MANCHESTER, England – Led by Chicago Machine attackmen Ned Crotty and Mike Leveille, the United States National Team overcame a late rally from Team Canada to earn a 12-10 victory in the championship game of the FIL World Lacrosse Championships on Saturday afternoon.
Team USA, which ended the tournament with a 6-1 overall record, avenged a 10-9 loss against Team Canada last Saturday during the pool play round. In addition, the victory allowed Team USA to avenge its loss against Canada in the championship game of the 2006 FIL World Championships.
The top overall pick in the 2010 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft, Crotty scored two goals in the fourth quarter as Team USA overcame a 10-9 deficit with three goals in the final 10 minutes of regulation. With 8:50 remaining, he scored an unassisted goal past Canada goalkeeper
Chris Sanderson before giving the Americans an 11-10 advantage with an unassisted goal just under three minutes later.
With 1:16 remaining, Mike Leveille tallied an unassisted goal to seal the victory.
Crotty scored two goals with an assist in the title game while Mike Leveille had a “hat trick” with three goals. Chicago midfielder
Matt Striebel also scored a goal in the championship game victory, giving Team USA a 1-0 lead just under five minutes into the opening quarter.
A 2010 graduate of Duke University, Crotty scored nine goals with four assists in the FIL World Championships while Mike Leveille contributed 14 goals with 8 assists en route to All-Tournament Team honors. Meanwhile, Striebel tallied four goals with six assists.
In addition, Machine defenseman
D.J. Driscoll played in all seven games while attackman
Kevin Leveille served as an alternate on the squad, which won its ninth world championship.
The Machine will try to even its record on Saturday night by facing the MLL-leading Denver Outlaws at INVESCO Field at Mile High. Opening face-off is set for 9:02 p.m. EST.