolis Roncalli High School before playing at the University of Texas.
“The draft could not have gone any better for us,” Bertolacci says. “We were able to get all the players we wanted, and we are sure they will add value both on the court and off the court, as they are all high-character human beings.”
That last aspect — high character — is what Bertolacci and the Ignite emphasize most as the franchise moves on from an immensely successful first season to build for the long term.
“For me, it’s always about having an impact. It’s what I crave,” she says. “This league is new, it’s growing, and it was made clear that our foundation is great but that I’d have the chance to lead the volleyball side of things. That’s what I want: to put my stamp on it, combine my vision with what Ignite already stands for and help push the league forward. I’m not someone who is overly excitable, but honestly, I’m really excited about this.”
Ignite season tickets, single-match or group tickets, and information on premium or suite space are available now at IndyIgnitevb.com.
