The Albany FireWolves (4-4) were defeated by the Rochester Knighthawks (3-5), 15-13, at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, NY on Saturday evening. Rochester jumped out to an early 6-2 advantage and never surrendered the lead. Despite scoring seven goals in the fourth quarter, the Knighthawks were able to best the FireWolves for the second time on the season. Full game statistics can be found here: https://albanyfirewolves.com/game/1515/.
| SCORE BY QUARTER |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
FINAL |
| ALBANY |
2 |
4 |
0 |
7 |
13 |
| ROCHESTER |
6 |
1 |
2 |
6 |
15 |
To no surprise, Joe Nardella won the game’s opening faceoff and the FireWolves took first possession. Following saves by each goalie early in the quarter, Shawn Evans was able to open the scoring, giving Rochester an early 1-0 lead. After a FireWolves goal called back following a Knighthawks challenge, Turner Evans was able to notch another one for Rochester. Just minutes later, Holden Cattoni found the back of the net as Rochester had a 3-0 lead after just five minutes of play. Following a brief scoring drought, Ryan Benesch fired a shot from deep to get Albany on the board. Coming out of a television timeout, Ryan Smith was able to sneak one past Doug Jamieson’s foot, bringing the lead back to three goals for the Knighthawks. Soon after, Thomas Hoggarth intercepted a Jamieson pass and immediately scored another for Rochester. Following another goal by Turner Evans, Ethan Woods entered the game in goal for the FireWolves. With just two and a half seconds to go in the quarter, Jacob Ruest drilled a shot at the buzzer to cut the deficit to 6-2 after one.
Nardella and the Fire Wolves won the first faceoff of the new quarter and had a quality look on net but were denied by Rylan Hartley. Following six scoreless minutes to open the second quarter, Albany had a powerplay opportunity and immediately converted as Joe Resetarits scored his first of the contest. Not even two minutes later, the FireWolves got another one back as Reilly O’Connor made it a 6-4 game. After over ten minutes of a scoring drought for the Knighthawks, Cattoni was able to stop the Albany run and mark his second of the night. After an Andrew Kew shot bounced long, Benesch took the rebound and a deep shot to notch his second of the game. Rochester was hit with another penalty with just 11 seconds remaining in the half and Albany once again capitalized as Resetarits netted his second of the night, bringing the Knighthawks lead to just 7-6 at the end of the second quarter.
Both teams went back and forth at the start of the third quarter, but it was Rochester who struck first as Matt Gilray was able to score with his back to the net. After just one goal was scored in the first ten minutes of the quarter, the Knighthawks were able to grow their lead as Cattoni completed his hat trick with just over four minutes to go in the quarter. Following a penalty on Albany’s Mike Byrne, the Knighthawks saw their first power play chance of the night but were unable to capitalize on the man advantage as the third quarter ended with Rochester leading 9-6.
Early in the fourth, the Knighthawks were penalized for the third time in the contest, giving the FireWolves a power play opportunity. Already converting on the first two power plays, Albany made it three in a row as Benesch completed a hat trick of his own. Just seconds later, Resetarits found the back of the net for the third time, giving him yet another hat trick on the season. Still within the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, Cattoni scored his fourth goal of the night, pushing the Rochester lead back to two. Keeping up the pace, Kew logged his first goal of the contest, bringing the score to 10-9 in favor of Rochester. Following five-minute major penalties on both sides, Hoggarth quickly netted his second of the night. After a holding penalty on Albany, Hoggarth completed his hat trick with just under seven minutes remaining in the game. Less than a minute later, Jackson Nishimura scored his first of the contest, getting one back for Albany. With just over three minutes to go, Smith scored his second of the night as the Knighthawks took a three-goal lead late in the game. Seconds later, Resetarits drilled his fourth of the contest. With the empty net, Smith completed his hat trick, but just seconds later, Ruest scored for Albany, moving the game to 14-12 in Rochester’s favor. With the net still empty, Ryland Rees scored another for the Knighthawks. With 10 seconds to go, Kew netted his second of the game. Unable to score another after the Nardella faceoff win, the game ended 15-13 as the Knighthawks defeated the FireWolves for the second time on the season.
The FireWolves have another back-to-back set of games next weekend. The first game is against the Buffalo Bandits on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo. Game two of the weekend will be on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Albany against the Toronto Rock.
Fans can secure their tickets for the next FireWolves home game now! For more information regarding tickets, visit www.AlbanyFireWolves.com or call/text the FireWolves front office at 518-362-4900.
The Albany FireWolves 2021-22 Inaugural Season is presented by CDPHP.
About Albany FireWolves
The Albany FireWolves is the Capital Region’s very own Professional Box Lacrosse team, playing in the National Lacrosse League out of the MVP Arena in downtown Albany, NY. For more information, contact the Albany FireWolves Front Office at (518) 362-4900 or visit AlbanyFireWolves.com. Follow the team on Facebook at facebook.com/AlbFireWolves, Twitter @AlbFireWolves, and Instagram @AlbFireWolves.
About the National Lacrosse League
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is North America’s premier professional lacrosse league. Founded in 1986, the NLL ranks third in average attendance for pro indoor sports worldwide, behind only the NHL and NBA. The League is comprised of 15 franchises across the United States and Canada: Albany FireWolves, Buffalo Bandits, Calgary Roughnecks, Colorado Mammoth, Georgia Swarm, Halifax Thunderbirds, Las Vegas NLL, New York Riptide, Panther City Lacrosse Club (TX), Philadelphia Wings, Rochester Knighthawks, San Diego Seals, Saskatchewan Rush, Toronto Rock, and Vancouver Warriors.
For more information, visit NLL.com and find @NLL on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For more information visit NLL.com.
About ASM Global
ASM Global is the world’s leading venue management and services company. The company was formed by the combination of AEG Facilities and SMG, global leaders in venue and event strategy and management. The company’s elite venue network spans five continents, with a portfolio of more than 325 of the world’s most prestigious arenas, stadiums, convention, and exhibition centers, and performing arts venues. From Aberdeen to Anchorage, and Sydney to Stockholm, its venues connect people through the unique power of live experiences. ASM Global’s diverse portfolio of clients benefit from the company’s depth of resources and unparalleled experience, expertise and creative problem solving. Each day, the company’s 61,000 passionate employees around the world deliver locally tailored solutions and cutting-edge technologies to deliver maximum results for venue owners and amazing experiences for guests. By consistently looking for new ways to envision, innovate and empower the spaces and places that bring people together, ASM Global elevates the human spirit while delivering the highest value for all stakeholders. For more information, please visit www.asmglobal.com.
About MVP Arena
MVP Arena is a full-service entertainment and sports facility featuring a wide variety of family shows, sporting events, trade shows and concerts. Owned by Albany County and managed by ASM Global, MVP Arena opened in 1990 and is home to the Albany FireWolves of the National Lacrosse League, the Albany Empire of the National Arena League and the Division I Men’s College Basketball Siena Saints. For more information, please visit www.mvparena.com.
About CDPHP®
Established in 1984, CDPHP is a physician-founded, member-focused and community-based not-for-profit health plan that offers high-quality affordable health insurance plans to members in 26 counties throughout New York. CDPHP is also on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Instagram.
