The United States won the team’s first World Lacrosse championship on home soil Saturday and its ninth overall, downing Canada 11-8 in a rain-soaked final.

Marie McCool and Sam Apuzzo led the charge for the United States, each notching a hat trick to keep in front of Canada. Charlotte North and Taylor Cummings added two goals apiece, while Kayla Treanor found the back of the cage once for Team USA.

The United States jumped to a three-goal lead in the opening frame before Canada came within striking distance, putting the score at 4-2 to end of the first quarter. But Team USA remained in front with a 6-4 advantage at the half despite a pair of goals from Canada’s Maddy Baxter.

The second half brought more of the same for the United States, with the team’s gold medal never appearing to be in jeopardy.

“This group is so talented,” said North, speaking after the game about how much it meant to play with her lacrosse heroes such as Cummings to clinch the United States’ fourth-straight world title.

Rounding out the podium, England took home the bronze medal after defeating Australia in a thrilling triple-overtime contest Saturday.

The United States will play in the World Lacrosse championship game Saturday after dominating Australia in the semifinals.

With a final score of 17-2, the U.S. will play in their 11th straight gold medal match.

Kayla Treanor was on fire for the United States, scoring six goals and adding two assists and being named player of the match.

With 33 points, she leads the United States and ranks second in the tournament. With a total of 76 points in her world championship career, Treanor has bested Katie Rowan’s record of 69.

Among Treanor’s goals was a behind-the-back shot that made SportsCenter’s Top 10.

“I just love this team,” Treanor said after the win. “We’re having a ton of fun together and I think it shows on the field. It was a great game and we’re looking forward to Saturday.”

The team will face off at 12 p.m. ET Saturday against Canada for the third-straight time in a gold medal match. Canada advanced after pulling out a 11-9 win over England, with Erica Evans notching four goals.

The U.S. is looking for its fourth-straight title, ninth overall and first on home soil. They would become the first team to win a world championship at home in World Lacrosse championship history.

Marie McCool has stepped up big for Team USA lacrosse as the squad has dominated its opponents at the world championship in Towson, Maryland.

Her behind-the-back goal against Hong Kong on Tuesday made SportsCenter’s Top 10 that night. The midfielder finished with three goals, and the United States won by a staggering score of 21-0.

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McCool has scored 15 goals through five games so far in the tournament to lead the team. Charlotte North, the all-time NCAA goals leader, is second on the team with 14.

“Every time I get to put on the red, white and blue — that USA jersey — I get butterflies,” McCool told the Courier-Post. “It’s just a really exciting feeling.”

The midfielder is one of six returning players from the 2017 world championship team. Team USA has won the last three championships, beating Australia in 2009 and then Canada in 2013 and 2017.

In the group stage, McCool notched three in the opening 16-11 win against Canada, three more in a 20-1 win against Scotland, four in a 16-5 win against Australia and two in a 15-9 win against England.

The win against Hong Kong was the first game of the knockout round. Team USA next will face Japan in the quarterfinals at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday on ESPN+.

The 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship begins Wednesday, with Team USA looking to secure its ninth title in Towson, Maryland.

A showdown between Canada and the United States will open up the tournament at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The game offers a rematch of the gold-medal game at the last iteration of the tournament in England in 2017.

This year marks the 11th edition of the tournament and just the third time it has been held in the United States. Team USA has won the last three championships, beating Australia in 2009 and then Canada in 2013 and 2017.

If the U.S. were to win this year’s world championship, it would be the first time that a team has won it on home soil. Twice the Americans have had the opportunity to win the title at home but lost both times to Australia in 1986 and 2005.

This year’s championship, hosted by USA Lacrosse, will be the largest-ever tournament in the history of the sport, with more than 500 athletes set to compete. In comparison to 2017, there are five more teams competing — 30 overall.

A total of 117 matches will take place from June 29 through July 9, with 112 airing on ESPN networks.

Six of the matches will air on either ESPN2 or ESPNU.

“We couldn’t be more pleased to be celebrating the largest women’s world championship to-date in one of the sport’s strongest regions,” said World Lacrosse president Sue Redfern. “We’re expecting a very high level of competition among the best teams from all corners of the globe as they vie for the coveted title of world champion.

