The Rochester forward is tied for the league lead in assists and points.
By Craig Rybczynski
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Joe Resetarits has established himself as one of the best U.S.-born box lacrosse players in recent memory. From World Championships to Major Series Lacrosse to the National Lacrosse League, the righty forward has proven that he can hang with any player from any country.
Joe Resetarits
His recent run of success, however, might surprise even the most astute lacrosse fan, but don’t put Rochester Knighthawks assistant coach Mike Accursi in that same category.
“Every practice he is trying something new; every practice he is working his hardest to improve his game,” he said. “The evidence is clear on the game sheet and in the games.”
That has become very apparent when looking at the league’s leaderboard. Just 11 games into the 2017-18 season, Resetarits is tied for the league lead in assists and points. Resetarits is currently tied with Saskatchewan’s Mark Matthews for first in the NLL with 41 assists and 64 points. His 23 goals are also tied for seventh.
He is on pace to become the first American to lead the NLL in points since Brad Kotz notched 34 points in eight games for the Philadelphia Wings in 1989. It’s that potential that was evident back in 2009 and 2010, when Accursi was an assistant coach with the St. Catharines Junior “A” Athletics.
“I coached him in junior a long time ago and he was a tremendous athlete,” said Accursi. “Since that time, he has grown in his knowledge and his box lacrosse IQ. He is continuing to hit his stride and continuing to get better. That’s the thing; every year he gets a little bit better. It’s his commitment to becoming the best lacrosse player he can be.”
The University at Albany product broke into the NLL with the Calgary Roughnecks after being selected sixth overall in the 2012 NLL Entry Draft. For the past six seasons, Resetarits has been a steady contributor for teams in Calgary, Buffalo and Rochester. Since breaking into professional lacrosse, he has averaged 3.12 points per game.
Resetarits, who hails from Hamburg, N.Y., sought out additional opportunities to play box lacrosse after the end of each NLL season. He has logged innumerable miles on his car, driving back and forth from Buffalo to various arenas throughout the province of Ontario. The past several years, he has started to reap the rewards of those early-morning and late-night commutes.
In 2015, he became the first American to win the coveted Jim Murphy Memorial Trophy as the Major Series Lacrosse MVP. He also won Mann Cups with the Brampton Excelsiors in 2011 and in 2015. Internationally, Resetarits was named to Team USA and was one of his nation’s main offensive threats at the 2015 FIL World Indoor Lacrosse Championship.
“His success is a product of his willingness to learn and take advice, and put those into practice,” said Accursi. “He has never been a guy who thinks he is better than anybody else or that he doesn’t need to learn. He is constantly being a sponge off the guys playing around him. Being an American-born player, the (learning) curve is a little bit steeper when you get to the world of box lacrosse.”
Resetarits said he owes a lot of his career success to Accursi. It was under Accursi’s tutelage that he posted his finest season in junior lacrosse. In 2009, Resetarits was named a Second Team All-Star after improving 31 points to finish sixth in the league with 88.
“Mike is a coach who always puts guys in the right spots for them to succeed,” he said. “Playing for him in juniors, he got me to make that big jump and taught me what it takes to become a great player. He is one of the smartest lacrosse coaches I’ve ever been around. He’s done it all; he had an amazing career as a player, and now he is bringing that knowledge to the bench to get us to play to our potential.”
This season, Resetarits has been working closely with Accursi, who was named an assistant coach in the offseason. The results have been impressive. With seven games to play, Resetarits has a career-best 41 assists and is within striking distance of his single-season assists and points marks. His 23 goals are just five away from a career high; his 64 points are three away from passing his career-best season of 66 points.
The addition of Accursi to the bench was one of two moves made by Owner and General Manager Curt Styres to strengthen the coaching staff. He also brought in former Knighthawk standout Marshall Abrams to work alongside Accursi on the offensive side of the ball. The moves, along with the return of key veterans, has rejuvenated the offense. The Knighthawks have scored the second most goals in the NLL (148), and the player who has seen the biggest improvement is Resetarits.
“The biggest difference in my game this year has to do with becoming a lot more patient when I’m on the floor,” he said. “I’ve gotten to play with two of the best ever in ‘Jammer’ (Cody Jamieson) and ‘Daws’ (Dan Dawson), and watching the little things they do that put them in the right spot to succeed. I owe a lot to them because they always have had confidence in me from Day 1.”
Resetarits brought his talents to the Knighthawks via a trade with the Buffalo Bandits. He finished the year with a then career-high 48 points. He added 43 the following season. In 2017, he had a breakout year as he achieved a career first by leading his team in points. In fact, Resetarits earned the top spot with career bests in goals (27), assists (39) and points (66). He ended the season with a personal-best ranking of 28th in the NLL in points.
During the 2017-18 campaign, the 28-year-old forward has reached unchartered territory as he has been in the Top 10 in points most of the season. He has soared to the top of the list during the team’s season-high three-game winning streak. While Rochester was knocking off the likes of Georgia, Saskatchewan and Buffalo, the righty was posting career-high performances, it seems, on a nightly basis. After a respectable 39 points in eight games, Resetarits has been one of the deadliest offensive players in the game with five goals and 20 assists in the past three contests.
On Feb. 11, with Rochester needing a win, Resetarits scored once and posted a then career-best seven assists and eight points in a 17-10 road win against the defending champion Georgia Swarm. He followed up that performance with a three-point night (1+2) on Feb. 17 against Saskatchewan. On Saturday, Resetarits posted a career-high 11 assists and 14 points in a 17-10 win over the Bandits at KeyBank Center.
That night, he recorded one of greatest individual efforts in team and NLL history. Not only did his assist total tie the Knighthawks’ record shared by Derek Malawsky and Dan Dawson, but Resetarits became only one of six players to record an 11-plus assist effort in the 32-year history of the NLL. He also came within one point of tying John Grant Jr.’s franchise mark for points in a game.
“It was definitely one of the better performances I have ever been a part of,” said Knighthawks forward Austin Shanks.
On Feb. 24, Resetarits was locked in from the start of the game. The Knighthawks forward contributed to the team’s first seven goals as Rochester opened the contest with a 7-0 run. Resetarits finished the first half with 10 points on 11 Knighthawks’ goals. The second half was more of the same, as he collected four more points on Rochester’s final six goals.
Following the win over Buffalo, the humble forward was shocked to learn his final stat line.
“That didn’t even come to mind. How good we played as a team is the main thing,” he said, turning his focus to his fellow forwards. “I have great teammates and they are getting in the right spots. Anyone could have had a big night.”
It has been Joe’s night a lot lately, which the Knighthawks hope continues as they make a late-season push to make the Champion’s Cup Playoffs.
“He’s been putting himself in the right spots on the floor where his teammates are going to find him, and he’s been finding the guy who is open,” said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. “These last couple of weeks, the guy who has been open has been able to capitalize. He’s playing well right now, so we’ll continue to ride his back (down the stretch).”