After slightly losing to the Lady Buffs of West Texas A&M, the Midwestern State women’s basketball team punished Eastern New Mexico with a 64-55 score line Saturday night at the D.L. Ligon Coliseum.

The Lady Mustangs’ encounter with West Texas ended 71-69 to the utmost dismay of the visitors. With just a few seconds more, MSU might have leveled things up if not won. Savannah Carver’s fondness of scoring was apparent in this competition as she made 18 points to lead the Lady Mustangs’ offense.

“I don’t really think about scoring,” Carver humbly said. “I feel scoring is just my drive to the team.”

Andrea Carter also stood up for MSU as she struck with 12 points while Kirsti Degelia lofted 11 points past the Lady Buffs.

“It was a good team we played against but I felt we’re better,” commented Degelia. “We didn’t come out and play as we should have so they took advantage of that.”

Ashley Leven’s 25 points spoke a lot for the hosts who struggled to stay in the lead. Leven was backed up by Devin Griffin, who slid in 13 points and Joni Unruh, who made 12 points.

The Lady Mustangs then went ahead to slowly take their anger from Wednesday’s night on Eastern New Mexico.

“We had a slow start,” said Head Women’s Basketball Coach Noel Johnson. “Things weren’t falling in line for us.”

The Zias maintained a comfortable lead for the majority of the game but the hosts were resolute on coming out victorious.

“I laid it into them at halftime and they responded,” said Johnson. “I’m proud of the seniors, their leadership and how they brought this team out of that deficit.”

Carver defined precision by scoring another 18 points to pilot Midwestern State over the Zias. Degelia’s consistency was also in place as the sophomore guard finished with 13 points coupled with seven rebounds.

“We came up tight and with savvy due to emotions accompanied with senior night,” said Degelia. “We did what we needed to do and we got the win.”

Meanwhile, Precious Herring paced Eastern New Mexico with 17 points while Kiara Tate displayed an outstanding performance of 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Jazman Patterson and Karissa Lang rounded up the Lady Mustangs’ colorful scoring with nine and seven points respectively.

“This team is amazing and I’m really happy to be a part of it,” said Carver. “I haven’t experienced something like this since I’ve been here.”

Johnson saw the win as a crucial one for the team and especially for the seniors, who experienced their last home victory.

“Going into the conference tournament with a win is a good momentum for us,” she said. “It gives us a lot of confidence.”

After a difficult start, the Lady Mustang came out with a superb 64-55 finish.

“The bottom line is that we found a way to win,” said Johnson. “ That is also what we have to do in the tournament.”

MSU will commence the Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament against Incarnate Word Thursday.

“It is really exciting going into the conference tournament,” said Degelia. “We’re ready to go there and prove that Midwestern deserves to be there.”

Tipoff against the Cardinals is set for 12 p.m. at the Allen Event Center.