For the second game in three weeks, the Angelo State football team (2-3) held an opponent under 200 yards of offense, however it wasn't enough Saturday night as the Rams fell, 17-3, to No. 21-ranked Midwestern State in Wichita Falls.

The Mustangs (4-0) used two key plays in the second half to pull away in a defensive battle. MSU's BeeJay Mathis used a 65-yard punt return late in the third quarter to set up the Mustangs' first touchdown of the night, a 16-yard pass from Zack Eskridge to David Little. Midwestern State added its final score late in the fourth quarter as Sharod Basey scooped up a fumble after a Mustang sack and scampered five yards for a touchdown.

The Rams, who fell to 2-1 in Lone Star Conference play and dropped their third straight South Division opener, limited MSU to 159 yards of offense, including just 59 yards in the first half. ASU gave up 44 yards to the Mustangs on their first two possessions, holding its host to just three points, that coming via a 28-yard field goal by Jose Martinez with 5:47 left in the first frame.

On its ensuing possession, Angelo State evened the contest, 3-3, with a career-long-tying 38-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Ryan Smith with 13:35 left in the first half. The field goal capped a 13-play, 71-yard drive that lasted more than seven minutes.

Midwestern State would gain just 15 yards, all on the ground, on three drives in the second quarter as the Rams held MSU to just 11 plays and forced three punts in the period. Through three quarters, the Mustangs had just 78 yards of offense, averaging only 2.4 yards per play.

Ram senior tailback Daniel Thomas neared his third 100-yard rushing performance of the season as he ended the night with a game-high 93 yards on 22 carries. Redshirt freshman quarterback Will Mezger threw for 143 yards on 11-of-16 passing. Senior wide outs Drew Peterson and Sam Tindol each nabbed a team-high three catches. Peterson had 48 receiving yards while Tindol added 45 yards.

As a team, ASU collected 250 yards of total offense and out-gained the Mustangs on the ground (92-82) and through the air (158-77).

Defensively, junior linebacker Edward Cantrell had a game-high eight tackles, including two assisted tackles for loss, and three quarterback hurries. Senior linebacker Jordan Cortez added seven stops while junior linebacker Ian Ritchey and sophomore nose guard Cody Smith each had five tackles.

For the Mustangs, Eskridge completed 14-of-20 passes for 77 yards and a touchdown while Mathis led MSU on the ground with 44 yards on seven carries.

The Rams return home next Saturday as they host Eastern New Mexico at 6 p.m. at San Angelo Stadium.