COLUMBIA, S.C. – Southeastern University capitalized on a second-half blocked punt and an interception to pull away from the Benedict College Tigers and take a 35-20 victory on Saturday in Charlie W. Johnson Stadium, ending the season winless for the first time since resuming the football program in 1995.

Benedict finishes the season 0-10. Southeastern, a NAIA program in its second year, improved to 8-2.

Benedict trailed 21-14 at the half and got the ball first to start the second half. The Tigers were forced to punt, and Brian Curry's kick was partially blocked by James Swain Jr. Blade Denmark picked up the ball 20 yards downfield and returned it 34 yards for a score to increase the Fire's lead to 28-14.

On the next series, Mason Duckett was intercepted by Jacob Carter, who returned it 44 yards before being tackled at the 16-yard line. Three plays later, Railond Garrett threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Dimitri Lindsay and give the Fire a 35-14 lead with 9:17 left in the third quarter.

"I thought the kids never gave up. I thought they played hard. The second half, the interception and the blocked punt kind of cost us, but the guys played hard the whole way," said Benedict head coach Mike White, who finished his first year with the Tigers. "We'll just try to build off these 10 games and what it was all about – turnovers, and fundamentally being a lot sounder. We're not where we need to be right now. We recognize that and we'll work on that and get better."

The Tigers closed out the season by scoring a season-high 20 points. The Tigers also matched their season-high with five sacks and two interceptions. However, the Tigers turned the ball over 28 times this season (15 interceptions and 13 fumbles), and opponents scored 52 points off Benedict turnovers. The Tigers rushed for 59 yards against the Fire, slightly below their season average of 62 yards per game. The Fire rushed for 240 yards, slightly above the season average of 214.7 for Benedict opponents.

Southeastern took the opening drive and marched 75 yards on 14 plays, with Jarrell Reynolds carrying the ball the final seven yards for the first score of the day. Reynolds, one of the top running backs in the NAIA, finished with 105 yards on 17 carries.

Later in the first quarter, George Myers Jr. had a 40-yard punt return to give the Tigers a first-and-goal at the 9-yard line. On second down from the 1-yard line, Macathy Briere attempted a run up the middle, but the ball popped out. Maurice Griffin picked up the loose ball at the 3-yard line and ran into the end zone. Tory Mimbs added the extra point to tie the game at 7-7.

Another problem for the Tigers during the 2015 season was giving up the big play. That happened again midway through the second quarter, when Southeastern's Garrett completed a 54-yard pass to Michael Wheary. After a three-and-out for Benedict, the Fire went 60 yards on six plays, getting half of that on a 30-yard pass from Garrett to Jordan Phillips with 8:16 left in the second quarter to give the Fire a 21-7 lead.

After the Fire missed a 24-yard field goal attempt on their next series, the Tigers moved quickly down the field, with Jevric Blocker catching a 15-yard touchdown pass from Duckett with 17 seconds left in the first half. Mimbs added the PAT to cut the lead to 21-14 at the break.

After Southeastern pulled ahead 35-14 in the third quarter, the Tigers added another score on a 11-yard touchdown pass from Kalu Onumah to Griffin. The PAT was no good, making the score 35-20 with 3:56 left in the third quarter.

Charles Powell intercepted a Garrett pass in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers were not able to take advantage. Southeastern ate up more than three minutes on their next drive, giving the ball back to Benedict with 4:51 left in the game. The Tigers drove to the Southeastern 15-yard line, but eventually turned the ball over when Onumah's fourth-down pass attempt was incomplete.

Myers finished with 198 all-purpose yards, gaining 113 yards on four kickoff returns. Powell led the defense with 12 total tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss and an interception.