ST. PAUL – The 22nd-ranked University of Northwestern volleyball team (29-4) earned a spot in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament Championship with a sweep of Martin Luther College (11-22) in Wednesday's semifinal contest inside the Ericksen Center. Northwestern's 29 victories are tied for the second-most in program history.

The Eagles won by set scores of 25-12, 25-22 and 25-12.

Lindsey Peterson (Sheffield, Iowa/West Fork) slammed a match-high 18 kills on 46 attempts (.370), while Shanay Gonder (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington) also reached double figures in kills with 10. Leesa Hulstrand (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) orchestrated UNW's offensive attack, compiling 19 assists with Kaelyn Kilbo (Delano, Minn./Delano) contributing 14. Freya Hanson (Otsego, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) had a strong night in the back row, racking up 21 digs to lead all players and Jackie Doering (Charles City, Iowa/Charles City) added 18. Toria Gillson (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Christian) was again a force in the middle, posting six blocks.

Northwestern hit .289 on the night, while Martin Luther finished the match with a .113 hitting percentage. The Eagles held a 9-2 advantage in blocks and put up 60 points to MLC's 36.

The Eagles will host Minnesota Morris on Saturday with the UMAC Tournament title on the line. First serve inside the Ericksen Center is slated for 7 p.m. Fans can find more information on the volleyball season at www.unweagles.com or by following @unwvb on Twitter.