WALLA WALLA, Wash. – The old adage of 'whoever has the ball last is probably going to win' did apply in Sunday afternoon's Northwest Conference women's lacrosse season finale between host Whitman College and visiting Pacific (Ore.) University at the Whitman Athletic Fields. But that cliche would also mislead by suggesting a high-scoring affair.

Instead what fans got at Whitman's Senior Day was a toe-to-toe slugfest, one in which the Boxers (10-4, 7-1 NWC) -- needing the victory to finish the season tied atop the conference standings -- finally outlasted the Whitties (4-10, 4-4), 11-10, after scoring the game's final goal with a little less than five minutes to play, then playing keep-away over the remaining time to steal the win.

In the fourth meeting between the teams since Whitman's move to a varsity program last year, the Whitties had never led Pacific, a fact that would change Sunday.

The Boxers took advantage of an early yellow card to score a man-up goal for a 1-0 lead, then added two more to push their advantage to three with 10 minutes gone in the first half. Emily Jordan broke the seal on the scoreboard for Whitman on a man-up opportunity but Pacific answered three minutes later to elevate its lead to three again with just under 12 minutes left in the half.

Those final 12 minutes were when Whitman found its mojo, getting consecutive goals from Anna Melville followed by a Lindsey Schwartz tally, and then with 62 seconds on the clock another Melville goal to conclude a 4-0 run that wrested the lead away from the Boxers and allowed Whitman to enjoy a 5-4 lead at the halftime break.

And then the game got interesting.

Whatever stretches of momentum existed in the first half, well, toss those away for the second half. The final 30 minutes saw two fighters alternating scoring blows with one team never leading the other by more than a goal.

Pacific struck first with the initial two goals of the half to take back the lead, 6-5, but Schwartz powered her way through the Boxers defenders twice in 50 seconds to answer that challenge and push the Whitties in front.

The team's traded markers for the game's next four goals, leaving Hannah Bashevkin's score providing Whitman with a 9-8 advantage with a little less than 20 minutes showing up on the game clock.

Pacific pulled even with an April Lanz goal at the 16:13 mark but one of the longest stretches of game during which neither team could score would follow. 

Though Nicki Leeming's goal for the Boxers with 10:55 remaining wasn't the game-winner, it did end the alternating body blows each team was serving up and gave Pacific back an advantage up on the scoreboard it hadn't seen in nearly 12 minutes.

That advantage would be erased with Schwartz' fourth goal of the afternoon, pushing her season total to a single-season program record 55, with 8:21 to play but Jasmyne Adame's ground ball pick-up of a turnover and quick shot and score near the Whitman goal would prove to be the game-winner with 4:55 still left on the clock.

Melville had a good look on goal with 2:37 to play but the Whitties' final shot of the season would be stopped by Pacific goalkeeper Adrienn Salzwedel, who finished the game with 17 saves to key her team's avoidance of an upset to the upstart Whitties.

Back in Whitman's cage keeper Savannah McNichol, one of the four senior captains, came up with nine saves to aid her team's defense in keeping Pacific two goals under its season scoring average.

Schwartz and Melville tied for game-high scoring honors with four goals apiece. Lanz would lead the Boxers attack with three goals.

Schwartz and Nina Henelsmith would help lead Whitman to a 14-9 edge in draw controls, Schwartz coming away with six and Henelsmith nabbing five.

Defensively, Whitman nearly doubled, 27-14, Pacific in ground ball totals, with Henelsmith's six coming in as a game-high. Her three caused turnover also led all players and helped Whitman finish with a 10-5 advantage there as well.

Prior to the contest Whitman and head coach Kate Robinson paid tribute to the four seniors -- Henelsmith, Emily Jordan, McNichol and Sam Sheffer -- who helped spirit the program from club status to a varsity program that doubled it's wins total from year one to year two.