So, after 3 phone calls and 2 emails to 1st line, I finally got them to send out a set of seals for my coworker's PVL. I switched them out today, and it was pretty obvious that the old seals were the root of my problem. The top seal, or the one closest to the lever, was torn. Upon closer inspection it looked like it may have been damaged during installation. As you can see in the second pic, there was a mark/cut on the inside of the seal that led me to think this.
The edges of the middle seal were also chewed up.
After the installation of the new seal everything was working as it should. The lever operation was slick as snot on a door knob, and the machine pulled a great shot with no indication of lurching or slipping.