WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State's Morgan Lenahan's career night kept the Mustangs close in early stages of Saturday night's Lone Star Conference tilt against West Texas A&M.
 
The senior forward buried two triples in the opening period on her way to scoring 13 of her team-high 25 points, but it was a complete team that pushed the Mustangs to an 87-80 win over the 19th-ranked Lady Buffs at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
 
"Morgan came out ready to play and I am truly excited about her," MSU coach Christopher Reay said. "It was a great team effort all the way around. We knew it would be all out battle. They are a great team. We are just trying to improve one game at a time. This a huge confidence boost to our club knowing what we are capable of."
 
Lenahan finished the game going 6-of-16 from the field firing in three of her six efforts from beyond the arc. She also frequented the charity stripe where she knocked in 10 of her 12 attempts as she bettered her 23-point effort against Fairleigh Dickinson while playing at Division I Wagner in 2018.
 
As great as her performance was, she wasn't the only MSU player to deliver a career effort.
 
Junior forward Haevyn Risley connected on 7-of-8 shots to finish with 14 points and six rebounds, while sophomore Mandy Withey set collegiate bests with 12 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out in 21 minutes.
 
The Mustangs climbed out of a 10-point hole in the third period on the strength of a 10-1 run spurred by a pair of Risley layups followed by a lay-in by sophomore guard Eternity Jackson before Lenahan fired in four free throws to pull the Mustangs to within 46-45 with 1:53 to go in the third period.
 
West Texas A&M pushed the advantage back to five points before the end of the third period as the Lady Buffs were paced by a 26-point effort by LSC Preseason Player of the Year Lexy Hightower.
 
The teams exchanged the lead six times in the fourth period and experienced three ties before Risley put back Frances King's missed layup with 55 seconds to play to send the game to the first overtime at 66-all.
 
Midwestern State pushed out to a four-point lead on a steal-and-2 by Withey and a strong score in the paint by junior forward Shawnisay Millar, but WT answered to send the game to a second OT knotted at 72-72.
 
The Mustangs finally put the game away late in the second overtime as King converted 5-of-6 free throws in the final 26 seconds, while Jackson battled for the offensive on the miss.
 
Midwestern State improved to 2-1 on the season, while West Texas A&M dropped to 2-1.
 
The Mustangs face a rematch with the Lady Buffs Monday afternoon at First United Bank Center in Canyon. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.