ALBANY, NY. (February 5, 2022) – Twenty-four hours and nearly 1,000 miles apart, the Georgia Swarm (3-5) and Albany FireWolves (4-3) locked horns in a game that once again went the home team’s favor as Albany outlasted Georgia, 13-11.
Both teams faced travel delays Saturday afternoon from Georgia to upstate New York and had little time to prepare for a game that featured two local heroes. Lyle Thompson and Joe Resetarits were recognized by the FireWolves during pregame and throughout the evening, as both left a lasting imprint on the Albany community after spending their prolific college lacrosse days starring at the University at Albany.
The Swarm started the game right where they left off last night, scoring the first two goals of the evening. Rookie defenseman Jeff Henrick scored his first-ever NLL goal with just over three minutes into the opening frame, then 65 seconds later reigning NLL MVP Shayne Jackson ripped one past the FireWolves’ goalie Doug Jamieson to give the Swarm an early 2-0 lead.
Then came a power outage.
Albany scored the next six goals, two via power play, as Georgia went 17 minutes and 28 seconds without finding the net. Lyle Thompson ended the drought late in the second quarter with the first of his four goals on the night, but the damage was done as the two teams headed to halftime with Albany holding an 8-4 lead.
Albany opened the scoring spree once again in the third frame, but Adam Wiedemann responded with a shorthanded laser from near the center stripe, his first goal of the season. Wiedemann’s bomb sparked a four-goal scoring spree which brought the Swarm within two by the end of the third quarter (10-8). Swarm captain Jordan MacIntosh scored in the run, as well as Lyle Thompson, who levitated and went five-hole on Jamieson. Brendan Bomberry scored the last of the four-straight goals with a rip from up top.
The Swarm were able to close the gap to 11-10 midway through the fourth quarter on a Lyle Thompson short-handed goal (the team’s second shorty on the night), but Albany pulled away in the final minutes to ice the 13-11 win.
Appropriately and on cue, University at Albany alums Thompson and Resetarits put on a show in the back-to-back games. The Swarm’s Thompson finished with 13 points (2G, 6A Friday; 4G, 1A Saturday), while the FireWolves’ Resetarits exploded for 19 points (4G, 7A Friday; 3G, 5A Saturday) in the two-game tangle.
Tonight’s game also marked the 200th game of Jordan Hall‘s 14-year career, one in which he accumulated 255 goals, 535 assists, 790 points and 1,035 loose balls. Chad Tutton forced one turnover in the game and now stands just one shy of 100 for his career.
UP NEXT: The Georgia Swarm return home for Native Heritage Night on Saturday, February 12 at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Field at Gas South Arena to take on the New York Riptide, who fell to 1-6 last night after a 13-10 loss to Halifax. Tickets begin at just $12 a seat, and the game can be seen live locally in Atlanta on Peachtree TV and streaming live in the US on ESPN+.
