(Philippine Lacrosse Association Facebook)
When you ask Filipinos to talk about their best sport, most will say basketball, boxing, or volleyball. Meanwhile, others may try to be more creative and suggest weight lifting, Sepak Takraw, archery, or even billiards and snooker (pool).
However, most Filipinos would be quite surprised to hear that, in fact, one of their nation’s best sports is one that only gained official status in 2012.
This sport is lacrosse, and its introduction into the vast Filipino sporting empire was of mighty success back in 2018 when the Philippines Men’s National Lacrosse Team finished 10th place in the world after winning 5 of 7 matches in their inaugural world championship.
The Philippines was able to achieve this massive accomplishment five years ago, leaving many to wonder whether this historic achievement was an anomaly or a beacon of light displaying future Filipino success.
What is Lacrosse?
Lacrosse is a sport that has been played for a millennium by the indigenous people of the United States of America and Canada.
It is a very physical sport resembling elements of ice hockey and American football, as well as immense skill often seen in field hockey and hurling (for those familiar with the Irish sport).
The stamina required is second to none, and the importance of the sport carries religious significance for the indigenous peoples of North America.
The game was used for spiritual ceremonies, to settle disputes between tribes without war, and to mold warriors, amidst other purposes.
As Europeans started settling in the Americas, they began to admire this ancient sport. However, they did not enjoy its inherent violence that often led to people dying. So, they created modern versions.
The version played this June and July at the 2023 World Championship is called field lacrosse or simply lacrosse, and its modern version was created in 1867 in Montreal, Canada. The other version was created in 1931 and is called indoor lacrosse (or box lacrosse), and it too was created in Montreal.
The field version is more similar to the original version of the sport.
It features 10 players on the field for each team, with one goalie, three defenders, three midfielders, and three attackers. On either side of the field, which is very similar in dimensions to a soccer field, there are goals.
The object of the game is to score more goals than your opponent, very similar to most team sports with goals.
You can only score one point at a time, and the game is divided into four quarters of 15 minutes each. There is a face-off after each score and to begin each quarter in the middle of the field.
For a more in-depth look at this sport, you can watch a very helpful video link on field lacrosse and one on box lacrosse.
Who Played in San Diego?
There were 30 nations out of the 86 that are members of World Lacrosse that qualified for San Diego 2023.
The nations were divided into six groups of five teams each and the matches were played between 21 June and 1 July in California.
Group A featured all of the best nations, and they all qualified for the last 14 stage (playoffs), with the top two advancing to the quarterfinals.
The next five groups all consisted of the rest of the nations divided into what was supposed to be relatively equal groups. The top team from each group advanced to the playoffs while only the best four of the five second-place teams in these lower groups advanced to the playoffs.
Pool A featured the USA (#1), Canada (#2), Haudenosaunee (#3), Australia (#4), and England (#5).
Pool B included Japan (#6), Uganda (#40), Wales (#14), Denmark (#34), and France (#33).
Pool C had Israel (#7), the Philippines (#10), the Czech Republic (#26), Sweden (#25), and Puerto Rico (#8).
Pool D featured Germany (#9), New Zealand (#21), Switzerland (#20), Poland (#32), and Jamaica (#13).
Pool E had Scotland (#11), Hong Kong (#27), Italy (#16), Austria (#24), and Mexico (#38).
Pool F included Ireland (#12), South Korea (#35), Latvia (#18), the Netherlands (#22), and Peru (#39).
As you can probably tell from these groups, the Philippines’ Pool C had three top ten nations in it, while certain groups like Pool E and Pool F had zero top ten teams. In fact, Pool C was the only group with multiple top ten teams besides the elite Pool A. How this happened, I do not know, but it was very unfortunate as you will find out later on.
So how did the Philippines compete in the very difficult Pool C?
