Bandits Fall 11-10 in Overtime to FireWolves

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NLL Buffalo Bandits

Bandits Fall 11-10 in Overtime to FireWolves

March 22, 2025 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Buffalo Bandits News Release


Dhane Smith (2+4) and Josh Byrne (1+6) notched their 100th points of the season and Matt Vinc recorded his 11,000th NLL save.

The Buffalo Bandits fell 11-10 in overtime to the Albany FireWolves on Saturday night at MVP Arena.

Dhane Smith (2+4) and Josh Byrne (1+6) both notched their 100th points of the season and Matt Vinc recorded his 11,000th NLL save in a 44-save performance, including five stops in overtime.

Chase Fraser opened Saturday's scoring after having Friday night's game off. He rocketed off the bench, caught Byrne's pass and put his shot past Albany goaltender Doug Jamieson to put the Bandits up 1-0 just 47 seconds into the game.

Albany forward Ty Kurtz scored 10 seconds later to even the score and added another 1:14 later to give the FireWolves a 2-1 lead.

Ian MacKay and Smith scored back-to-back goals to give Buffalo the lead again. Smith cut down toward the goal and got himself open for the pass from Byrne, the reigning NLL MVP, who tallied his third assist of the game.

Vinc and Jamieson stood tall during the latter part of the quarter to hold the score at 3-2, both making double-digit saves.

Albany scored first in the second quarter to tie the game 3-3, but Smith answered back just more than 1:30 later, stepping into a sidearm shot for his second goal of the game and his 100th point of the season.

The FireWolves answered Smith's goal 33 seconds later, tying Saturday's game for the fourth time.

Nick Weiss restored the Bandits' lead as he received a pass from Ron John following a turnover, going 1-on-1 with Jamieson and putting it past him for his sixth goal of the season. The assist marked John's first point as a Bandit.

Chris Cloutier scored to give the Bandits their first multi-goal lead of the game, making it 6-4 heading into halftime. Byrne assisted on the goal to notch both his fourth assist of the game and, like Smith, his 100th point of the season.

Albany scored three unanswered goals in the third quarter to take a 7-6 lead into the final frame. And Dyson Williams made it four unanswered for Albany with his goal to begin the fourth.

Kyle Buchanan answered the FireWolves' goal with one of his own, catching the shovel pass from Smith and managing to put his shot over Jamieson as he dove to the ground.

The FireWolves scored twice in 24 seconds to take a 10-7 lead with 10:51 left in the game, but Buffalo wouldn't be quelled.

MacKay started the comeback with a goal, then Fraser added one less than two minutes later; suddenly, the Bandits trailed by one. Byrne picked the perfect time - with 1:44 left in regulation - to score his first goal of the night and tie the game 10-10. Albany had the final shot before time expired, but Vinc made a big save to send the game to overtime.

Williams scored 8:08 into the extra period to win the game for Albany.

By Noah Monroe

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