OWINGS MILLS, Md. – The Albright football team has made the fourth quarter comeback one of its trademarks in the 2017 season. Three of Albright's five victories this season came when trailing in the final period. The Lions nearly added to that total at Stevenson on Saturday, but the Mustangs held on for a 26-23 victory.

Stevenson scored a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns to take a 26-16 lead with 5:48 left in regulation. On its next possession, Albright responded with a seven-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with a two-yard touchdown pass to Malik Jackson from backup quarterback Jimmy Lahay. Lahay entered for a play after starting quarterback Alec Vignola lost his helmet on the previous play.

Stevenson got the ball back with 3:33 to play with its eyes on running out the clock. The Mustangs gained two first downs on the drive, draining Albright's three timeouts in the process. Faced with a third-and-8 with just over a minute to play, Stevenson decided to pass. The deep throw over the middle was intercepted by Kali Boyce – his second of the day – to give the Lions unexpected life.

Albright drove into Stevenson territory thanks to Vignola completions to Milton Cordero and Kyle Dickerson. With the ball at the Stevenson 39 and the Lions looking to get into field goal range, Vignola's pass was deflected and intercepted by Brian Latham to end the Albright threat.

The frantic final minutes capped a game that got off to a slow start offensively. The first quarter went scoreless. Albright threatened midway through the period after Isaiah Baylor stuffed Stevenson running back Isaiah Austin on a third-and-1 play at the Stevenson 19. After the punt, Albright started its possession at the Stevenson 45. Vignola hit Jackson for 16 yards over the middle on the first play of the drive after Jackson held on to the ball after a big hit. The drive stalled, though, after an Albright penalty on third down pushed the Lions out of field goal range.

Jackson finished with four catches for 48 yards and a touchdown. Mike Jordan made two grabs for 98 yards, including a 63-yard catch made between a pair of closing Stevenson defenders.

On the defensive side, Nate Steffen helped keep the game scoreless with a blocked field goal early in the second period. Steffen tied for the team lead in tackles with eight. Kyven Jones also posted eight tackles for the Lions' defense.

Stevenson opened the scoring in the second quarter with a safety on special teams. Kevin Goetz couldn't reach a high snap on a punt attempt, and he knocked the ball out of the end zone to prevent a Stevenson fumble recovery for a touchdown.

Boyce got his first interception of the game on the Mustangs' next possession after the safety, setting up the Lions near midfield. Boyce now leads the Lions with four interceptions this season.

Cordero made a couple of big catches on the drive, the first for 22 yards and the second for 14 yards on a third-and-8 play at the 27. He led the team with seven catches for 84 yards. Albright converted that into a score on the very next play when Vignola hit Dickerson for a 13-yard score to make it 7-2 Lions with 7:52 left in the first half.

The teams traded field goals to close the first-half scoring. Ian Gould kicked a 35-yard field goal with 4:11 left in the first half to make it 7-5, and Goetz got those three points back with a 31-yard field goal on Albright's next possession, thanks in part to Walter Lewis' 46-yard kickoff return.

In the third quarter, each team found the end zone. Stevenson took the lead after an Albright fumble set up the Mustangs at the Albright 22. Three plays later, Dan Williams found Patrick Najmola from a yard out to give Stevenson the lead. The Mustangs went for two and converted, but a holding penalty nullified the play. Stevenson kicked the PAT to make it 12-10 with 10:12 left in the third quarter.

Albright responded with its own score on the next possession. Vignola hit Dickerson on a third down play in the left flat, and Dickerson made a couple tacklers miss on his way to a 40-yard catch-and-run score. The two-pointer failed, but Albright held a 16-12 lead with 6:08 left in the third. Dickerson finished with five catches for 81 yards and two scores. Vignola threw for 309 yards on 17-of-34 passing.

Stevenson responded with a pair of long pass touchdowns – 45 and 61 yards – to take a 26-16 lead in the fourth quarter.

Albright returns to action at home against Wilkes next Saturday at 1 p.m.