ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Benedict College men's volleyball team cruised to a 3-0 victory over Kentucky State in the opening match of the 2022 SIAC men's volleyball championship before falling to Central State 3-1.
 
Benedict, now 7-14 on the season, drops to the loser's bracket and will face Morehouse at 1 p.m. on Wednesday at the Rock Hill Sports and Event Center.
 
Against the Thorobreds, Donovan Wilmott, Ras Jesse Delancy and Zion Beckford all had 10 kills as Benedict won 25-8, 25-22, 25-13. The Tigers hit .366, while the Thorobreds hit -.071. Terran Walkin had 31 assists and Clint Forbes recorded 10 digs.
 
In the second match of the day, the top-seed Marauders took a 25-17, 22-25, 25-16, 27-25 victory. Delancy led the Tigers with 19 kills and 10 digs, while Walkin had 30 assists.
 
In the fourth set, the Tigers used a late four-point run to take a 23-22 lead. The Tigers took a 24-23 lead after a Central State attack error. The Marauders scored the next two points, but the Tigers tied the score at 25 on a kill by Delancy. Central State closed out the match with a kill and a Benedict error.
 
The winner of the Benedict-Morehouse match will advance to take on the winner of the other 1 p.m. loser bracket game between Kentucky State and Fort Valley State. The winner of that match will advance to Thursday's first match at 10 a.m. against the loser between Central State and Edward Waters. The championship game is set for 1 p.m. Thursday, with a second championship game, if necessary, at 4 p.m.