SALEM, Ore. - Two careers came to a close Saturday night as Hannah Linsenmayer and Abby Seethoff put the finishing touches on four years of effort for Whitman College volleyball. The duo helped push the Missionaries into a fifth game against third-place Northwest Conference opponent Willamette University but the host Bearcats held off the Missionaries to take a 3-2 victory at Cone Field House in the season finale for Whitman.

Whitman ends its season with a 6-16 mark overall and 4-12 record within the league while Willamette finishes third in the NWC with 15-9 and 11-5 records, respectively, after downing the Missionaries 23-25, 25-22, 15-25, 25-19 and 15-5.

The match found its pivot point midway through the fourth game. Trailing the Missionaries 2-1 in the match the Bearcats were able to race out to an 8-2 lead to start the fourth game. Whitman rallied all the way back from that deficit to take a 10-9 edge and eventually found themselves knotted at 14-14 with the home team.

A short burst from Willamette flipped the momentum and allowed the Bearcats to earn a six-point win in the game then continue their roll in the deciding fifth.

Linsenmayer came up with 24 digs on the night, raising her career total to 1,750. Her three service aces Saturday upped that career total to 128.,Seethoff collected seven kills to lift her career number to 441.

Saturday's match leader on the attack was Whitman's Shae Kanakaole whose 20 kills fell one shy of her season high. Megan Henry added nine kills and Natalia Zea put down eight on the night.

Though the Missionaries narrowly lost the blocking battle at the net, 16.0-15.0, Zea came away with a season best, adding 10 block assists to one solo block.

The match concludes the Whitman season but the team awaits the announcement of all-conference players, to be released Monday by the league office.