Chester, PA — There was no magic to be at Widener University Saturday afternoon.
Less than a month removed from its heart stopping, 65-61 overtime win against the Pride to open the 2009-2010 Commonwealth Conference schedule, Messiah could not duplicate that result on the road, falling by a 69-57 score.
It was the first league loss for the Falcons in the team's last four games.
Messiah (11-7, 4-4) shot a sweet 48.8 percent from the field Saturday, but could not overcome 21 turnovers — the team's second highest amount in a single game this season.
Widener (10-9, 3-5) responded from an early Falcons' push to take control of the action early, turning a 7-3 Messiah lead into a 15-9 advantage of its own with just five and a half minutes elapsed in the first half.
The Falcons then compounded their issues in the waning moments of the opening period, missing their final five shots while turning the ball over three times — a combination that allowed Widener to turn a 24-19 lead with 5:20 remaining into a 32-19 disparity at the intermission.
That spread remained throughout most of the second half, save for an impressive Messiah run midway through. A pair of free throws from junior Tyler Ritzman helped spark a 13-3 spurt in just two minutes, changing a 48-35 Widener lead into a 51-48 difference with 7:41 to play.
Senior Jamie Yoder hit two more free throws and Ritzman followed with his only three pointer of the afternoon, and when younger brother Trey swiped a steal on the Falcons' next defensive possession, Trey was there to finish the layup.
Senior Kyle Snyder ripped a steal on the ensuing trip, taking the ball the length of the court to pull within five.
A timeout from Widener could not stop the bleeding, as freshman Derek Mosley got in the passing lane on the Pride's next possession, taking the ball the other way and converting a layup — pulling Messiah within the aforementioned three-point difference.
Sadly, it was as close as the visitors would get, as Widener scored the next five points to push back ahead, 56-48. A jumper from Yoder brought the Falcons to within two possessions on their next series, but the Pride again answered with two more buckets, grabbing a 60-50 lead with just under four minutes remaining.
Messiah would get no closer than eight points the remainder of the game — that difference occurred following a Mosley basket on the team's next trip — as Widener converted their final four free throws to salt things away.
Mosley paced the Falcons' scoring with a career-high 14 points, grabbing four rebounds as well. Snyder finished with 10 points and eight boards, while junior Josh Hartman provided eight points.
Four players scored in double-figures for Widener, the sixth Messiah opponent to record such efficiency — and second consecutive. The Pride converted on 26 of their 50 total shots (52 percent), just the second time a Falcons' opponent had made over half of its shots in a game this year.
Messiah will look to bounce back in a big way, as arch rival Elizabethtown College will visit Brubaker Auditorium Wednesday evening. The second leg of a men's-women's double-header, game time is set for approximately 8 p.m.
