CHESTER, Pa. – Freshman Jane Joyce scored 15 points and Albright made 5-of-6 free throws in the final 46 seconds to defeat Widener 76-69 in the Commonwealth Conference for both schools on Wednesday in the Schwartz Center.

A layup by Ally Ferrucci cut the Albright lead to 71-69 with 52 seconds remaining in regulation. Following a foul, senior Jessica Venturelli converted two free throws with 46 seconds left to up the Lion lead to 73-69.

After forcing a Widener turnover, Kadijah Bishop made two free throws with 44 seconds to play that upped the Albright lead to 75-69.

Joyce then made one of two free throw attempts with 26 seconds remaining in the game to increase the Albright lead to 76-69.

Joyce led four players in double figures in scoring by finishing the game 6-of-12 from the floor and 3-of-7 from the free throw line. She also added a career-best nine rebounds, three assists and a steal.

Sophomore Shannon Thomas was 5-of-7 from the floor, including making all four of her three-point attempts, to finish with 14 points for the Lions.

Albright, which improved to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the Commonwealth, also received 12 points and a season-high 19 rebounds from Kelecia Harris and 12 points from Bishop.

Widener (3-3, 0-1 Commonwealth) was led by Allison Gallagher who scored a game-high 22 points.

Albright dominated the boards as the Lions held a 45-30 rebounding advantage which included 15 offensive rebounds.

Albright shot 47.5 percent from the floor, including 50.0 percent in the second half, while limiting Widener to just 38.7 percent shooting.

Two free throws by Leilani Beckham with 8:31 remaining in the first period giving Widener an 18-15 lead, but Albright answered with an 8-0 run to take the lead for good.

Harris scored four points during the run, which gave Albright a 23-18 lead with 5:31 to play in the opening half.

A three-pointer by Thomas gave Albright a 34-28 lead with 49 seconds remaining in the first half, but the Pride scored the final four points of the half cutting the Lion lead to 34-32 at intermission.

A three-point play by Harris and a layup by Bishop gave Albright a 47-35 lead with 13:15 remaining in the game.

A 5-0 run by Widener cut the lead to 47-40, but Thomas drilled a three-pointer with 12:20 left to increase the margin to 50-40.

A layup and back-to-back three-pointers by Widener trimmed the Lion lead to 50-48 with 10:58 remaining in the second half.

Albright responded with a 9-4 run that pushed the lead to 59-52 with 7:04 to play in the game.

Baskets by Venturelli, Joyce and two by Harris helped Albright extend the lead to 69-58 with 3:42 remaining in the contest.

Widener used a 7-0 run to climb to within 69-65 at the 2:19 mark of the second half, but Thomas converted a layup to push the lead to 71-65.

Widener responded with back-to-back layups, but Albright was able to secure the victory at the free throw line.

Albright returns to action on Saturday (Dec. 6) when it hosts Lebanon Valley at 2 p.m. in the Bollman Center.