Salem, Ore. - Playing in front of an energetic senior night crowd, Willamette Volleyball battled league-leading Whitworth University but fell in three sets to the Pirates, 25-16, 25-21, 26-17.

The Bearcats started strong in the opening set thanks to a series of kills by Olivia Cadien and took a 9-4 lead on a service ace by Alayna Hughes.  The Pirates scored the next five points to tie the match at nine and the teams went back and forth until Whitworth went on an 8-1 run to take a 19-13 lead before eventually winning the opening set 25-16.

Whitworth continued their strong play and took an 11-6 lead early in set two before the Bearcats responded to a timeout by scoring four straight points and pulling with one at 11-10.  The Pirates extended the lead back out to five before a kill by Nora Wade cut the lead to 23-21.  Whitworth scored the final two points to take the second set by a score of 25-21.

The third set saw Whitworth run out leads of 5-1, 7-2, and 9-3 before Willamette would begin to battle back. A service ace by Kaitlyn Westby cut the lead to 9-5, but Whitworth scored five of the next six points to extend the lead to 14-6.  The Pirates would hold that lead and close out the match by a 25-17 score in the third and final set.

Katey Cramer and Olivia Cadien led Willamette in kills with eight, also leading the team in digs with 18 and 16, respectively.  Leina Chu provided 24 assists for the Bearcats.  Kaitlyn Westby had four service access and two blocks.

The Bearcats will play their final home match of the season on Tuesday, November 5th, at 7:00 pm when they host the Boxers of Pacific University.