(AZUSA, Calif.) PLNU Women's Volleyball won a marathon first set over Azusa Pacific on Saturday afternoon, but the Cougars came back to win the next three and take the match in four sets (28-30, 25-19, 25-23, 25-20).
 
In the opening stanza, a Torina Hommes kill gave Point Loma set point at 24-22, but APU scored the next two points to prolong the action. The Cougars then saved another set point before the Sea Lions faced a pair of set points themselves. Ultimately, a Claire Smith kill and combined block with Hommes helped Point Loma clinch the set.
 
PLNU continued that momentum into the second stanza, taking an early 5-1 lead on the back of Macy Reynolds' serving. However, APU fought back to tie the set before going on a 6-0 run to take a 20-14 advantage, which was too much for the visiting Sea Lions to overcome.
 
Point Loma then trailed 17-9 in the third set, but fought back to take a late 23-21 advantage. Courtney Dyer served a pair of aces as part of six-point streak that gave PLNU the lead, but APU quickly flipped the switch and scored the next four points to take an all-important two-set-to-one advantage.
 
The Sea Lions led for a good portion of the fourth set before the Cougars took over late. With the set tied at 18 apiece, APU scored seven of the next nine points to finish off the victory, as PLNU was made to pay for 11 attacking errors in the fourth set.
 
Hommes led all players with 19 kills, while also pitching in a team-high five blocks. Abigail Nua (14 kills) and Smith (11 kills) also posted double-digit kills.
 
A night after setting a program record in its NCAA era for career service aces, Dyer served four aces and recorded 22 digs to lead all players. Lauren Phillips' 52 assists were also a match-high.
 
Point Loma (13-6 overall, 8-3 PacWest) now travels to Hawaii for three matches, with its first matchup coming on Wednesday against the defending conference champions Chaminade (16-6, 11-0), who remain unbeaten in PacWest play.