WICHITA FALLS - Texas Wesleyan Women's Basketball found a rhythm in the third quarter and Lexi Burns hit a critical three to lift the Lady Rams (2-2) to a 58-54 win over Midwestern State (0-3) Friday night, the first leg of the Comfort Inn/Ashbrook Classic, hosted by the Mustangs.

Tied at 52 with 58 seconds remaining off of a Jordan Brightwell free throw, Midwestern State missed a three that would have given the Mustangs the lead. Texas Wesleyan took a timeout to set up a play - and the Lady Rams delivered - a Lexi Burns three with 29 seconds to go. Brightwell made 1-of-2 foul shots after another missed MSU three-pointer and Burns hit two free throws with nine seconds remaining to seal the victory.

Texas Wesleyan trailed 33-26 early in the third quarter when the Rams went on a 12-4 run to take the lead. Brightwell had two buckets and Nicole Gleason nailed two threes, coupled with a jumper from Lorian Benjamin. Adrianna Davis' and-1 in the final second of the third gave TXWES a three-point lead heading into the fourth.

Gleason led the Lady Rams in scoring with 19 points, grabbing two boards and dishing out three assists. Brightwell added 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Kyla Grant gave Texas Wesleyan six points and a team-high nine rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench. Lexi Burns finished with eight and Evie Whorley had six points and five points.

Texas Wesleyan conquered strong post play from Midwestern State that included Liz Cathcart's 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and Hannah Reynolds' 9 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks. After giving up 10 second-chance points through the first three quarters, the Lady Rams did not allow the Mustangs to get points off of offensive rebounds in the fourth frame. Midwestern State led by as much as 10 early in the second quarter and led for 29:38 of the 40-minute ball game.

The improvement year-over-year continues for women's basketball, who turned 22 and 10-point losses to Midwestern State in 2016 and 2017, respectively, into a four-point triumph Friday. Texas Wesleyan has a chance Saturday to win its third-straight non-conference game for the first time since 2015. The defense has now held three of its last four opponents to under 60 points.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Texas Wesleyan and Midwestern State met for the 50th time in the two schools' histories Friday. It's the 20th victory for the Lady Rams in the series. TXWES has played Midwestern State more than any other opponent since the school established women's basketball in 1970.

WHAT'S NEXT
The Lady Rams face Newman University for the first time in program history. Tip-off will be at 1:30 at Midwestern State.