The #1-seed Lancaster Bible College Men's Volleyball team hosted the United East Championship game on Saturday afternoon as they hosted #2-seed Wilson for the conference crown, earning a 3-0 sweep and claiming their third straight United East title and fourth consecutive conference championship. The Chargers improve to 17-11 overall and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament while the Phoenix finish their season at 17-9 overall and United East Runners-Up.
 
**Lancaster Bible's Kevin Bryant (Jr.) earned United East Tournament MVP honors after landing 24 total kills across LBC's two playoff matches on a .488 hitting percentage, adding seven total blocks and seven total digs to his tournament totals.
 
How it Happened:
The Chargers began with a 3-0 lead on kills by three different players, then Kevin Bryant landed two kills as LBC went up 6-2. The Phoenix put together a three-point run to pull within two, then Zeke Clark (Jr.) had two straight kills as LBC got the lead up to five at 12-7. The Chargers then scored four in a row featuring a service ace by Clark to extend the lead to six, then Wilson answered later with a four-point run of their own to get the score back to two at 19-17. The teams then traded pairs of points before Bryant finished the set with a kill, with the Chargers taking set one 25-21.
 
Kills by Clark and Braden Escover (Fr.) helped LBC get out to a 4-2 lead in set two, then an ace by Hoover and a solo block from Devin Galloway (Jr.) kick-started a 6-1 LBC run with two kills by Bryant as the lead increased to 13-6. Wilson then went on a five-point run later on to tie the set at 18-apiece, then the Chargers seized control of the set with the final seven points in a row including two kills by Escover as LBC took set two 25-18.
 
Bryant and Clark landed kills as the Chargers led 6-2 in set three, then Timothy Fletcher (So.) landed a service ace as LBC led 8-3. The Chargers steadily extended their lead throughout the middle of the set, with Clark landed three service aces in a row as LBC led 16-8, their largest lead of the set. Wilson began to chip away from there, rallying all the way back to within two points at 22-20 to force a LBC timeout, but Bryant helped seal the deal with a block and a kill on back-to-back points to win the set 25-20 and hand the Chargers the 2026 United East title in a three-set sweep.
 
By the Numbers:
- The Chargers led the kills battle 42-23 and landed seven service aces to Wilson's four, while the Phoenix led in blocks 6-3
- Kevin Bryant led the Chargers with 13 kills and two blocks, earning Tournament MVP honors
- Zeke Clark added 12 kills with a match-high four service aces
- Braden Escover reached double-digit kills with 10 and had seven digs
- Timothy Fletcher dished 32 assists while Nicholas Marion (Sr.) had a match-high 14 digs
- The Phoenix were led by Jackson Wolfe with 11 kills, six digs, and four blocks
 
Information to Know:
The Chargers are now 19-0 all-time against Wilson, 3-0 against the Phoenix in the postseason, and have won their last eight conference postseason games in 3-0 sweeps from 2023-26. This is the Chargers' fourth consecutive conference championship victory and their second straight year defeating Wilson in the Final. Kevin Bryant was awarded his first career Tournament MVP and led the Chargers this postseason in kills (24) and blocks (7). This will be the Chargers' third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, losing to #3 Wentworth 3-0 in 2024 and falling 3-1 to #8 Messiah in 2025 in their last two appearances.
 
Up Next:
The Chargers have earned the automatic qualifier from the United East to the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Championship and will await their selection and opponent on Monday, April 13 at 10:00 a.m. during the Selection Show, available at the link here to ncaa.com.