SPOKANE, Wash. — The Pacific Lutheran University volleyball team inched closer to its second straight Northwest Conference Tournament title on Friday night, downing crosstown rival University of Puget Sound 3-1 (22-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-19) in the semifinals of the second annual tournament inside Whitworth University's Fieldhouse. 
 
The second-seeded Lutes (19-7) had a sluggish start to the night, conceding the opening six points of the match and eight of the first 11 points as the third-seeded Loggers (16-8) led wire-to-wire to take the first set 25-22.

The roles reversed in the second set with PLU collecting four of the opening five points. The Lutes would never trail with a Logger attack error giving Pacific Lutheran the 25-19 set win to tie the match.

The Lutes trailed 13-12 in the third set before rattling off four straight, getting kills from both Claire Hindman and Julissa Pernsteiner and an ace from Bailey Johnson. The set remained tight before the Lutes ripped off three straight to secure the 25-20, getting a clinching kill from Hindman.
 
Puget Sound led 5-4 in the fourth set before the Lutes tallied the next four points, getting two kills from Noe Feliciano and two aces from Pernsteiner. PLU would hold the lead the rest of the way with another Pernsteiner kill closing the book on the Loggers, giving PLU the 25-19 set win to punch a ticket to tomorrow's NWC Tournament finals. 
 
"Wow, what a great answer to a slow start," said Head Coach Kevin Aoki.
 
"We're proud of our team and how we battled against a much taller team. We're excited to be in the championship game again for the second year in a row."
 
Four Lutes registered double digit kills on the night with Pernsteiner, Feliciano, Hindman, and Shaela Allen-Greggs all collecting 10 kills. That included Pernsteiner finishing with a .304 attack percentage. 

Ayre Takamoto set up the offense, netting 41 assists along with 10 digs. Makenna Jackson led the team with 20 digs and four aces with Macy Matsushima adding 10 digs. 
 
The Lutes battle top-seeded Whitworth University tomorrow at 6 p.m. for the NWC Tournament title and the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Pirates earned a spot in the finals after sweeping fourth-seed George Fox University 3-0.