The Lancaster Bible College Men's Volleyball team remained home for a big-time matchup against #8-ranked Messiah on Tuesday night, taking a set but falling 3-1 in front of a packed house. The Chargers fall to 4-5 overall while the Falcons improve to 7-1 overall.
 
How it Happened:
The Chargers got off to a 4-1 start in the first set as Carson Hoover (Jr.) had an assist and a block early on, then the teams traded the next seven points before a four-point run by the Chargers got them out to an 11-5 lead after a kill by Kevin Bryant (Jr.). A 5-1 run by the Falcons in the middle of the set got the lead down to two, then Matt Degan (Fr.) landed a service ace to get it back to four at 18-14. The Falcons then answered with a five-point run with three service aces, swinging in front and holding on in a tight battle late to win set one 25-23.
 
The Chargers got to a 4-3 lead in set two on back-to-back kills by Braden Escover (Fr.), then Zeke Clark (Jr.) finished off a three-point burst with a kill for a 7-4 advantage. Degan had another ace en route to a 10-5 lead, then the Chargers led by as many as seven points during the middle of the match as Hoover landed another kill. Messiah then had back-to-back four-point runs to tie the set at 22-apiece, then traded points with the Chargers to force extras. A pair of Falcon errors helped seal set two 26-24 and the Chargers claimed a set off the eighth-ranked Falcons.
 
The Chargers used a four-point run early with an ace by Kevin Bryant (Jr.) to grab a 6-3 lead, making it a four-point lead early on off an ace by Clark at 13-9. Messiah began to chip into the lead before bursting ahead 19-16 off a five-point run, leading by as many as five before two kills from Hoover made it a three-point deficit. Despite a late kill by Bryant, the Falcons finished out the set 25-21 for a 2-1 match lead.
 
Lancaster Bible got off to a promising 4-0 start in the fourth set with two kills by Hoover, getting the lead up to five at 9-4 as Bryant and Escover each had kills. Messiah then scored four in a row to trim the lead to one, then another three straight to swing ahead 13-12 to gain the upper hand. Another late run of four points for the Falcons made it a five-point edge, holding on down the stretch to win 25-22 and close out the Chargers in four sets.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Chargers led in kills 53-45 while the Falcons dominated in blocks 10-2 and led in service aces 6-4
- Braden Escover led the Chargers with a match-high 17 kills
- Carson Hoover added 14 kills and eight digs
- Kevin Bryant had 11 kills on .556 hitting while Nicholas Marion (Sr.) led all players with 11 digs
- Timothy Fletcher notched 44 total assists and Matt Degan added two service aces
- The Falcons were led by Tyler McConnell with a team-high 12 kills and two blocks
 
Information to Know:
The Chargers are now 2-7 all-time against Messiah while losing seven straight to the Falcons since 2020. This was a rematch of the 2025 NCAA Tournament Second Round where the Chargers met the #8-ranked Falcons in Lexington, Va., where Messiah defeated Lancaster Bible in four sets.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers will travel out to Beaver Falls, Pa. on Saturday, February 7 as they take on Roberts Wesleyan at 2:30 p.m. followed by a match against host Geneva (Pa.) at 4:30 p.m.