Swarm Battle Back to Defeat Rock in Overtime Thriller
NLL Georgia Swarm

Swarm Battle Back to Defeat Rock in Overtime Thriller

Published on January 24, 2026 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Georgia Swarm News Release


HAMILTON, ON - The Georgia Swarm (4-3) rallied late to take down the Toronto Rock (3-3) 10-9 in overtime on Saturday night at TD Coliseum for the Swarm's second consecutive win.

Shayne Jackson led Georgia on offense with four points (2G-2A). Bryan Cole followed with four assists (0G-4A). Lyle Thompson added three points in the win, including the game-winning goal (2G-1A).

Jumping into the action, both Toronto and Georgia generated early scoring chances. However, the Swarm did not match the seven-goal first quarter they recorded last week in Edmonton.

The Swarm did find the back of the net first on a give-and-go finished by Bryan Cole over the left shoulder of Rock goaltender Troy Holowchuk, but it was called back due to a crease violation. The Rock wasted no time with that opportunity after the goal was waved off and scored on a delayed penalty a minute later off a back-door pass to 2025 first-overall pick, CJ Kirst, to grab the game's first lead.

Toronto kept the pressure up, but Georgia stood firm and forced Holowchuk to make saves. Nothing materialized for the Swarm until Jacob Hickey went all the way from his own end to the prime scoring area and fired a shot that found the back of the net to tie it 1-1 with six minutes to go. That proved to be the only goal the Swarm registered for the rest of the quarter as the Rock started to find some momentum early and scored three goals - one on the man-advantage and the other two at even strength - to end the opening frame up 4-1.

Georgia weathered the storm and found their groove in the second quarter with a pair of goals, thanks to Jacob Hickey in transition again on a breakaway for his second of the game, and rookie Ben Trumble finding an opening on the short side of Holowchuk to bring the Swarm within one. However, a two-minute penalty against Georgia's Michael Grace, 40 seconds after the goal from Trumble, proved to be costly. The Rock scored twice on the ensuing power play to restore their lead at 6-3 and put the game firmly in their control. Shayne Jackson managed to respond a minute later with his team-leading 14th goal of the season for the Swarm to cut the lead to two at halftime, but there was still plenty of work to be done entering the final two quarters.

Georgia and Toronto traded goals to start the second half, with CJ Kirst opening the scoring in the first minute of the third quarter. Nolan Byrne quickly answered for the Swarm, but Kirst responded again, restoring Toronto's lead at 8-5. Both teams' defences tightened down the stretch, setting the stage for a thrilling finish. But, it wasn't long before the Swarm capitalized on a strong offensive push to sway momentum in their favour late in the third quarter.

It all started with Jeff Henrick receiving a pass in transition and scoring on Holowchuk with under two minutes to go in the quarter to get the Swarm back in the game. Jordan MacIntosh followed soon after, burying a feed from Lyle Thompson to beat the buzzer and score with three seconds left in the quarter to cut the Rock lead to 8-7 entering the fourth.

That two-goal run proved to be just the beginning for Georgia, as the Swarm kept applying pressure in the final frame.

Lyle Thompson, fresh off a four-goal, 10-point night in Edmonton, registered his name in the goal column with a howitzer through the feet of Holowchuk 10 seconds into a power play. Three minutes later, Shayne Jackson recorded the Swarm's fourth consecutive goal and first lead of the night as Georgia went up 9-8. However, it would not be smooth sailing to the finish. Toronto broke their 22-minute scoring drought with less than four minutes left in regulation and tied the game 9-9 to force overtime.

It would not matter, though, as 30 seconds into overtime, Lyle Thompson moved down left from the restraining line and squeaked one past Holowchuk on the short side to win it 10-9 for Georgia.

Brett Dobson was stellar once again for the Swarm, posting 48 saves in the win. He outdueled Toronto's Troy Holowchuk, who made 38 saves.

Georgia went 1-for-3 on the man advantage and struggled to contain Toronto's power play, which went 4-for-5 on the night, but it ultimately did not come back to hurt the Swarm in the end.

With the win, Georgia will head further east to finish off their three-game road trip against the Halifax Thunderbirds at the Scotiabank Centre on January 31 before returning home on February 7 to play the Las Vegas Desert Dogs.

Check out the Georgia Swarm Statistics

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National Lacrosse League Stories from January 24, 2026


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