Justin Ivey, Co-Editor and NLL Correspondent
Lacrosse is Awesome©
Featured Image Photo Credit: Kyle Hess
The Albany Firewolves (4-3) and the Georgia Swarm (3-5) faced off against each other twice this weekend in back-to-back nights. Friday, the Swarm hosted before the teams jumped on a plane to play Saturday night in Albany. The weekend home and home was circled for both teams on their calendars as the teams only play three times this season and for the final standings, a tiebreaker could be broken with a head to head advantage. Both cities were graced by their respective home team winning, so we will have to wait until March 19, the third and final matchup, to see who will have the upper hand.
Friday Night in Georgia
Albany came out firing Friday night. Reilly O’Connor (1G, 4A) put the visitors on the board first with a laser from outer space just 29 seconds in. Joe Resetarits (4G, 7A) doubled that lead just over a minute and a half later, but Georgia wasn’t bothered. The Swarm responded with seven unanswered goals; four goals to end the first quarter and three to start the second. Those seven goals were scored by six different goal scorers, solidifying the conception that this offense is dangerous. Albany was struck but not out of it. Resetarits finally ended the run with his second of the night 6:25 into the second. Albany started a little run of their own and a Jacob Ruest (2G) goal got them within two of Georgia with under five minutes left in the half. At the half, Georgia led 8-5.
Neither team could gain an advantage in the third quarter. Ruest opened the scoring for Albany 36 seconds in, but Lyle Thompson (2G, 6A) answered just over two minutes later. Resetarits completed his hat trick and Ryan Benesch (4G, 1A) put up his second of the game, but Shayne Jackson (4G, 3A) and Ethan Walker (3G, 1A) scoring for Georgia knotted the third at three apiece. The Firewolves made their move early in the fourth scoring three straight to tie the game with 10:38 remaining. Jackson stepped up and scored two straight for the Swarm. A transition goal for Albany from Colton Watkinson (1G) made it interesting with just under two minutes to play, but Jackson scored his third of the quarter with just over a minute left to get the lead back to two. Charlie Kitchen (1G, 1A) scored with 3 seconds left for a last gasp and Georgia got a standing ovation from the home crowd after the hard-fought victory. Final Score: Georgia-14, Albany-13.
Three Stars:
- Lyle Thompson, GEO (2G, 6A)
- Joe Resetarits, ALB (4G, 7A)
- Shayne Jackson, GEO (4G, 3A)
Saturday Night in Albany
Flip the script from Friday. Saturday’s game in Albany was as close to a mirror game as you can get in the NLL. The third game in this series matters because of home prevalent home field advantage can be. Georgia was able to ride the momentum from Friday’s win and scored the first two goals Saturday. Albany answered with a six-goal run from four different goal scorers. Sound familiar?! A couple minutes and one goal off from the same start in Georgia. Reilly O’Connor (3G, 4A) was the shining star for Albany to start. His hat trick was completed with the sixth goal of the run 18 seconds into the second quarter and gave Albany a 6-2 lead. Georgia finally stopped the run on a beautiful shot from Lyle Thompson (4G, 1A) but the teams traded goals until the end of the half. Going into the locker room, Albany led Georgia 8-4.
An early goal from Ryan Benesch (2G, 5A) opened the third quarter 37 seconds in. Jordan Hall (5A) and Thompson took over from there. In Georgia’s four goal run to respond, Thompson had one goal and an assist while Hall assisted on three straight. With just under six minutes remaining, the Swarm came back to within one, but Joe Resetarits (3G, 5A) scored with 3:29 on the clock to give Albany a two-goal lead going into the final quarter. Resetarits made it two in a row scoring first 5:41 into the fourth. The Swarm dug in and answered with a two-goal run. The second, a Thompson shorthanded goal, made the score 11-10 with 5:44 left in the game. The Firewolves didn’t falter and answered with two of their own, the second coming in transition by Jacob Ruest (1G, 2A). Thompson made it interesting scoring with 55 seconds on the clock, but the Firewolves held out for the remaining time to bring home the win at home. Final Score: Albany-13, Georgia-11
Three Stars:
- Joe Resetarits, ALB (3G, 5A)
- Reilly O’Connor, ALB (3G, 4A)
- Ryan Benesch, ALB (2G, 5A)
Up Next:
The Albany Firewolves (4-3) visit the Rochester Knighthawks (2-5) on Saturday, February 12 at 7:00 PM EST.
The Georgia Swarm (3-5) host the New York Riptide (1-6) on Saturday, February 12 at 6:0 PM EST.