The Desert Dogs hiked up to Albany this weekend for the inaugural Tucker Out Lymphoma Cup, and the first in-season matchup between Las Vegas Head Coach Shawn Williams and his son, Firewolves forward Dyson Williams. Originally founded in 2014 when Shawn Williams was still a player in the NLL, the Tucker Out Lymphoma game honors the life of Tucker Williams, who passed away from Burkitt lymphoma at the age of 8, and raises money for pediatric cancer care and lymphoma research.
“Every time I play lacrosse, I’m playing for [Tucker],” Dyson Williams told Firewolves TV reporter Ashley Williams ahead of Saturday’s matchup. Williams sat alongside his father, who spoke highly of his sons and the support in the building that evening.
“Dyson being a rookie here, the way he carries himself, represents and carries on Tucker’s legacy, it’s awesome to see and be a part of,” he said. “Our family is truly honored that Albany has put this on and we’re excited to be here.” The Williams family made a day of the Cup, with Coach Williams challenging his son’s first goal of the evening, and Dyson putting up his first-career hat trick with his younger brother across his back. Despite a hard-fought 60 minutes from Albany, Las Vegas’ Adam Poitras scored the game-winner two minutes into overtime, securing the Desert Dogs’ first win of the season and the first game of the Cup for his Head Coach.
In an emotional post-game interview, Poitras was asked what he said to Dyson after the game.
“I love him, we grew up together,” said Poitras. “We were playing for Tucker tonight, and I think he was here with us tonight.”
Crawford Settles in Albany
Albany put Crawford to work early in the first quarter, with less than a week of practice with his new team. Early on in his first outing, Crawford and his teammates seemed to have a hard time getting a read on each other, playing more positional in the early minutes compared to the young Albany forwards’ mobile offensive style. Crawford planted himself early on in the righty shooter spot, floating between the high and low corners, setting a few picks before burying himself and the defender behind the crease. Positionally, Crawford was making fundamental decisions to open dodging lanes, but seemed slow to react when in position to break away from his defender to receive the ball.
— Albany FireWolves Lacrosse Club (@AlbFireWolves) January 5, 2025
Following his first goal as a member of Albany, Crawford’s dodging and cool indifference to defensive contact shone through, putting him in position to catch and shoot and push to the doorstep multiple times throughout the half. For the moment, Crawford may find himself filling the role of the utility forward, but as he continues to mesh with the Firewolves’ offense, he’s on the fast track to fill the veteran position he was resigned for.
Sisselberger Makes Impressive Debut
Newly-activated Rochester faceoff specialist, Mike Sisselberger, made his league debut against the Georgia Swarm on Saturday, winning 20 of his 29 faceoffs taken against Georgia’s Jeremy Thompson. Sisselberger is a known entity in the PLL, finishing the summer 2024 season with a 58.7% faceoff percentage, averaging 9.4 loose balls a game and earning a championship ring with the Utah Archers. Despite an impressive resume, his box experience is limited, as evidenced by his performance on Saturday. His first game jitters were on full display early in the game, fighting hard against Thompson, but finding himself either lunging after the initial draw or either under or overshooting the distance between the next pass after a successful draw. He settled into his groove as the game progressed and he was able to feel out the speed between the boards. Sisselberger is built sturdy, earning him the nickname “Quadzilla” at Lehigh University, and he brings that size and intensity to the faceoff dot, with the hand speed to match. Should his performance continue to impress in the coming weeks, Sisselbeger could become the difference maker Rochester has been looking for.
Stay Fast, Stay Strong.
Saturday night’s ESPNU showdown between the Ottawa Black Bears and the San Diego Seals brought viewers the lowest-scoring game of the season so far, and a game now known for the lowest total goals scored, and the lowest score for a winning team in League history. Stand-out performances in net by Christopher Origlieri (SD) and Zach Higgins (OTT), who made 31 and 46 saves respectively, timing in transition and hustle plays were the difference makers for both squads. After ending the first quarter tied, the Seals looked to break away early in the second. Ottawa held them scoreless for the better part of five minutes, before a quick rebound upfield from Eli Gobrecht and a well-timed seal by Jesse Gamble allowed defender Graydon Bradley to put the Seals in the lead. Ottawa would answer the call with three straight goals in the second quarter, one out of the faceoff by specialist Jay Thorimbert, the next in 4-on-4 by Jeff Teat, proving once again that he can’t be left unattended with the ball. Finally, the last of the half was scored by Jacob Dunbar fresh off the bench. Ottawa started the second half up 5-4, but the San Diego captain Wes Berg wasn’t about to let that slide.
AIR BERG!
Wes Berg scores back-to-back goals for San Diego, taking flight for the first and stinging the corner for the second.
Following a successful clear early in the third, Berg streaked off the bench to receive from Gamble, dished down to Rob Hellyer, and cut directly to the crease to dish and dive, putting San Diego on top for the remainder of the half.
Georgia’s Old Habits Die Hard
From the first whistle, the stakes were unreasonably high for both squads; Rochester in desperate need of a win, and Georgia on the cusp of a 5-0 start (their first since leaving Minnesota). Forward Lyle Thompson put the Swarm on the board first, but Rochester was quick to reciprocate, scoring three unanswered goals to shut out the first quarter. As the gap widened, Georgia’s old habits reintroduced themselves on both sides of the ball. The Swarm’s defenders began to crowd ball side, clogging space for them to effectively switch off picks, and preventing Brett Dobson from reading outside shots – two key notes that lead to their win against Colorado in Week 5. This worsened in the second half, as the Swarm’s defenders packed themselves into the crease, allowing Rochester to move the ball around the perimeter uncontested and shoot without any defensive pressure. Georgia found some success in transition against the Knighthawks’ defense, but less in settled situations, with each forward taking their respective turns bull dodging to the goal, drawing doubles and even a few triple-teams resulting in a change of possession. The Swarm’s defense and lack of ball movement offensively allowed Rochester to pad their lead and stamp out a Georgia comeback.
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