LA VERNE, Calif. - The 24th-ranked Pacific Lutheran University volleyball team experienced mixed results on Friday at the Leopard Invitational, earning a five set victory over Whittier College before falling 3-0 to a fresh La Verne University in the nightcap.

Against Whittier (3-6), the Poets scored five straight points to take an 8-4 lead and never looked back, taking the opening set 25-14. The Lutes trailed early in the second set before ripping off eight points, including a service ace from Ava Nelson and a pair of kills from Lauren Wilson. PLU played with a lead the rest of the set, prevailing 25-19. The Lutes scored five of the final six points in the third set, taking the win 25-19 and held an 8-1 lead in the fourth set only to see it evaporate as the Poets surged back to win 25-21 to force a decisive fifth set.

A Madeline Dawson ace, a Wilson kill, and a pair of Whittier attack errors gave the Lutes an early 4-1 lead while consecutive kills from Danielle Skibiel and McKenzie Pfeiffer secured the match for the Lutes, winning 15-10.

"It was a very good hard fought match against Whittier and to win in five was a true test for our team," said Head Coach Kevin Aoki.

Wilson finished with 18 kills and 17 digs while Pfeiffer and Skibiel added 14 and 11 kills, respectively. Emily Dulaney had 46 assists and 14 digs while Halle Hetzler had a match-high 29 digs.

In the nightcap, the host Leopards (4-5) took the opening set 25-19 before scoring four of the final points to sow up a 25-21 win in the second set. The tournament hosts, who played just one match on Friday, accounted for five of the final six points in the third, collecting the 25-16 win to sweep the match in three sets.

Skibiel led the Lutes with nine kills. Savanna Service had four blocks while Hetzler and Dulaney finished with 25 digs and 21 assists, respectively.

"The second match was tough because we only had an hour to rest while La Verne was playing their only match of the day and played well. The team has confidence that we will bounce back tomorrow."

The Lutes wrap up the tournament tomorrow, facing Chapman University at 1 p.m. and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges at 4 p.m.