BEAUMONT – The McNeese Cowgirls' chance at an upset of Lamar on Saturday afternoon came up short, 69-60, and with A&M-Corpus Christi stunning previously league unbeaten and first place Southeastern, the Cowgirls have officially been eliminated from qualifying for the league postseason tournament.
 
The loss dropped the Cowgirls' overall record to 10-20 and 5-14 in conference play while Lamar moved one step closer to clinching the No. 2 seed, improving to 16-3 in the conference and 21-7 overall.
 
The Cowgirls battled to the very end, but Lamar was able to keep an arm's length distance in in the second half after leading 32-26 at the half. The Cardinals led 50-42 after three periods and after McNeese cut it to six points at 54-48 after a Tyrielle Williams layup with 6:14 to play, Lamar went on an 11-4 run over the next 3:22 to build a 65-52 lead with 2:07 remaining.
 
Williams led the Cowgirls in scoring with 15 points while Kiayra Ellis added 10.
 
McNeese shot 38 percent for the game (25-66) and hit 5 of 16 from three-point range for 31 percent. The Cowgirls went to the free throw line just seven times, knocking down five while Lamar sank 21 of 26 from the line, outscoring the Cowgirls 21-5.
 
Four Cardinals scored in double-figures, led by Akasha Davis who recorded a double-double with 17 points with 11 rebounds.
 
Lamar held a 50-38 advantage in rebounds.
 
The Cowgirls will wrap up their season on Tuesday when they host New Orleans at 1 p.m. in the Legacy Center.