The Lancaster Bible College Women's Volleyball team made the quick trip to York (Pa.) for a road contest on Thursday night, hanging on to win 3-2 behind Eden Belford's career-high 17 kills. The Chargers improve to 11-2 overall while the Spartans fall to 2-10 on the season.
 
How it Happened:
After falling behind 4-0 early, sophomore Eden Belford got the Chargers started with three kills to tie the set at four. It was a back-and-forth battle for the entire middle of the set until LBC rattled off five points in a row behind kills from freshman Madison Reap and sophomore Lea Sareyka. The Spartans, however, put together a strong push to tie the set at 23-all, but sophomore Jessica Fletcher landed a kill and an error from York (Pa.) gave the Chargers a 25-23 opening-set win.
 
The second set was closely contested, featuring ten tie scores and six lead changes as the Chargers and Spartans traded blows. Sophomore Madeline Reed and senior Leah Helman each had a service ace for the Chargers while Sareyka posted a solo block to give LBC a 17-14 lead. York (Pa.) fought to a three-point lead late in the set, and while a kill from Belford and an ace from Helman kept it close, the Spartans took set two 25-23.
 
Reap opened up set three with a kill, then a block from Belford and junior Riley Dodrer followed by a kill from Sareyka gave the Chargers a 3-1 lead. Lancaster Bible then opened up their largest lead of the night with an eight-point run to make it a 14-4 game. LBC maintained a healthy distance for the rest of the set, closing it out the way it started with a kill from Reap to end it 25-15.
 
Fletcher connected on three kills early in set four for the Chargers, but York (Pa.) knotted it up at 6-6 early on. The Spartans surged ahead 14-10, forcing an LBC timeout, then the Chargers responded with four in a row to tie it at 14. York (Pa.), however, picked up momentum and rode it to the end of the set, winning 25-19 and forcing a deciding fifth set.
 
The fifth set was a struggle at first as the Spartans grabbed a 5-1 lead, then went up 9-3 to put the Chargers on the brink. Two kills from Reap helped close the deficit to just two points, then Belford smashed four late kills to power the Chargers ahead 13-11 and force a Spartans timeout. After an error from York (Pa.), Belford completed the set with a kill to help LBC come back in set five and win the match 3-2.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Spartans led in kills (54-50) and just edged LBC in aces (12-10), but the Chargers were more efficient on the attack, hitting .178 for the match while York (Pa.) hit .153
- Eden Belford landed a career-high 17 kills for the Chargers, adding three blocks as well
- Leah Helman finished with 28 digs, 12 assists, and three service aces
- Madeline Reed had 21 assists and three service aces, while Madison Reap reached 15 kills
- The Spartans were led by Alyssa Mott with a game-high 34 assists and the Spartans had four players with double-digit kills
 
From the Coach:
"It was a hard, crazy fought battle especially at the end in the 5th set. The team showed great resilience. Reed and Reap served well at the end while Eden capitalized for us on offense. Loved the fight they showed tonight!" ~ Head Coach Julie Brubaker
 
Information to Know:
The Chargers improve to 3-4 all-time against York (Pa.) and have won three straight against the Spartans. Lancaster Bible leads the United East Conference with 11 wins on the season, the next closest being Gallaudet with nine wins. The Chargers are 11-2 overall and have won four straight games for the second time this season, receiving national attention in the first NCCAA DI Coaches Poll of the season with five votes. Sophomore setter Madeline Reed surpassed 800 career assists tonight, currently in 7^th place all-time for the Chargers with 820 assists.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers stay on road for their last away tri-match of the season, heading to Stevenson, Md. to take on Elizabethtown at 1:00 p.m. and host Stevenson at 3:00 p.m.