TACOMA – No. 17 Pacific Lutheran volleyball topped cross-town rival Puget Sound 3-2 on Wednesday to take sole possession of first place in the Northwest Conference. With the victory, PLU advanced to 6-1 in conference, 13-3 overall while the Loggers are 5-1 in conference with a 6-10 overall record. The Lutes took the victory with set scores of 25-19, 22-25, 25-15, 23-25 and 15-8.

Kylai Cooley led with 20 kills in addition to her 10 digs, while Lucy Capron added 19 kills and 14 digs. Amy Wooten finished with a .400 attack percentage, recording only one error in 25 attempts. Wooten also led with five of the Lutes' eight total blocks on the night.

Samantha North guided the offense with 57 assists, only two shy of her career-best in a five-set match. North also contributed 18 digs while libero Amber Aguiar led with 35.

UPS took the early 3-1 led in the first set, but the Lutes posted a six-point rally to pull ahead 7-3. They never relinquished the advantage on their way to a 25-19 win.

The second set was an all out battle, featuring 13 tie scores and seven lead changes. Following a 20-20 tie, the Loggers put away five of the last seven points to win 25-22. The Lutes stormed into the third set, scoring the first seven points on their way to an eventual 25-15 set victory.

Only one set win away from the match victory, the Lutes took an early 12-9 lead in the fourth, but a five-consecutive point rally by the Loggers shifted the advantage to Puget Sound. Despite pushing two tie scores following that, PLU was unable to regain the led, dropping the set 23-25 to push a fifth and final set.

The Lutes made a statement early in the fifth with a four point run, never dropping the lead on their way to a 15-8 set win to secure the 3-2 match victory.

Pacific Lutheran will return to action this Friday when it hosts the Willamette Bearcats at home. Game time is at 7 p.m. in Olson Auditorium. The Lutes will wear pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month.