Evans Leads Canada to 15-10 Win Over Australia In World Games Opener

Canadian Lacrosse Association – WROCLAW, POLAND – Erica Evans tallied eight points, including six goals, to help lead Canada to a 15-10 win over Australia to open the 2017 World Games in Wroclaw, Poland.

 

Their win capped off a historical day for women’s lacrosse, which was making its debut at the World Games, an international multi-sport event featuring over 3,250 athletes from 111 countries.

 

The United States and Great Britain were also winners earlier in the day, beating Poland and Japan, respectively.

 

“We’ve had a fantastic experience at The World Games and in Poland thus far,” said head coach Scott Teeter. “This is a great opportunity for our sport.”

 

Canada continued their dominance over Australia, a team they defeated twice at the recent 2017 FIL Rathbones Women’s Lacrosse World Cup in England, including a thrilling 8-6 overtime win in the semi-finals.

 

Midfielder Kay Morissette added three assists, while Holly Lloyd and Tessa Chad, who were both making their senior national team debut after acting as alternates during the World Cup, contributed two points each.

 

Canada’s balanced offensive attack saw 10 players find the score sheet, including rookies Quintin Bullen and Claire Mills, who both scored their first international goal.

 

“Today was a great team win,” said head coach Scott Teeter.

 

“This is a really exciting style of lacrosse to watch. It’s fast paced and allows the girls to play with creativity,” he added, referencing the rules changes in place that allow only 10 players on the field at once, as opposed to the usual 12 players.

 

Rebecca Lane and Ashtyn Hiron each scored a hat-trick for the Aussies, while Sarah Mollison added five points of her own, including one goal and four assists.

 

Canada’s next game will be against Japan, who are ranked No. 10 in the world despite only losing one game at last week’s World Cup. They narrowly missed out on the championship quarter-finals, falling 8-7 to Israel.

 

The Japanese gave Great Britain, a squad with athletes from England, Scotland and Ireland, a good run in their first World Games match this morning, losing 9-5.

 

The game gets underway Friday, July 28 at 10:00AM EST. While it is not being webcasted, fans are encouraged to follow along using the real-time statistics system.

 

 

 

 

Founded in 1867, the Canadian Lacrosse Association (CLA) is the governing body responsible for all aspects of lacrosse in Canada. Our organization is comprised of 10 Member Associations representing nearly 80,000 individual participants, including coaches, officials, and athletes of all ages and abilities. The CLA’s mission is to honour the sport of lacrosse and its unique nation-building heritage, by engaging our members, leading our partners, and providing opportunities for all Canadians to participate. We strive to accomplish this while adhering to our core values of health, excellence, accountability, respect and teamwork. The CLA oversees the delivery of numerous national championships and the participation of Team Canada at all international events sanctioned by the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL). The CLA is proud to be affiliated with partners that share the same vision and values, including our corporate partners – New Balance Athletics, Warrior Sports, Westjet, and Baron Rings – as well as our funding partners the Government of Canada, the Coaching Association of Canada, and the Canadian Lacrosse Foundation. For more information on Canadian Lacrosse Association and the sport of lacrosse, visit our website at www.lacrosse.ca and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

 

 

For more information, please contact:
 

Communications and Marketing Coordinator
Canadian Lacrosse Association
Phone: 613-260-2028 ext. 302
Email: alain@lacrosse.ca