Canada held off a late rally to defeat Haudenosaunee 12-7 in a semifinal played on Thursday night at the 2023 World Lacrosse Men’s Championships in San Diego, California.
Canada will now play in its sixth consecutive championship game against the US, and will finish in the top two in the event for the tenth time in its 14 appearances. The US defeated Australia to advance to the final.
Canada’s balanced attack saw five different players record multi-point efforts. Dhane Smith and Dyson Williams had three goals apiece to pace the Canadian attack. Goalkeeper Dillon Ward was outstanding, making 11 saves on 18 shots faced, and Jake Withers and Justin Inacio combined to dominate 17 of 23 face-offs for Canada.
The Haudenosaunee were led by Austin Staats with four goals.