LAWTON, Okla. (Jan. 21, 2012) ¬¬— With the support of more than 400 uniformed, active-duty military personnel at its back in honor of Military Appreciation Day, the Cameron Aggies took on Red River Rivals, Midwestern State, Saturday, falling just short in the Aggie Gym, 65-58.

“Our kids battled the whole game,” said Head Coach Tom Webb. “I’m proud of them for that. We just need to do better down the stretch. You can’t miss a bunch of layups and expect to win. We need to take care of a couple things while we are still in it (the top of the conference standings).”

The Aggies (12-4, 8-3) and the Mustangs (13-3, 9-1) began the game strong defensively, but it was MSU that gained the first advantage of the game at 11-7, with 15:29 to play in the half. With just under 13 minutes, the Black and Gold began to makes its move, as sophomore Ali Brown drained a pair of free throws, followed by a nice lay-up by senior Sabelle Diata. Senior Julie Paunovic would score the next four points for the home team to give Cameron a four-point advantage. The teams would trade buckets for the remainder of the half, with the Aggies carrying a four-point lead into the break.

The Mustangs fought back into the game early in the second half, taking a one-point lead, 35-34, with 15:38 left to play on a free throw by Savannah Carver. Carver finished with a game-high 27 points. The Aggies would pull ahead again, extending it to five at 43-38 on a jumper by junior Alexis Williams, with just under 13 minutes to play.

The Mustangs rushed back and seized momentum for the remainder of the game, outscoring Cameron 27-15 for the rest of the game. The Black and Gold had a number of opportunities down the stretch, but failed to capitalize on its chances.

“We knew what they were gonna’ do, and they knew what we were gonna’ do,” Webb said. “You don’t want to over coach. There’s not much new information. At the end of the day, you’ve got to make shots. We also needed to do a better job stopping them offensively in transition and rebounding.”

Diata led the Aggies in rebounding with 13, while matching Williams for a team-high 14 points. Senior Nicole Pendarvis posted a solid 12 points, with four assists and four rebounds. With the loss, the Aggies remain in third place in the conference with a chance at redemption Wednesday, as the team hosts Tarleton State (13-5, 10-0) at 6 p.m. in the Aggie Gym. The TexAnns defeated the Aggies 71-59 in the conference opener in Stephenville.

The Aggies current stretch of games has included a road contest against West Texas (9-8, 7-4), followed by back-to-backs with Midwestern (13-3, 9-1) and will end with the game against Tarleton (13-5, 10-0).

“This is an important stretch for us,” Webb said. “These teams are all hanging around the top (of the conference). You’ve got to make some noise to hang right there. All Lone Star (Conference) games are important, but these games are tough.”