PARKLAND – Derek Johnson scored two goals in a 76-second stretch late in the second half to lead the sixth-ranked Pacific Lutheran men's soccer team to a 3-1 Northwest Conference victory over Whitman Sunday afternoon.

The win improves Pacific Lutheran's unbeaten record to 9-0-3 overall and 4-0-2 in conference play. Whitman falls to 3-6-2 overall and 3-2-1 in the NWC. The Lutes' next opponent will be cross-town rival Puget Sound, as PLU will travel to the UPS campus for a Saturday afternoon matchup next weekend. Puget Sound leads the conference standings with a 6-0 record, with PLU ranking second.

"I'm proud of the boys, proud of their efforts, proud of the fact that we're 12 games into the season and still in contention for the Northwest Conference championship," PLU head coach John Yorke said.

With the match all tied up at one-apiece and less than 10 minutes remaining in regulation, it looked like the Lutes might be headed for overtime for their fourth straight contest. But Johnson put an end to that consideration with back-to-back goals in the 83rd and 84th minutes of play.

The senior forward got to the ball after Whitman goalkeeper Niko Contos lost control, sending a slow roller across the net and in from about 20 yards out for what proved to be the game winner. Less than 90 seconds later Johnson took a pass from Giancarlo Santoro about 10 yards out and knocked it in to give PLU the 3-1 advantage. With those two goals, Johnson reached a career-best 10 goals this season.

The Lutes' final goal of the match was a role reversal of their first score, when Johnson passed to Santoro for the shot from 25 yards out in the 37th minute. Whitman tied it up midway through the second period, as Logan Grime passed to Bridger Sellegren about 10 yards in front of the net to set up the score in the 74th minute.

Whitman finished the match with a 13-10 shot advantage, but the Missionaries also nearly doubled the Lutes' foul count at 24-13. Rayburn finished the match with three saves for PLU, while Whitman's Contos saved two shots.