Box Score
LANGHORNE, PA - Entering Friday's slugfest with Lancaster Bible College, it had been four years since the Crimson Eagles had failed to collect the NCCAA East Region Championship banner.
But thanks to a single score midway through the first half, the Chargers reversed roles in the duo's most recent bout, overcoming PBU 1-0 en route to Lancaster's first-ever East Region trophy.
Although the all-time series between the two longtime rivals currently stands at 28-9-3 in favor of the Crimson Eagles, the Chargers have managed to close the gap in recent years, made evident by the heavyweight battles that have slowly evolved during the past couple of seasons.
With just a single goal determining the victor during each of their past four meetings, the Crimson Eagles came into Friday's contest having won two out of the last three, although both were triumphs that required PBU to make their mark in come-from-behind fashion.
Needing to overcome another single goal hurdle deep into the second half on Friday, the Crimson Eagles' magic against the Chargers dried up as the group failed to find the back of the net against Lancaster for the first time in over nine years.
Following 25-plus minutes of scoreless play to open things up, Charger forward Lawrence Lartey broke free just over halfway through the opening period, splitting free on the right wing following a well-placed through ball. The second-year midfielder rocketed home his eighth goal of the season from 20 yards out to give the visitors a 1-0 early edge.
Despite numerous scoring opportunities from both sides that included several oh-so-close clanks on the post from the Crimson Eagles, Lartey's score would ultimately prove to be the game winner Friday as neither team would manage to capitalize the rest of the way.
PBU would vault off 16 shots on the afternoon including 11 blasts on target, but LBC keeper Jake Kreider proved to be a wall in the net, providing eight stops for the visitors in the win. Crimson Eagle keeper Andy Ecker posted his seventh double-digit save outing for the year, managing 10 stops in the net for the net for PBU.
With the win, Lancaster Bible will move onto National Tournament play in Florida, giving the group their first ever automatic berth to the nationwide tourney. PBU concludes their season following the loss, finishing the year with a 7-12-2 overall record.
