COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Benedict College volleyball team picked up its first win of the season with a 3-0 victory over Johnson C. Smith on Tuesday night in the Benjamin E. Mays HRC Arena.

The Lady Tigers won 25-21, 25-23, 25-19 to improve to 1-1. Johnson C. Smith falls to 0-6.

Jocolby Brown led the Lady Tigers with 11 kills and hit .474. Je'Nae Saunders had a game-high 28 assists. Saunders and Brianne McMillian had eight digs each.

In the first set, Johnson C. Smith jumped out to an early 7-3 lead, but Benedict battled back and took its first lead, 11-10, after a kill by Brown. The set stayed close until the Lady Tigers pulled away for a 21-15 lead, thanks to back-to-back kills by Kiarra Pettway. The Golden Bulls cut the lead to 21-18 after scoring three straight points, but Benedict scored the next two points on a kill by Brown and a service ace by P'yuncka Kearse-Peeples for a five-point cushion. Benedict closed out the set on a kill by Brown.

In the second set, the Golden Bulls used a five-point run to take a 7-5 lead and later held a 12-8 lead. Back-to-back Benedict attack errors gave Johnson C. Smith a 16-10 lead. Benedict rallied to score seven of the next nine points to cut the lead to 18-17. After the Golden Bulls pulled ahead 21-18, the Lady Tigers scored three straight points to tie the set with kills by Brown and Kalena Wiggins. A kill by Brown tied the set at 22-22. A kill by Aaliyah Lawson tied it again at 23. Back-to-back attack errors by the Golden Bulls clinched the set for Benedict.

The Lady Tigers scored the first eight points of the third set behind the strong serving of Kearse-Peeples. Another six-point run gave Benedict a 17-4 lead before Johnson C. Smith rallied to cut the lead to 22-18. Back-to-back kills by Brown gave Benedict a 24-18 lead. After a Benedict attack error gave Johnson C. Smith a point, the Lady Tigers got a kill by Wiggins to close out the match.

Benedict is back in action on Thursday at home against Fayetteville State University.