The Lancaster Bible College Men's Volleyball team made the short trip to take on Elizabethtown on the road on Thursday night, falling in five sets after falling behind 2-0. The Chargers drop to 5-7 overall while the Blue Jays improve to 12-2 overall.
 
How it Happened:
Carson Hoover (Jr.) got the Chargers started with a pair of kills in set one, then Devin Galloway (Jr.) landed a block to cap a three-point run for a 5-2 Chargers lead. The Blue Jays later used a big six-point swing to grab a 12-8 lead, holding onto that lead for most of set one before the Chargers made a late push with four straight points including a kill by Zeke Clark (Jr.), pulling the Chargers within two at 21-19. Elizabethtown closed strong with four of the final six points as they took set one 25-21.
 
The Chargers got off to a fast start in set two with two kills from Braden Escover (Fr.) and a block from Hoover and Kevin Bryant (Jr.), taking a 7-2 advantage. The Blue Jays again responded in a big way as they rattled off six points in a row taking the lead before a kill by Bryant tied it at 8-8. The Blue Jays took the lead from there and never relinquished it despite kills by Clark, Hoover, and Bryant, securing set two by the same score as the first at 25-21.
 
A kill by Hoover gave LBC a 3-1 lead in set three, then the Blue Jays took the lead 5-4 on a service ace before Galloway tied it on a kill. The Chargers found their next lead at 9-8 off a Blue Jay error, then later used a four-point run culminating in a service ace by Bryant for a 14-11 Chargers lead. Two kills by Clark gave LBC their largest lead of the set at five points before E-Town stormed back with four in a row to make it a one-point game. Hoover landed a kill to earn a set point, but the Blue Jays fended off two scores before Hoover landed another kill, sealing a 25-23 set win for the Chargers and forcing a fourth set.
 
The Blue Jays began up 3-0 in set four before the Chargers came back to tie it at 5-5, helped by two kills from Hoover. The Chargers then launched a run of four points to take the lead, then extended their lead to four at 11-7. The teams then traded the next nine points before the Chargers got their largest lead of the set at five points, holding steady with a kill and an ace by Hoover and kills from Escover and Bryant, with a Blue Jay error sealing the set 25-20 and forcing a decisive fifth set on the road.
 
The Chargers began set five with the lead on a block by Bryant and Escover, then a Hoover kill put LBC up 4-2. Hoover then had three straight kills for a 7-4 LBC lead, holding that lead steady throughout the middle of the set. The Blue Jays surged late to tie the set before Hoover got the Chargers to match point on a kill, but Elizabethtown finished the match with three straight points including two blocks to seal it 16-14 and complete the five-set win over the Chargers.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Chargers led in kills 63-54 while the Blue Jays led in blocks 12-10 and service aces 6-3
- Carson Hoover led the Chargers with a career-high 23 kills and 12 digs
- Zeke Clark added 13 kills and a career-high 14 digs
- Kevin Bryant reached 11 kills and totaled six blocks
- Timothy Fletcher notched 42 total assists and Tyler Allen (Fr.) added 13 assists
- The Blue Jays were led by Braydon Ambruster with a team-high 17 kills
 
Information to Know:
The Chargers are now 4-3 all-time against Elizabethtown and dropped both of their matchups with the Blue Jays this season. The Chargers are now 1-4 on the road this season and just 2-5 away from the Horst Athletic Center, also now 1-2 overall in five-set matches this season. The Chargers set a new season-high in kills with 63 tonight, their most since January 15, 2025 and 10 more than their previous season-best. Carson Hoover's 23 total kills tonight make him the first Charger this season with 20+ kills in a match and the first since Dawson Forney on January 15, 2025 versus #14 Misericordia.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers are back in the Horst Athletic Center on Saturday, February 14 as they host (RV) Randolph-Macon at 11:00 a.m.