McMINNVILLE, Ore.  Winners of six of its last eight, Whitman entered the weekend looking to lock up a spot in the Northwest Conference's four-team postseason tournament with one win in a three-game set.

Host Linfield College made the Blues' future a little dicier with the Wildcats' 6-3 and 10-0 doubleheader sweep of Whitman on Saturday at Roy Helser Field.

The Blues (18-19, 12-11 NWC) are still in fourth place within the league standings, and a win Sunday over Linfield (21-14, 15-8) in the regular-season finale would lock up that playoff spot.

Meanwhile, Saturday's sweep locked the Wildcats in as the second seed for the tournament.

Whitman starting pitcher Tristan Kalnins and reliever Collin Anderson kept the Blues in the fight during the early innings of Game 1, as the two combined to allow just a pair of runs -- one each in the first and second innings -- through the first three frames.

Linfield's Cason Cunningham was proving just as difficult, though…until Whitman's fourth.

Cunningham walked three batters and allowed Whitman's first run on a wild pitch before giving way to reliever Dylan Peters.

With the bases jammed Peters hit the first batter he faced, Anthony Lim, to allow the tying run to cross the plate.

But Linfield plated two runs in the bottom of the inning to wrest back the lead and picked up two more in the sixth for added cushion.

Peters was handcuffing the Whitman batters during that same time span, sending the Blues down in order three times over the next five innings.

Brett Williams worked him for a two-out walk in the sixth but was left stranded, and then in the top of the ninth a fielding error allowed Alex Behrman on base to start the frame, in which he later came around to score on a Lim sacrifice fly to center field.

A fly out right back into center field ended the game, however, and left the Blues still seeking a win that would clinch a playoff spot.

Linfield jumped on starter Brendan Henry in the bottom of the first of Game 2, notching six runs off Henry and one more off reliever John Lyon to jump on top 7-0 after only six outs.

Like with the opener in which the Blues registered one hit, Wildcat pitching had the Whitman batters' numbers all game, again surrendering just one hit -- a sixth-inning, one-out single by Lim -- to prevent the Blues from inching back into the game.

Henry took the loss, but Lyon pitched an effective five innings though he did give up a pair of solo home runs. Tristan Perry and Braden Hussey handled the last 2 2/3s innings, giving up just one hit and one walk while holding the Wildcats without a run.

The season finale Sunday between the Blues and Linfield begins at 1 p.m. at Helser Field.