USA wins lacrosse gold; Marie McCool, Britt Read named All-World
TOWSON, Md. — Since middle school Britt Read and Marie McCool have been — at turns — teammates, rivals and competitors, but always friends. Saturday afternoon they added another attribute. They officially became World-Class.
Following the conclusion of the 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship, the duo were named to the 10-player All-World Team. McCool led the United States to its fourth consecutive quadrennial title with three goals in an 11-8 win over Canada. Earlier in the day, Read had 13 saves, including three during three overtime periods of an 8-7 win against Australia for the Bronze Medal.
The pair first met when Read and McCool were named to the same team after a tryout for the South Jersey Select travel lacrosse program. Read was a middle-schooler in Gibbsboro, McCool from Moorestown. More than a decade later, very little has changed.
They even faced off on July 4 in the pool play of the World Championships.
“It is so fun,” Read said. “I love playing against Marie. We go way back and it's always such a good time when we’re playing against each other. I respect her so much.”
McCool was one of four United States players named to the All-World Team, joining tournament Most Valuable Player Taylor Cummings, Kayla Treanor and Alice Mercer, the only defender on the squad.
McCool was second on Team USA with 20 goals, third in draw controls (17) and led the team in shooting percentage (76.9), all while dominating the midfield from goal circle to goal circle.
While being surrounded by some of the most exciting lacrosse players in the world, McCool was relentlessly efficient, choosing her spots to make the most impact. Three times in the team’s eight games, she scored the first goal of the game. That included the opening goal of the championship, after almost six-and-a-half minutes into a scoreless first quarter.
None of that comes as a surprise.
More:England lacrosse goalie Britt Read still South Jersey through and through
More:Marie McCool embracing her role as USA Lacrosse veteran
“Marie's very competitive,” Read said. “We always played against each other in college. We played with each other and we played against each other in the pro league. It's just always a good time. It takes you back to our school days when we played against each other in high school and together in the summer.”
Read plays for England thanks to her roots there on her late father Dan’s side of the family. Each of the tournament’s 29 teams is allowed to field up to three non-passport players.
Read gave England the best goalie play in the entire tournament. She posted a 44.1 save percentage on 41 saves. Her 13-save performance on Saturday morning gave England its second consecutive Bronze medal.
English attacker Olivia Hompe, who scored the overtime game-winner against Australia, was also named All-World.
Canada placed three players on the All-World team, Aurora Cordingly, Dana Dobbie and Kaylin Morrissette. The tenth player on the squad was Australia’s Hannah Neilsen.
Read was the only goalie named to the team, which means among the more than 550 players from 29 countries, Read is the best goalie in the world. And with good company.
McCool and Read have always excelled at tryouts.
Once upon a time, they ended up on the same team of outstanding South Jersey middle schoolers and became friends.
All these years later, Read and McCool spent playing against the best lacrosse teams on earth and were reunited as two of the 10-best players in the world.
This article originally appeared on Burlington County Times: Marie McCool, Britt Read named World's best at Lacrosse World Cup
