LANCASTER, Pa. - The No. 20 Messiah men's volleyball team earned a straight-set victory over the Lancaster Bible Chargers on Saturday evening, claiming their match 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-19). The Falcons committed just 13 errors while hitting .324 as a team in the match. Messiah was led by Ryan Givens' 13 kills on just 15 swings. Givens swung at an impressive .800 clip throughout the match as the Falcons cruised to their fourth victory of the season.
 
A tight opening set was closed out by a 9-4 Messiah run to give the Falcons the set 25-22. Messiah was more in control of sets two and three, winning both by identical scores of 25-19 to earn their second sweep of the season.
 
Messiah will be back in action on Wednesday night when they host Penn State Altoona at 7:00 p.m. on Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena.
 
How It Happened
The Falcons and Chargers played a tight opening set with Lancaster Bible holding control of the lead for a majority of the set. The Chargers were out in front 18-16 after back-to-back kills from Jordan Yoder and Nicholas Marion capped off a 6-2 Lancaster Bible run. A kill from Sean Gillespie started a 9-4 Messiah run and swung momentum in the Falcons' favor. Over the set-ending run, Messiah picked up kills from Gillespie, Ryan Givens, and Jacob Hamm while also earning three blocks. The Falcons closed out the set with a block from Hamm and Givens to give Messiah the set at 25-22.
 
In the second set, Messiah built a quick 6-2 lead, but the Chargers used a 6-1 run to jump out in front 8-7. A few points later, a Messiah service error tied things back up at 12-12. The Falcons then used an 8-3 streak to create some separation, building a 20-15 lead. During the run, Ryan Givens, Jake Eby, and Alex Kagoro all picked up kills for Messiah. After trailing points for the rest of the set, Messiah took a 2-0 lead after winning the set 25-19.
 
Alex Kagoro fueled an 8-2 Messiah run in the early portion of the third set with a trio of kills. The run took a 7-7 tied game to a 15-9 Messiah lead. From there, Messiah never led by less than four points earning the set by a 25-19 score and completing the sweep.
 
In the match, Messiah hit .324 with 36 kills and just 13 errors. Their .324 hitting percentage is their second-best in a match this year.
 
What's Up Next
The Falcons will welcome Penn State Altoona on Wednesday night to Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena for a non-conference match beginning at 7:00 p.m.