Albany tries to close 2023 with NLL’s best record
On the final night of the year, the Albany FireWolves will try to end 2023 with the best record in the National Lacrosse League.
The FireWolves (3-0) take on the Saskatchewan Rush (1-2) in a New Year’s Eve showdown at 8 p.m. Sunday at Sasktel Center in Saskatoon, Sask.
“Not the most exotic of locations,” FireWolves head coach Glenn Clark joked. “If we can get a win, I’ll love it just as much as anywhere.”
Albany entered Saturday as the NLL’s only 3-0 franchise, quite a turnaround for a team that had the league’s worst record at 3-15 last season.
The FireWolves, who entered Christmas as the NLL’s youngest team at an average age of 25.9 years, will face a Saskatchewan franchise that looks familiar.
“To be honest, I think they’ve got kind of a similar makeup to us,” Clark said. “They’re on a little bit of a similar path, trajectory as us, trying to get younger and trying to get some youth into their lineup. They made some trades, got some firstrounders. They’ve got a little bit of what we have going on. So I think it’s going be up-tempo, both teams playing with some speed.”
Albany added a more experienced player on Tuesday, acquiring 29year-old defenseman Anthony Joaquim in a trade with the Colorado Mammoth. Joaquim began his
When: 8 p.m. Sunday Where: Sasktel Center, Saskatoon, Sask.
TV: My4 Albany, ESPN+
NLL career in 2018 playing for Clark with the New England Black Wolves, who moved to Albany in 2021 and became the FireWolves.
Joaquim, who is 6foot-2 and 205 pounds, has also played for the Philadelphia Wings. He played for Colorado’s teams that won the league championship in 2022 and lost to Buffalo in the finals last year.
“He’s a big veteran, really good skill set,” Clark said. “It was one of those deals where Colorado is way over the salary cap and getting a little older. They wanted to move a little money out and get a little younger and we’re the opposite. We’re the youngest team in the league, below the salary cap.”
While shoring up the defense, the FireWolves have a balanced offense that has scored 17 goals and 15 goals in its last two games against Buffalo and Philadelphia. The FireWolves have six players with more than 10 points, led by former University of Denver teammates Alex Simmons and Ethan Walker with 20 each.
“We’re so spread out, the nice thing is, you can’t stop everybody,” Clark said. “I think we just keep doing what we’re doing.”
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Carson Beck passed for 203 yards and two touchdowns, backup QB Gunnar Stockton passed for two more scores and No. 6 Georgia routed previously undefeated and fourth-ranked Florida State 63-3 in the Orange Bowl on Saturday night in a matchup of teams missing out on the College Football Playoff.
Georgia scored on nine of 12 drives and gained 673 total yards against the short-handed Seminoles, who were without more than two dozen players because of opt-outs and transfers, including five starters in their defensive front seven, their top two running backs and top three receivers.
The Bulldogs (13-1) were used to competing for championships this time of year, having won the last two national titles. But Georgia lost to Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship game — the Bulldogs' first loss since the 2021 season — and missed out on one of the four spots in the CFP rankings. Instead, they settled for the seventh New Year's Six bowl appearance in program history.
Florida (13-1) failed to make the CFP cut despite winning the Atlantic Coast Conference title, and because of transfers,
No. 11 Mississippi 38, No. 10 Penn State 25: At Atlanta, Jaxson Dart passed for 379 yards and three touchdowns, including two to tight end
Megan Briggs/Getty Images
ence play for the rest of the season starting with Friday’s game against Fairfield at MVP Arena.
“Obviously, it’s not the nonconference results that we wanted, but it was a really challenging schedule,” Maciariello said. “I like the fact that guys are pissed off in this locker room because you need to play with some aggression and some anger. I’m excited to see where we’re going to go this year. As we know, it’s a one-bid league and we have all the makings in a team that can win a championship.”
Siena redshirt sophomore center Giovanni Emejuru added 10 points and 11 rebounds for his second collegiate doubledouble. He also helped hold UMass star center Josh Cohen to five points
and three rebounds. But other Minutemen picked up the slack. Senior forward Matt Cross had 24 points, including 10-of-10 from the foul line, and nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Keon Thompson added 21 points.
The Saints continued their turnover problems with 18 leading to 26 Minuteman points. Siena played without starting point guard Zek Tekin, who was out with an illness. Maciariello said Tekin, who made the trip, was probably suffering from a 24-hour bug and it was clear he couldn’t play after the team’s early warmup.
With sophomore walkon Mason Courtney getting the start at the point, Siena jumped to an 8-2 lead. The Saints trailed 3429 with 3:09 left in the half and UMass went into halftime with a 40-31 lead. Siena