Lehigh coaches ready for medal round at lax Worlds
7/21/2010 4:00:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
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MANCHESTER, England – The 2010 FIL World Championships are almost a week old, and it has already been a productive tournament for the two World Championship participants with ties to the Lehigh lacrosse program. Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese has clinched a spot in the medal round with Team USA after going 4-1 in round-robin play. Team USA’s lone loss during pool play was a 10-9 setback to Canada on Saturday. Mountain Hawks Assistant Coach Taylor Wray has received praise for his work as a defensive assistant coach for the Canadian Team that went 5-0 in pool play.
Team USA opened the championships with a 21-5 win over Australia on Friday, setting the stage for Saturday’s highly anticipated match-up with Canada, a rematch of the 2006 Gold Medal Game won by the Canadians. Cassese scored his first goal of the championships against Canada, but it was not enough as the Canadians prevailed in a tight battle 10-9. Team USA rebounded from the loss by throttling Germany, England and Japan by a combined score of 58-14 to clinch a spot in the medal round.
Cassese’s best game of the opening round was Tuesday’s 19-5 win over Japan, where the American Co-Captain netted a hat-trick and was named player of the game by Team USA head coach Mike Pressler.
In five games, Lehigh’s head coach has four goals and an assist for Team USA. The Americans will face the winner of Wednesday’s game between Japan and the Netherlands in the semifinals Thursday at 7:30 p.m. BST.
“As a team, we are pleased overall with the position we are in heading into the medal round,” explained Cassese. “Earning a first round bye in the medal round and a Wednesday day off is always the number one priority and we are excited that we have achieved that goal.
Cassese continued, “That said, Team USA has never lost a round robin game in the history of the World Games until our loss to Canada in this year's round-robin. That has certainly left a sour taste in our mouths and we look forward to working hard over the next few days and taking care of business in the semifinals in order to get another crack at the first seeded and tournament favorite Canadians in the Championship game on Saturday.”
Team Canada, the defending World Champions, topped their group with a 5-0 record, beating their opponents by an average of 12 goals per game, while allowing just over 5.5 goals per contest. Wray, who won Gold with the Canadians in 2006, is serving as an assistant coach for his country, and was interviewed about his defensive unit by the National Lacrosse League Insider.
Wray’s interview can be viewed here.
Canada will face the winner of Wednesday’s Scotland-Australia game in the semifinals on Thursday.
Most people believe that Team USA and Canada are on a collision course to meet for the Gold Medal, with the championship game set for Saturday at 4 p.m. BST.
