READING, Pa. – The Albright Lions football team was unable to overcome a slow start as they suffered a 21-7 loss to Widener in MAC play at Shirk Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
 
With the loss, the Lions fall to 2-2 overall and 1-1 as they played their annual homecoming contest. Meanwhile, the Pride stay unbeaten and improve to 4-0 overall along with a 2-0 mark in conference play.
 
Senior running back Tony Thorpe led the Lions on the ground with 80 yards on 15 carries. Sophomore Isaiah Shockley, the leading rusher in the MAC headed into Saturday, was held to 58 yards on 14 carries and one touchdown. It was the lowest total Shockley had on the ground in four games this season. Senior quarterback Todd Shelley finished 7-of-21 for 63 yards through the air and had no touchdowns or interceptions. Senior wide receivers Kevin Zehner and Malik Bootman each finished with three catches for 27 yards.
 
The first three possessions of the game ended in three-and-outs with the longest play being a six-yard run from Shockley on Albright's first drive of the game. Widener finally broke through on their second possession when Bryce Casey ran 43 yards around the right side for a touchdown, putting the Pride up 7-0 at the 8:20-mark of the first quarter. Albright received its initial first down of the game on the ensuing possession off a pass interference on the Pride, but were unable to move the ball past midfield. Widener responded with a 13-play 51-yard drive that extended into the second quarter, and finished with quarterback Sean Mullarkey scoring on a one-yard run on fourth and goal.
 
Widener extended its lead to 13-0 at the 14:02 mark of the second quarter after the extra point went wide right. After three-straight punts between the two teams, Widener drove deep into Albright territory after back-to-back 15-yard penalties. The Lions were able to make the stop after senior safety Armon Jefferson intercepted Mullarkey at the one-yard line. Albright made it to midfield for the first time in the contest on their next drive, but were forced to punt just before halftime.
 
The Pride started with the ball in the second half and drove to their own 48-yard line before sophomore cornerback Taylor Heflin made a diving interception at the Albright 43-yard line. Shockley powered the Lions down the field and got the Lions on the board at the 8:43-mark of the third quarter with an 11-yard touchdown, bringing the score to 13-7. Shockley was responsible for 39 of the 62 yards on the Lions scoring drive. On the Pride's next drive, running back Shawn Thompson broke loose for a 46-yard run on the second play to set Widener up at the Lions 19-yard line. Widener was once again faced with a fourth and goal at the one-yard line, and this time Thompson punched it in to make it a 21-7 contest following a successful two-point conversion.
 
Each team traded a punt as the game entered the fourth quarter, and the Lions had a long drive that started at their own five-yard line end on a failed fourth down conversion at midfield with 6:15 left in regulation. Albright had one final chance to rally after forcing a Pride punt, but Shelley was sacked on fourth down to end the game.
 
Senior linebackers Daniel Vital and Sam Viera tied for the team lead with nine tackles. Vital had six solo tackles while Viera had four solo tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble. Sophomore safety Ryan MacFarlane forced a fumble and had four tackles (one solo). Thompson led the Pride on the ground with 101 yards on 19 carries and one touchdown. Casey finished with 84 yards on six carries and one touchdown. Brayden Strouse led the Pride defense with 10 tackles (six solo), 3.0 TFL, and two sacks. The Pride out-gained the Lions 308-176 in total yards, while both teams finished under 100 total passing yards.
 
The Lions will return to action on Saturday, October 2nd as they will travel to face Misericordia at 1 p.m. in MAC play.