The Lancaster Bible College Men's Volleyball team played their first home match since February 8 on Friday night, defeating nationally recognized Rutgers-Newark 3-1 in the Horst Athletic Center. The Chargers improve to 10-5 overall and 1-0 in the United East, while the Scarlet Raiders fall to 12-6 overall and 1-1 in the CVC.

How it Happened:
Rutgers-Newark started strong with a 4-1 lead early in the first set, then sophomore Carson Hoover landed the first kill for the Chargers to end the run. Hoover landed a service ace a few points later, then the Chargers scored four in a row with a service ace from sophomore Jaiden Flanagan capping the run and putting LBC up 10-8. The Chargers never surrendered the lead in set one, but the Scarlet Raiders put together a four-point spurt to tie it at 14-all. The Chargers finished with five of the last six points, winning the set 25-19 on a service ace from sophomore Jordan Yoder.

The Chargers got out to a one-point lead after two kills from sophomore Kevin Bryant, but Rutgers-Newark launched a 5-1 run to take the lead 8-5. The Scarlet Raiders led by as many as five points in the set, preventing any major runs by the Chargers and hitting over 40% for the set to maintain control. Rutgers-Newark closed out the Chargers 25-20 to tie the match at one set apiece.

The two teams traded points early in set three before the Chargers went up 10-7 after back-to-back aces by Flanagan, then LBC scored five of the next six points with two kills each by Bryant and Hoover, building a six-point cushion for LBC. Flanagan and Yoder combined on a block to reach 20 points, then the Chargers closed with four straight points including back-to-back kills by Yoder to end the set 25-18 and put LBC up 2-1 in the match.

The Chargers took control early in the fourth set with an ace from Yoder and a pair of kills from Hoover, leading 9-5 in the early goings. Senior Dawson Forney added a kill and an ace to put the Chargers up 18-12, then added another kill towards the end of the set. Bryant and Yoder helped control the set down the stretch with kills, then a big-time block by Hoover sealed the deal 25-20 to help the Chargers top the Scarlet Raiders at home in four sets.

By the Numbers:
- The Chargers led in blocks 9-6 and had nine service aces to Rutgers-Newark's five, while the Scarlet Raiders had more kills (45-40)
- Dawson Forney led the Chargers with a team-high 12 kills and four blocks
- Kevin Bryant knocked a season-high 11 kills and a match-high five blocks
- Tyler Martin dished a career-high 39 assists and added 10 digs for a double-double
- Carson Hoover recorded his first career double-double with 10 kills and 11 digs
- The Scarlet Raiders were led by Michael Suarez with a match-high 16 kills

Information to Know:
The Chargers are now 2-3 all-time against Rutgers-Newark and secure their first win over the Scarlet Raiders since 2020. This was Lancaster Bible's first win of 2025 over a team receiving votes in the AVCA Division III Coaches Poll, with Rutgers-Newark listed as Receiving Votes (RV) for this week. Tonight marks the fifth time this season that three Charger players reached 10+ kills (Forney/Bryant/Hoover).

Up Next:
The Chargers are back at it tomorrow as they host a tri-match in the Horst Athletic Center against Eastern and #2 Southern Virginia starting at 11:00 a.m.