“Thank you to USA Lacrosse for their significant efforts in staging this championship, and to Towson University for hosting us on their beautiful campus in the Baltimore metro-area.”

Charlotte North is taking her talents to Athletes Unlimited, signing a contract with the professional league for its second season of lacrosse.

The season will begin on July 21, after North – along with North Carolina standouts Ally Mastroianni and Emma Trenchard, who also signed with AU – takes the field for the United States at the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship starting this week.

North has the potential to make an impact with Athletes Unlimited from the moment she steps on the field. The NCAA all-time leader in goals with 358, the attacker was the top pick in the 2022 Athletes Unlimited lacrosse draft.

A two-time Tewaaraton award winner, North was also named the 2021 IWLCA Attacker of the Year while also helping the Eagles to their first NCAA title in 2021.

She was also recently nominated for the ESPY for Best College Athlete in Women’s Sports.

“I am thrilled to be playing alongside some of the best players in the world as part of Athletes Unlimited lacrosse with national coverage on ESPN this summer,” said North. “Playing for Boston College was an incredible experience for me and now I look forward to taking my game to the next level as part of the US National Team at the upcoming Women’s World Championship and starting my career as a professional lacrosse player with AU.”

Mastroianni and Trenchard, meanwhile, are fresh off winning an NCAA title with North Carolina this season. Mastroianni is the two-time reigning ACC Midfielder of the Year while Trenchard was named ACC Defender of the Year for the second time this year.

“Season two of Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse will set the benchmark for exciting and explosive women’s lacrosse this summer. Sixteen draftees, featuring two-time Tewaaraton Award winner Charlotte North, will join the world’s best players this summer at USA Lacrosse Headquarters,” said Abi Jackson, Athletes Unlimited’s director of sport for lacrosse. “We cannot be more excited for what’s in store for our fans and the lacrosse world in general this summer.”

The Athletes Unlimited season will run from July 21 through August 14 in Sparks, Maryland.

Charlotte North’s historic college career came to an end Sunday as Boston College fell to North Carolina in the national championship game.

The Eagles’ star put on a stellar performance despite the loss, notching four goals during the 12-11 defeat.

The reigning Tewaaraton Award winner led Boston College to the program’s first-ever national championship in 2021, breaking the NCAA Division I single-season goals record during the final and finishing with 102 goals.

North finishes the 2022 season with 92 goals, adding to her NCAA all-time record of 358 career goals. She surpassed Courtney Murphy’s 341-goal record from her 2014-2018 stint at Stony Brook during Boston College’s 13-8 win over Denver on May 15.

“I can’t really put it into words. I’m forever grateful for (coach) Acacia (Walker-Weinstein), letting me be a part of this special family,” North said through tears following Sunday’s championship. “I have the best teammates in the world. That’s the hardest part of this, is having to walk away from them, but I am forever indebted to them for giving me the memories of a lifetime.”

The North Carolina women’s lacrosse team held off a persistent Boston College squad in a drama-filled final to clinch the national lacrosse championship.

The 12-11 victory against the Eagles caps off an undefeated season from the Tar Heels (22-0), making North Carolina the first undefeated champions since 2017.

Sunday’s final was a back-and-forth affair, with Boston College and North Carolina trading goals. The teams were knotted 8-8 heading into the fourth quarter.

The third frame was all BC, with goalie Rachel Hall notching eight saves in the second half to swing the momentum in the Eagles’ favor. Charlotte North led all players in goals with four, pulling Boston College to an 8-7 lead before the Tar Heels responded at the end of the quarter.

North Carolina, though, captured the momentum down the stretch.

The Tar Heels took the lead with five minutes and 26 seconds on the clock before adding another goal with 2:20 remaining. That marked the first time in more than twenty minutes that either team had led by more than a goal.

The Tar Heels’ late advantage endured despite a crafty offensive maneuver from BC’s Cassidy Weeks to pull the eagles within one goal with 14 seconds left on the clock.

North Carolina, however, won possession on the ensuing faceoff to deny Boston College of back-to-back titles.

The national championship marks the Tar Heels’ third title since 2013 and their first since 2016.

Boston College women’s lacrosse mounted a thrilling comeback Friday, scoring with 18 seconds left on the clock to down Maryland 17-16 and clinch a place in the NCAA championship game.

