The 3-seed Lancaster Bible College Women's Volleyball team hosted a home Quarterfinal match in the United East Playoffs, taking on 6-seed Penn St. Brandywine on Saturday afternoon and cruising to a 3-0 sweep to advance to the conference Semifinals. The Chargers improve to 17-11 overall while the Lions end their season at 12-12 overall.
 
How it Happened:
The Chargers got off to a 5-2 start behind two kills by junior Lea Sareyka and some Lions errors, then later in the set the Chargers took a 16-9 lead after a four-point run with a service ace by senior Madison Timberlake. Lancaster Bible raced to the finish as they scored six points in a row to end the set 25-15 with three straight aces by junior Chloe Stenberg and a kill by junior Jessica Fletcher to cap it off.
 
The teams were tied early in set two before a 7-1 run by the Chargers made it 9-4 after two kills by Sareyka and an ace from junior Tessa Kwiatkowski. Lancaster Bible later had their longest run of the match at seven straight points behind three aces by junior Madeline Reed for a 19-6 lead. The Chargers closed set two with five of the final six points with a kill by senior Jessica Hendricks to end it 25-10 and give Lancaster Bible a 2-0 match lead.
 
The Chargers raced out to a 7-1 advantage in the third set with a block from Sareyka and freshman Ashby Brummer and another Kwiatkowski service ace. Brandywine surged from there as they rattled off seven straight points to come back and take an 8-7 lead over LBC. The Chargers got back out to an 11-9 lead after kills from Fletcher and sophomore Madison Reap, then extended it back up to seven points at 19-12 featuring kills by Reap, Sareyka, and junior Eden Belford. Winning six of the final seven points, Lancaster Bible closed on a heater with two kills and an ace with three Lion errors to end set three 25-14 to close out Penn St. Brandywine at home and advance to the United East Final Four on Tuesday.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Chargers dominated in both kills 36-13 and service aces 13-1, while the Lions had four blocks to the Chargers' one
- Lea Sareyka had a match-high nine kills to lead the Chargers
- Jessica Fletcher added eight kills on a .462 hitting percentage
- Tessa Kwiatkowski and Madeline Reed each had double-digit assists and multiple service aces
- Madison Timberlake had a match-high 12 digs while Madison Reap added 11 digs
- The Lions were led by Emma O'Reilly with four kills and six digs
 
From the Coach:
"The girls played and competed well. That's what we need here in the playoffs. We sided out at a really high percentage, which was one of our goals coming into the match. They executed strong and really showed their desire to win. Onto the next!" ~ Head Coach Julie Brubaker
 
Information to Know:
This was the Chargers' first-ever playoff matchup with Penn St. Brandywine with it being their second win over the Lions this season as they swept them on October 4. The Chargers have made the conference semifinals for the third straight season and have a 4-3 postseason record under head coach Julie Brubaker since she took over the program in 2020. Jessica Fletcher moved into 13th all-time in total kills with 610 and is now tied for the program record in conference playoff kills with 42 in her three seasons.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers have advanced to the United East Semifinals and will travel to face 2-seed St. Mary's (Md.) on Tuesday, November 11 at a time to be determined.