Aggies hold off Mustangs for first LSC win
For Immediate Release
December 7, 2019
Cameron University Athletics
Kenton Means – Sports Information Director
SILVER CITY, N.M. – Led by sophomore Maighan Hedge’s 24 points, the Aggie women’s basketball team held off a late comeback bid by Western New Mexico on Saturday afternoon to earn their first Lone Star Conference win of the season.
In the 68-61 victory, the Cameron women needed all 24 points from their second-year leading scorer. CU led by 22 at the break, but after shooting under 30 percent in the final two quarters had to endure the scrappy Mustangs late push.
Cameron opened up the game by hitting five three pointers in the first 10 minutes of play to lead the Mustangs 20-12 after one frame. Hedge and Stephanie Peterson each had two treys to lead CU with six points each.
The Aggies’ dominant second quarter started with four straight points from Hedge to give her 10 in the game. CU shot 50 percent from the field in the period, while adding three triples to their half total. Cameron continued to dominate the frame and an Ava Battese three with 11 seconds on the clock gave them their 39-17 lead at the break.
Hedge led CU with 13 through 20 minutes of play, while Battese’s seven points in the second quarter to give her 10 in the half. Cameron was 48.4 percent from the floor and 8-23 from three-point range in the opening two frames.
On the other side of the court, the Black and Gold defense forced the Mustangs into nine turnovers, while holding them to a .194 field goal percentage, after they went 1-15 in the second quarter alone.
In the second half, the Mustangs did not make it easy for the Aggies to earn their first conference win of the season. WNMU came out in the third quarter and stifled the CU offense to just a .267 shooting percentage in the frame to cut the deficit to 15, 54-39 heading into the final quarter. Cameron was able to stay out ahead by knocking down all six of their free throw attempts, while Western was 6-13 from the charity stripe in the third.
Western New Mexico kept up the pressure in the fourth quarter and was able to cut the lead down to just three points at the 3:16 mark. However, the went cold from the field and the foul line down the stretch (1-5 FG, 1-4 FT) and the Black and Gold was able to outscore them 8-4 in the final minutes to hang on for the seven-point victory.
Hedge’s 24-point outing was her third 20+ point game of the season, increasing her scoring average to 16.4 on the season. The Melbourne, Australia native was 8-18 from the field and 4-10 from three in the win. Battese and Peterson each finished with 10 points for the Black and Gold, while the freshman Peterson added a team-high nine rebounds, four assists, and two steals in the contest.
Now 2-5 on the season and 1-0 in Lone Star Conference play, the Cameron women will look to add another win to their record a week from Saturday, Dec. 14, when they travel to UT Permian Basin. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 2 p.m.