Charlotte North set up the go-ahead goal, scoring her sixth of the night to tie things up with three minutes left in regulation.

Cassidy Weeks then notched the unlikely game-winner with only seconds to spare.

The Eagles were propelled by a series of impressive late defensive stops against an efficient Maryland offense.

“I really give all the credit to the defense,” BC head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein said after the game. “The goals are in a way the easy part. The defense is the most challenging part of the game. And our defense really stepped up and I was just proud of the risks they took. They took really athletic, smart risks and gave us the opportunity to score.”

Boston College will face North Carolina in the tournament final at noon ET Sunday on ESPN.

North Carolina lacrosse is on to the NCAA title game after mounting a seven-goal comeback in the fourth quarter of its Final Four contest Friday against Northwestern. The Tar Heels advanced with a stunning 15-14 victory.

Northwestern got off to a hot start, going up 6-0 before a weather delay sent both teams back to the locker room.

North Carolina attempted to respond after the weather delay, scoring back-to-back goals and bringing the score as close as 8-3.

But the fourth quarter proved the difference maker.

Northwestern once again opened up its lead, taking a 14-7 advantage early in the quarter. From there, though, the Tar Heels mounted their comeback, scoring the final eight goals of the game.

At one point, North Carolina scored three goals in 35 seconds.

After that, the floodgates seemed to open. The Tar Heels won six out of seven draws to tie the game at 14 goals apiece.

With 1:03 remaining, Sam Geiersbach scored the go-ahead goal – her fourth straight and fifth on the day.

Taylor Moreno would make a key save with 30 seconds left to give UNC back to ball and end the game.

North Carolina, still undefeated, advances to the national championship, where the team will have a shot at the national title against the winner of No. 3 Boston College vs. No. 2 Maryland.

The NCAA women’s lacrosse Final Four is here, with some marquee matchups set to determine who will have a shot at the championship.

The championship game is scheduled for Sunday at 12 p.m. ET.

No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 4 Northwestern

12:30 p.m. ET on ESPNews

Northwestern enters this game already passed its first test of this NCAA tournament: avenging last year’s Final Four loss to Syracuse. The Wildcats beat the Orange 15-4 – the second-largest margin of victory in last weekend’s matchups.

Lauren Gilbert was big for the Wildcats, scoring four goals. But Madison Doucette was the real difference maker, making 11 saves in net to hold Syracuse to a season-low four goals. It was just the second time in the past 15 years that Syracuse has scored four goals or less.

Now the Wildcats will play in their third consecutive Final Four. The program with the second-most national championships (seven) will take on top-seeded North Carolina.

North Carolina enters this game having gone undefeated to this point. The Tar Heels had a scare last weekend, however, when No. 8 Stony Brook gave them a run for their money. The Tar Heels managed to eke out an 8-5 win and advance to the Final Four, their 10th in the last 13 years.

On paper, UNC is the better team, having scored 17.15 goals per game to Northwestern’s 15.95. The Tar Heels also took down the Wildcats earlier this season in a 20-9 win at home. This game will be on neutral ground, though, and both teams have been battle tested since then.

No. 2 Maryland vs. No. 3 Boston College

3 p.m. ET on ESPNU

This matchup features each of the previous NCAA champions, with Boston College winning their first last year and Maryland beating BC to win the title – their 15th and the most of any women’s lacrosse program – in 2019.

Historically, Maryland has the edge in the postseason against the Eagles. The national title game in 2017 also featured a matchup between the Eagles and the Terrapins, which the Terps won.

While the Terps historically are the top NCAA lacrosse program, the Eagles have been knocking at the door for years. They were runners-up for three years straight before finally winning a title. Yet while they’ve finally broken through, Maryland presents a test that they have yet to pass.

Maryland enters this game on an 11-game winning streak after beating Florida 18-5 in the quarterfinals. It was the largest margin of victory in any of Thursday’s quarterfinals. Attacker Libby May had five goals – matching the Gators’ entire total – while Hannah Leubecker, Aurora Cordingley and Victoria Hensh each had three goals apiece.

Boston College is coming off a 20-13 win against Loyola Maryland. Belle Smith was the difference maker, scoring seven goals. Jenn Medjid also factored heavily with five goals and Kayla Martello with four. Not one to be absent from the score sheet, Charlotte North had three goals.