Albany, NY – With their biggest home crowd of the season behind them, the Albany FireWolves (9-2) put in a full team effort to dominate the New York Riptide (5-7) in a 14-8 win at MVP Arena. Ethan Walker scored keys goals and quarterbacked the offense as he finished the game with 5 pts (3g, 2a) while Alex Simmons lead Albany with 7 pts (3g, 4a) in a game that the FireWolves lead the whole way.
The FireWolves scoring was rounded out by another big game from Tye Kurtz, 6pts (2g, 4a), Marshall Powless 5pts (1g, 4a), Travis Longboat 3pts (1g, 2a), Nathan Grenon 3pts (1g,2a), Colton Watkinson 3pts (1g, 2a), and Sam Firth with 1 goal. Joe Nardella helped control the game for Albany winning 19 of 25 faceoffs and Doug Jamieson racked up 45 saves on 53 shots on goal. As the Riptide attempted a comeback, Jamieson made some acrobatic saves that shut the door.
Riding the momentum from a huge win in Buffalo the previous weekend, the FireWolves came storming out to a three-goal lead in the first quarter as Kurtz opened the scoring and was followed up by two straight goals from Longboat. The Riptide would answer with two goals, but Albany responded with another run of three goals. Walker found the net twice including a dunk on the power play and Simmons fired in another on the power play to end the quarter with a 6-2 lead.
Kurtz opened the second quarter scoring to bring the Albany lead to 7-2. The always dangerous Riptide would not go down quietly as New York scored back-to-back goals that gave them some life as the score was cut to 7-4. Some back and forth plays led to Grenon scoring his first of the game and the Riptide getting a goal from their superstar Jeff Teat to keep the score close at 8-5. Marshall Powless fired home a shot from up top to give the FireWolves a 9-5 lead going into halftime.
Albany continued to ride the energy of the loud home crowd and came out blasting with another three-goal run in the third quarter. Walker scored in the first minute, Firth capitalized on the power play, and Simmons scored on a rocket from up top to extend the FireWolves lead to 12-5. The Albany defense played an almost perfect quarter shutting down the Riptide’s playmakers, but New York would sneak in a goal with under 10 seconds left as the third quarter ended with a score of 12-6.
Despite being the youngest team in the league, the FireWolves have shown all season that they have the composure to band together in the intense end of game moments. The Riptide continued to stay in the fight with two goals to start the fourth quarter making it 12-8. After that it was all FireWolves with two empty net goals by Colton Watkinson and Simmons. The defense and Jamieson held down the fort with blocked shots and big saves as they sealed their ninth win of the season.
Next up for the FireWolves is another big test with their first back-to-back of the season as they face the Vancouver Warriors at MVP Arena on Friday, March 8 at 7pm and then travel down the I-90 to play the Rochester Knighthawks on Saturday, March 9. If Albany can continue their winning ways, they will put themselves in a prime position to be the first team in the National Lacrosse League (NLL) to clinch a playoff spot.
Experience FireWolves lacrosse this Friday, March 8 on Indigenous Celebration Night! For more information regarding tickets, visit www.AlbanyFireWolves.com or call/text the FireWolves front office at 518-362-4900.
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 Desert Dogs, 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.
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 https://www.mvparena.com/
