AUSTIN, Texas – St. Edward's women's basketball team staged a furious fourth-quarter rally fueled by relentless defensive pressure but were felled by a tip-in at the buzzer of a 66-64 loss to the Midwestern State Mustangs. 
 
JANIAH PERKINS led St. Edward's with 19 points, shooting 8-for-11 from the free-throw line on a night the Hilltoppers struggled to convert from the field and stay on the court through foul trouble. 
 
St. Edward's opened the game executing like clockwork, getting two early assists from the high post from AINSLEY THUNELL. Unfortunately for St. Edward's, Thunell picked up two quick fouls less than four minutes into the game. 
 
Midwestern State responded to an early six-point deficit with a 12-0 run, hitting 6-for-8 from the free-throw line while St. Edward's committed five turnovers to go down 16-10. St. Edward's responded with a 7-0 run to close the quarter, nailing all five free-throw attempts over a one-minute stretch to lead 17-16 after the first. 
 
St. Edward's struggled from the field in the second quarter against Midwestern State's zone defense, but crashed the glass for eight offensive rebounds, outrebounding the Mustangs 15-8 in the quarter to carry a 30-28 lead into the break. 
 
J.P. led St. Edward's with nine points and six rebounds, hitting 3-for-8 from the field at the half. Midwestern State's Kertisa Amos led all scorers with 11 on 3-for-5 shooting and five made free throws. 
 
St. Edward's had the right process against the zone in the third quarter but continued its cold shooting while Midwestern State hit the board for six offensive rebounds, outscoring the Hilltoppers 6-1 on second-chance points in the third quarter and got five points each from Amos and Kyla Speights to take a 48-42 lead going into the fourth. 
 
Midwestern State opened the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run with six points from Zarria Carter to go up by 15 at 57-42 with 6:23 remaining. 
 
St. Edward's found its footing on the defensive end, getting pressure up top from JAYDA RUFFUS-MILNER and LAUREN CATHERMAN. The Hilltoppers played with intensity and purpose, reeling off a 22-7 run over a six-minute stretch behind a defense that generated three steals and forced multiple 10-second violations. 
 
J.P. came to life with 10 points over that stretch, hitting 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, a floater, and a backdoor layup off a high-post feed from ABBEY MORTON. BAILEY FEATHERSTONE hit a 3-pointer, Catherman scored a layup through contact and made a free throw, Ruffus-Milner hit two free throws and a layup of a steal, and CELISE BOBBITT hit two clutch free throws to tie the game at 64 with 12 seconds remaining. 
 
The Hilltoppers played perfect defense for 11 seconds, forcing a wild pull-up jumper from Zionna Barbee, but Carter tipped in the miss as time expired to give Midwestern State the win. 
 
Carter's game-winner gave her 20 points to go with 21 rebounds to lead both teams in both categories. Amos scored 19 points, and Speights added 12. The Mustangs shot 27-for-36 from the free-throw line and St. Edward's shot 25-for-36 in a game where four players fouled out and four others faced foul trouble. 
 
St. Edward's drops to 3-5 with a 1-2 conference record after the loss. The Hilltoppers will host Cameron on Sunday at 1 p.m.