The Lancaster Bible College men's basketball team, playing in the NCCAA Division I Midwest Region Playoffs for the first time since the 2018-19 season, cruised into the region final on Thursday afternoon thanks to a dominating 84-61 victory over NAIA member Concordia University (Mich.) in the region semifinal. The Chargers will now take on top seed Grace College (Ind.) on Friday at 6 p.m.
 
How it Happened: Both offenses sputtered a bit to begin the game, as Jordan Shewbridge's 3-pointer 2:56 into the contest made it 5-2 in favor of the Chargers after a bucket from Adam Stoltzfus got Lancaster Bible on the board earlier. The offenses for each team eventually woke up, and Thomas Hronis' 3-pointer cut Concordia's deficit to 9-8 just under five minutes into the game.
 
Lancaster Bible responded with a 6-0 run thanks to 3-pointers from Shewbridge and Seth Beers, and the Chargers eventually built a 19-11 lead thanks to a bucket from senior Britton Beachy with 12:22 left to play in the first. With just over five minutes to play in the opening half, Concordia cut Lancaster Bible's lead to four, 29-25, but another triple from Shewbridge, and a bucket from Beers, restored Lancaster Bible's nine-point edge, 34-25 with 4:31 remaining.
 
The Chargers took their first double-digit lead of the game with 1:29 to play in the half, as senior Tyler Norris drained a 3-pointer. A free throw from Beachy, and another basket from Grant Sareyka gave the Chargers a 45-30 lead as the teams went into halftime.
 
Concordia scored the first four points of the second half, but Lancaster Bible responded right back with four points of its own, and would later build a 56-39 advantage less than four minutes into the half thanks to baskets from Ethan Beachy and Sareyka. The pair was back at it again less than a minute later, as they scored on back-to-back possessions, and gave Lancaster Bible its first 20-point lead of the game at 62-41 with 13:47 to play.
 
Lancaster Bible led by as many as 29 midway through the half, as the Chargers held the Cardinals without a point for over six minutes. Sareyka's final bucket of the afternoon, which gave him 20 points for the first time in his collegiate career, briefly gave the Chargers a 30-point advantage, 81-51, but Lancaster Bible would only score three more points the rest of the way, and secured the 84-61 victory.
 
By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible shot 51.6 percent (33-of-64) from the field, including 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from 3-point range…The Chargers were also 9-of-11 from the free throw line…Concordia shot 33.9 percent (20-of-59) from the floor, including 30.8 percent (12-of-39) from beyond the arc…Lancaster Bible held a slim 37-36 edge in rebounds, and forced 19 Cardinals turnovers…Sareyka finished with a game-high 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Shewbridge had 17 points…Seth Beers was the third player in double figures with 13 points, and also added six assists…Britton Beachy had nine points for the Chargers, and fellow senior Tyler Norris had eight points and three rebounds…Adam Stoltzfus added four points and eight boards for the Chargers…Thomas Hronis had 17 points to lead the Cardinals.
 
News & Notes: This was the first-ever meeting between the two schools…Thursday also marked the men's basketball team's first-ever NCCAA Div. I postseason victory…Lancaster Bible's only other NCCAA Div. I men's basketball contest was a 78-75 loss to Cincinnati Christian to end the 2018-19 season…Sareyka's 20 points are a career-high and the fifth time this season he has scored in double figures…Lancaster Bible is outscoring its opponents 478-392 in the first half of games this season.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible will aim to win its first-ever NCCAA Div. I Midwest Region Championship on Friday, as the Chargers battle top-seed and host Grace (Ind.) at 6 p.m…The game can be seen on Grace's Live Stream and they will also have live stats…Grace is also an NAIA member, and the only shared opponent for them and the Chargers is Concordia…The Lancers defeated Concordia, 88-78 way back on Oct. 28, 2020 in Ann Arbor, Mich.