WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (Nov. 5, 2016) – Freshman Sean McGaughey (New Market, Md.) racked up 339 passing yards and classmate Chris Randle (Lindenwood, N.J.) rushed for three touchdowns in leading the Widener University football team to a 30-17 victory over King's on Saturday afternoon at McCarthy Stadium.
 
Widener (6-3, MAC 6-2) used a big play to get on the scoreboard in the blink of an eye, as a 72-yard pass completion from McGaughey to senior Blaine Price (Jefferson, Md.) put the Pride on the 1-yard line and set up an easy run for Randle to create a 7-0 score just 32 seconds into the contest. After the Pride dodged a bullet when Tyler Marroni dropped a potential 34-yard touchdown pass from Zach Whitehead, freshman Michael Raczak (Jamison, Pa.) added to the lead by converting a 37-yard field goal.
 
King's (4-5, MAC 4-4) managed to reach paydirt before the end of the first quarter on a Corey Flynn catch, but Randle had an answer and rushed for a four-yard score before the end of the frame. The teams then kept exchanging possession most notably off of turnovers, which included combining for three interceptions, and the score remained at 17-7 heading into the break.
 
After King's failed to score on its opening possession of the second half, McGaughey continued to use his strong arm to help the visitors pad their lead. The freshman completed a 31-yard pass to junior Montrell Hicks-Taylor (Newark, Del.) to move into Monarch territory and then found Price in the end zone for 29 yards out to make it 23-7 at the 9:40 mark.
 
The Monarchs then started chipping away at the deficit and got a 63-yard kickoff return by Devon Weidman to help set up a 28-yard field goal. Trailing 23-10, King's took advantage of a personal foul called against the Pride on a punt and made it a one-possession game when Zack Funk rushed for a touchdown from seven yards out at the 12:55 mark.
 
Widener's defense appeared to force a three-and-out during its next time on the field, but a roughing the kicker call on the ensuing punt kept the Monarchs' next drive alive. Two straight 15-yard penalties by the Pride allowed King's to continue to move the chains, but the defense for the visitors came up huge again. After Mike Palmer failed to make a catch in the end zone, senior Byron Cooper (Philadelphia, Pa.) stopped Funk on 3rd-and-1 and junior John Raifsnider (West Lawn, Pa.) stopped the Monarch running back on 4th-and-inches to give the ball back to the offense with 6:36 remaining.
 
King's had one more possession to score and earn a big victory on their Senior Day. Cooper, however, had other ideas by recording consecutive sacks and forcing a fumble on his second tackle to give the Pride excellent field position on the Monarch five-yard line. Randle then reached paydirt from two yards out to put the game out of reach.
 
McGaughey picked up 339 yards passing by completing 20 of his 32 throws for Widener in his first career start. He also had one touchdown pass to Price, who finished with five catches for 151 yards receiving. Hicks-Taylor contributed 101 receiving yards, while Randle had 104 yards on the ground in addition to scoring three touchdowns.
 
Cooper was sensational on defense, registering 12 tackles and four sacks along with forcing a fumble to set up the final score. Senior captain Steve Gozur (Hatfield, Pa.) added 11 tackles and two sacks.
 
King's was offensively led by Whitehead, who completed 30 passes for 352 yards in the air. His favorite target was Marroni, who ended the game with 10 catches for 112 yards. Chris DeGaetano made 10 tackles to pace the Monarchs on defense.
 
Widener wraps up the regular season when it welcomes archrival Delaware Valley to Leslie C. Quick Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 12 at 1:00 p.m. The senior class will be recognized prior to the contest, and the winner will receive the coveted Keystone Cup.