TACOMA, Wash. – Ella Jimenez and Amblessed Okemgbo had 14 kills apiece to help visiting Whitworth rally for a 3-2 win at Puget Sound in a Northwest Conference volleyball match on Friday night.

The Pirates (14-7 overall, 11-2 NWC) won 25-14, 20-25, 17-25, 25-22, 15-11 to stay within striking distance of Pacific Lutheran near the top of the NWC standings.  Puget Sound (14-7, 7-6) dropped into a tie for fourth place in the NWC with Willamette.

Whitworth rolled to an easy win in the opening set.  A Jimenez kill gave the Bucs an early 10-3 lead.  After the Loggers got within 13-8 on a kill from Katelyn Chekian, Whitworth scored six straight points to go ahead 19-8.  Okemgbo had a kill and block during the run.  The Pirates won the game on a block by Kaity Barr and Logan Spencer and hit .235 as a team in the set.

The second set featured 10 ties and four lead changes.  Logan Spencer's kill tied the set for the final time at 13-13.  After the Loggers used a 4-1 run to open a 17-14 lead, Whitworth got back within 17-16 on a kill by Jimenez.  Puget Sound closed the game with an 8-4 run, winning on a kill by Erin Fagan.  The Loggers hit .263 in the frame.

The Pirates scored the first point of the third set, but Puget Sound dominated the rest of the way.  The Loggers went ahead 10-3 after Whitworth's setting error.  The Bucs got back within 13-11 after a Puget Sound attack error, but got no closer.  The Loggers outscored Whitworth 12-6 down the stretch, holding the Pirates to a .063 attack percentage in the frame.

With their backs against the wall, the Bucs responded in the fourth set.  Whitworth never trailed, but had to withstand a late rally by the Loggers.  After the Pirates went ahead 22-18 on Cassidy Franklin's kill, Puget Sound scored four straight points to tie the game 22-22.  After a timeout, Whitworth scored the final three points, including consecutive blocks by Franklin.

The Pirates had to rally to win the final set after falling behind 7-3.  But with Okemgbo behind the service line, Whitworth scored eight straight points to go ahead 11-7.  Logan Spencer had three kills in the run.  A kill from Jimenez closed out the match.  The Bucs kept the pressure on by hitting .304 in the fifth game.

Okemgbo finished with 16 points, adding four block assists to her 14 kills.  Jimenez had 15 points and hit .290.  Franklin finished with eight kills and eight block assists for 12.0 points.  The Bucs had 11.0 blocks as a team.  Mya Rodriguez (24) and Josephine Thompson (19) combined for 43 assists. 

Fagan led the Loggers with 13 kills.  Puget Sound served six aces, including three by Samantha Keightley.

Whitworth will get the opportunity to cut into Pacific Lutheran's (14-7, 13-0) lead in the NWC standings on Saturday night in Parkland.