WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Middle blocker Lissette Lefforge owned D.L. Ligon Coliseum on Saturday afternoon, earning 13.5 points for Midwestern State in their match against No. 18 UT Tyler. The Mustangs controlled the second set but fell in the end by 1-3 to the Patriots (18-25, 25-21, 16-25, 17-25). MSU sits at a 3-13 record for the 2021 season and 1-7 for Lone Star Conference play.

"Keeping our middles involved will always open things up," explained Head Coach Valerie Armstrong.

Lefforge pushed her involvement to lead MSU with nine kills and four blocks. The senior from Otis, Colo. registered two service aces and 26 total attacks on the night. Her middle counterpart, Alex Serna, followed up her career-best performance against Texas A&M-Commerce (10/08) with three kills on 14 attempts.

Alyssa Estrada-Hamby paced herself with Lefforge to register a season-high nine smashes against the Patriots The middle blocker turned right side hitter led Midwestern State with a .368 attacking percent and landed one block assist.

Midwestern State began the first set with two back-to-back Madison Becker service aces. The freshman totaled three perfect services on the afternoon and added four digs. Lauryn Bourne matched the defensive specialist with three aces and contributed six kills. Defensively, the sophomore counted one block and ten digs for the Mustangs.

In her sixth straight match with double digit passes, Amy DeWalt bested MSU with 13 digs. She completed two assists as libero. Regan Willms topped the team with 19 helpers while Autmun Roach chipped in 17.

Mikayla Ware led both teams with 17 kills in 40 attacks while Taylor Stoops pushed for 25 assists. Savannah Guzman put up 17 digs and Hattie Murray gained five blocks for UT Tyler.

"At the end of the day against an undefeated team, you can't take plays off," said Armstrong. "We will learn from this and refocus for next week on the road."

Midwestern State kicks off their road trip with a stop in Odessa, Texas, to take on UT Permian Basin. The Lone Star Conference match takes place on Oct. 14 at 6 p.m. in the Falcon Dome.