LANCASTER, Pa. - The No. 12 Lancaster Bible College Chargers topped the Messiah men's volleyball team in straight sets on Wednesday night, despite a fine effort from the Falcons. The Chargers earned a 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-17) victory over Messiah as the Falcons move to 2-3 on the young season.
 
Matt Knab led the Falcons with nine kills while Brad Nase dished out a team-high 23 assists and Caleb Weaver collected seven digs.
 
BACK TO BACK BATTLE
The Falcons began the first set with a 7-3 lead after an attack error by Kole Horst of the Chargers. Lancaster Bible responded with four unanswered points to tie the match up at 7-7 in the first set. After a 3-1 run for the Falcons, the Chargers rattled off five-straight points, including three consecutive kills to take a 13-10 lead.

Messiah called a timeout for a breather, but the Chargers continued to hold the advantage, leading 17-13. A back-and-forth battle ensued with the Falcons pulling within two points on six occasions, but Lancaster Bible held off the late charge, concluding the set with a 25-22 victory.
 
CHARGERS KEPT THE MOMENTUM GOING
In second set, the Falcons jumped out to an early 2-0 advantage, but the Chargers answered with an 9-2 run to take an 9-4 lead. Messiah was able to cut the deficit to three at 12-9 with a 5-3 run that featured kills from Knab and Noah Shreiner. Lancaster Bible extended their advantage to 23-17 with a lengthy 11-8 run, forcing Messiah to call a timeout. The Falcons won the next two points, but still trailed 23-19 and the Chargers were able to hold on for the 25-20 triumph in the set.
 
LANCASTER CHARGES AHEAD
The Chargers jumped out to an 8-1 advantage, but Messiah trimmed the Lancaster Bible lead to 13-10, thanks to a pair of kills from Noah Wilson and Shreiner. Messiah committed a number of unforced errors in the middle of the set, putting Lancaster Bible's in the driver's seat with a 20-11 lead. The Falcons would be unable to erase the deficit and the Chargers closed the match with at 25-17 victory in the set.
 
What's Up Next
Messiah keeps the away schedule going as they travel next to Geneva College on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 2:00 p.m. Following a final away game at Cairn on Feb. 13,  the Falcons will finally return to Jordan Court for their home opener with a tri-match against Misericordia and Widener scheduled for Feb. 16.