On one of the biggest dates on the calendar of the Lancaster Bible College men's volleyball season, the Chargers split a tri-match at Horst Athletic Center, as they defeated North Eastern Athletic Conference foe SUNY Poly, 3-0, before falling in a battle of nationally-ranked teams to second-ranked Stevens, 3-1. The loss to the Ducks snaps Lancaster Bible's 10-match winning streak, and the Chargers are now 10-3 overall and 3-0 in NEAC play, while the Ducks improved to 11-1 overall after winning twice on Saturday, and SUNY Poly is now 5-7 overall, and 1-1 in NEAC action.
 
#12 Lancaster Bible 3, SUNY Poly 0
27-25, 25-19, 25-20
 
How it Happened: Lancaster Bible never led in the opening set until 26-25, as the teams battled back-and-forth in a very tight first set. SUNY Poly led 4-0 early, and after the Chargers battled back to tie it at 9-9, the Wildcats won five straight points for a 14-9 advantage. Lancaster Bible slowly chipped away, and trailed 19-17 after an ace from Joshua Rotz, but SUNY Poly took the next two points, and led 21-17.
 
Lancaster Bible closed the gap to 22-21 after two kills from Nate Miller sandwiched around a SUNY Poly error, and the Chargers tied it three points later at 23-23 on a kill from Benjamin Herb. SUNY Poly earned a set point at 24-23, but another kill from Miller tied it at 24-24. The Wildcats had another set point at 25-24, but the Chargers got another kill from Herb, and then a kill from Horst to take their first lead of the set. Lancaster Bible then wrapped up the opening set on an error by the Wildcats.
 
Lancaster Bible won three of four points midway through the second set to grab a 14-10 lead , as the Chargers earned some breathing room thanks to a kill from Daniel Kreider, and then a block assist from Herb and Kreider. SUNY Poly kept the set close, but Lancaster Bible won the last four points of the set, as Miller closed it out with an ace.
 
The Chargers played the third set just like the second, as they took control of the middle of the set by winning seven of nine points for a 15-10 lead. Zach Keating had an ace during the run, as the Chargers also took full advantage of three Wildcat errors. SUNY Poly hung around and cut its deficit to 21-19, but Lancaster Bible won four of the last five points, and took the set and match on a kill from Herb.
 
By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible had 36 kills and 14 errors on 74 attempts for a .297 hitting percentage…The Wildcats had 27 kills and 14 errors on 73 attempts for a .178 hitting percentage…Miller led the Chargers with 15 kills and four aces…Kreider and Horst each had six kills, while Kreider also had a team-best five blocks…Herb chipped in with five kill and three blocks, while Kaleb Ansell had 30 assists, six digs and two kills…Kurt Maysilles had a team-high eight digs for the Chargers…Max Szuba had seven kills to lead the Wildcats.
 
Information Hodge Podge: Lancaster Bible is now 12-7 all-time against SUNY Poly…The NEAC win was the 12th straight for the Chargers dating back to the 2017 season…Lancaster Bible has not dropped a set in NEAC play since March 31, 2018, and has won 16 straight sets in NEAC play
 
#2 Stevens 3, #12 Lancaster Bible 1
27-29, 25-20, 25-15, 25-23
 
How it Happened: The match of the day lived up to its billing, as the Chargers and Ducks went big hit for big hit throughout the first set. Stevens built a 13-8 lead midway through the first set, but the Chargers pounced right back, and closed the gap to 13-12 after four straight points, as Reuben Kemrer served Lancaster Bible back into the set. Kreider and Herb ended the run with a block assist, and Lancaster Bible tied the set at 16-16 a few points later, as Horst slammed home a kill.
 
The Ducks took a 20-17 lead after winning four of five points, but Lancaster Bible was up to the task again, tying the match at 22-22 after another block assist from Herb and Kreider. Stevens had a set point at 24-23, and again at 25-24, but Lancaster Bible hung tough, and after a block from Horst and an error from Stevens, the Chargers had a set point of their own.
 
Lancaster Bible couldn't convert the chance, and wasted another chance at 27-26, but with the set tied at 27-27, the Chargers earned set point after a service error, and then forced the Ducks into an error, and took the opening set, 29-27. The raucous crowd at Horst Athletic Center rocked throughout the change between sets, as Lancaster Bible took a 1-0 lead.
 
The Ducks quickly reminded everyone why they are the second-ranked team in the country, as they stormed out a 10-3 lead early in the second set. Lancaster Bible refused to go away, and won 10 of 13 points midway through the set, and tied it at 15-15 on a block from Kreider and Ansell. Stevens took control of the set again following a timeout however, and led 21-15 after Ryan Byrne's second ace of the set. The Chargers tried to mount a late run, but Stevens closed out the set on a kill from David Lehman and tied the match at 1-1.
 
The teams went back-and-forth to pen the third set, but the Ducks strung together five straight points in the middle part of the set, and took a 15-11 lead on a kill from Jacob Patterson. Stevens didn't let the Chargers back into the set in the third, as the visitors won seven of the final eight points, and cruised to a 25-15 set three victory.
 
The fourth set was a set of runs, as Stevens opened up a 10-5 lead after winning four straight points, but the Chargers answered back with six of seven points, and tied the match at 11-11 after a Ducks error. Kreider's kill later in the set brought the Chargers to within, 16-15, and another kill from Miller made it 19-17 in favor of the Ducks a few points later.
 
Lancaster Bible closed the gap to 23-22 and 24-23 late in the fourth frame, but couldn't get over the hump, and Lehman's kill ended the set, 25-23, and the match, 3-1 in favor of the Ducks.
 
By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible had 48 kills and 28 errors on 130 attempts for a .154 attack percentage…The Ducks posted 56 kills and 21 errors on 121 attempts for a .289 hitting percentage…Miller had a match-high 23 kills and also added seven digs and an assist…Horst was also in double digits, as he had 10 kill, and added eight digs and two blocks…Kreider added six kills and six digs, and Herb had eight kills and four blocks…Ansell had 43 assists, three blocks and three digs…Maysilles led everyone with 13 digs…Lehman had 20 kills for the Ducks, while Patterson added 50 assists and six digs, and Jack Bittker had 14 kills and four aces.
 
Information Hodge Podge: Lancaster Bible is now 0-4 all-time against Stevens…The Chargers lost to the Ducks, 3-0 last season in Hoboken, N.J…The loss is the first at Horst Athletic Center for the Chargers this season, and snaps a 17-match home winning streak…The last home loss for the Chargers came on Jan. 16, 2018, when Lancaster Bible lost to then eighth-ranked New Paltz, 3-0…The match with Stevens was the first match all season long that went longer than three sets for the Chargers…The 48 team kills tie a season-high, as the Chargers also smashed 48 kill in a win over Alvernia on Feb. 2…The nine team blocks against the Ducks are a season-high.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible will play its next three matches on the road, beginning with an away match at Cairn on Tuesday at 7 p.m.