MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Miles continued to get the results that come from the improvement of its young team, splitting two matches on Friday at the SIAC West Crossover hosted by LeMoyne-Owen. The Lady Bears fell to Benedict in four sets before rebounding to take a five-set match against Savannah State. Kandace Griffin had double-doubles in both games, Kayla Trawick averaged a double-double, and Aaliyah Sanders had another career day for the Lady Bears (3-14, 3-7 SIAC West).

Benedict 3, Miles 1 (25-17, 25-22, 26-28, 25-17)

Griffin had 11 kills and 12 digs and Trawick added nine kills and 16 digs, but the Lady Bears struggled to hit it past the Tigers on a consistent basis. Four different players had double-digit digs for Benedict but it was the attack from T'Yannah Lake and Deisire' Young (15 kills each) that pushed the Tigers to victory. Miles' best set was the third, when it fought off three match points to extend the match. Two kills by Kendall Townsend (6-3-21, two blocks) helped finish the set and give the Lady Bears new life. Sanders finished with 15 digs and Kayla Hill added 13 assists and eight digs for Miles.

Miles 3, Savannah State 2 (19-25, 25-21, 24-26, 25-21, 15-12)

A big effort at the net helped Miles come back from a 2-1 deficit to win its second five-set match in the last week. The Lady Bears had 13 blocks, led by Zion Williams (four solos, three assists) and Jadyn McGhee (two solos, four assists), and Trawick had a career-high in kills (17), digs (21) and points (18.5).

The teams split the first two sets but Miles looked poised to take the third set. But ahead 24-21, the Lady Bears surrendered five straight points to drop the set. Still, the team did not fold and fought back to grab the match. In the fourth set, Miles returned the favor with a strong finish. Trawick sandwiched a service ace by Griffin (12 kills, 22 digs) with two kills to set the match to the fifth-set tiebreaker. Savannah State committed four errors to start the fifth set to help the Lady Bears race to an 8-3 lead. The Tigers pulled to within two points late by a kill by Trinidy Gaines (9-2-24) and two more SSU errors gave Miles the victory.

Williams added nine kills, the dual setter tandem of Saraih Taylor (25 assist) and Hill (21 assists) kept the ball moving and Sanders had a career-high 30 digs for the Lady Bears.

UP NEXT: Miles closes out the Crossover with a match against Allen on Saturday. First serve is set for 9 a.m.