GRANTHAM, PA - The Messiah men's lacrosse team lost to the Widener Pride today by a score of 16-8. Shaw, Branson and Mellor each tacked on two goals on the afternoon.

The loss brings their conference record to 2-1 as they will travel to Stevenson to face the Mustangs on April 13, at 7:00 PM.

First Half
The Falcons jumped out to an early 1-0 and then 2-1 lead in the first quarter with RJ Mellor and Aaron Shaw tallying those two goals with just over five minutes remaining in the quarter. It was all Widener from that point forward, scoring three goals to end the quarter, including a last second goal to extend the Pride lead to 4-2 going into the second quarter.

Widener continued their run into the second quarter with three more goals to make the lead 7-2. The teams would trade goals until the two minute mark, with Messiah cutting the deficit to four at 9-5. Sam Stone, RJ Mellor and Aaron Shaw tacked on those three goals in the second quarter to give the Falcons five goals in the half. Widener added two goals with under a minute remaining in the half, including a last second full field pass with a quick shot from Connor Heisman to give the Pride their 11th goal of the day. It was Heisman's fourth of the day as Widener took an 11-5 lead into the half.

Second Half
Each team scored two goals in the third quarter to make the score 13-7 in favor of Widener heading into the fourth quarter. Christian Santangini and Nathan Branson were the goal scorers in the third quarter. Branson would add another goal in the fourth quarter but the day was overshadowed by Widener's Connor Heisman who scored three goals in the fourth quarter alone for a total of eight goals on the afternoon, tying Messiah's output on the day, as Widener would go on to win 16-8.

Stats
Widener out-shot Messiah 58-42 and had ten more ground balls (36-26). Messiah went 16/21 on clears while Widener went 14/15 on the day. Individually, Aaron Shaw, Nathan Branson and RJ Mellor each had two goals while Christian Santangini and Sam Stone added one goal each. Branson, Seth Libby and Frank Honey each tied for the team lead in ground balls with four.

Next
The loss brings the Falcons overall record to 6-6 and takes their conference mark to 2-1. Messiah will travel to Stevenson for another conference match on April 13, at 7:00 PM. That game will take place in Owings Mills, Md.