Here were their results in Pool C play:
(Time in Manilla/Local Time in San Diego)
| Friday 23 June 13:00/Saturday 24 June 4:00 | Israel 8 versus the Philippines 4 |
| Saturday 24 June 16:00/Sunday 25 June 7:00 | Puerto Rico 9 versus the Philippines 7 |
| Sunday 25 June 13:00/Monday 26 June 4:00 | Czech Republic 4 versus the Philippines 11 |
| Monday 26 June 19:00/Tuesday 27 June 10:00 | Sweden 3 versus the Philippines 9 |
The Philippines got a lot better as the tournament went on, and not just because they had to play the top two teams they faced first.
Against Israel, the Philippines had a bad first half, being outscored 0-4. However, in the second half, the Philippines used their experience to even things out with the favored Israelis.
(Manila Lacrosse Twitter)
Israel and the Philippines both featured many diaspora players, which made for an enticing match as both nations featured players that had played in the top ranks of American college lacrosse, one of the highest levels of lacrosse worldwide. Puerto Rico also features these high-level players, but many of them are also from the country itself.
Thus, the Philippines’ next match against Puerto Rico proved vital for both nations as this was essentially the game to determine the last spot in Pool C for the playoffs. The Philippines started off very well and won the first half, 4-3. They even started the third quarter up 5-4. But, all things turned toward the Puerto Ricans’ advantage in the third quarter after the 7-minute 45-second mark, when the latter scored to tie things up at 5-5.
Puerto Rico went on to score three more goals without an answer from the Philippines, resulting in an 8-5 Puerto Rican lead. It was not until 3 minutes and 32 seconds left in the match that the Philippines scored again! Yes, a goalless span of 23 minutes and 36 seconds is probably what separated the Philippines competing for a back-to-back top-ten spot, and the consolation rounds.
Nevertheless, the Filipinos scored again with 2 minutes and 2 seconds left. There was still hope. It was intense to watch, and the Philippines almost pulled through to get the game into sudden death over time. However, with just 32 seconds left, Puerto Rico put the game away with their ninth goal!
Technically, there was still an outside chance the Philippines could advance after these first two losses, but it was near impossible. Instead of giving up, however, the Philippines responded with a champion mindset.
The last two matches were against nations that had previously done well at the World Championships, both finishing as high as ninth place. In addition, both nations (especially the Czech Republic) excelled at box lacrosse. Their low rankings were more a product of their previous bad performance at the World Championship in 2018 than of how good each nation really was.
Therefore, when the Philippines jumped out to a 3-1 first-quarter lead and then won the second quarter 5-0 over the Czech Republic, it was impressive not only because the Filipinos led 8-1 but also due to the Southeast country playing a proper lacrosse nation. The Philippines finished the game 11-4 victors, and went into the last match of their group play for 2023 going up against the infamous Swedes.
(Philippine Lacrosse Association Facebook)
By this time in the tournament, the Philippines now had their sights set on the highest they could finish: 15th place. And for a nation that has only competed in two World Championships and for eleven years in total, that is quite outstanding.
The Philippines opened up to a 3-0 first-quarter lead. The next quarter saw the nation extend their lead to 6-2. The Philippines won the second half as well, 3-1, for an overall victory of 9-3 over Sweden.
This meant that the Philippines was now placed in the 15th-22nd place bracket, where certain nations who finished second and third place in their groups went.
The bracket was set and the first match was against Peru. Unfortunately for Peru, their lacrosse did not match how good their food is that Wednesday against the Philippines, and the Filipinos dominated from the start, winning the first half, 7-2, and winning the second half, 6-2, for an overall 13-4 Filipino victory! By that time, the Philippines had solidified its position as the country with the second-highest number of shots, becoming one of the most exciting nations to watch — a fact all of the announcers could not stop talking about.
The next match now placed the Philippines into the 15th-18th place bracket. Already, the Philippines had secured a second consecutive top-20 finish!
The Philippines were now up against one of the historic nations of lacrosse, the inventors of the modern women’s version of the sport, and one of the pre-tournament favorites to make it far, Scotland!
Philippines game against Scotland, 3 of PH players combined for 10 goals!
(Philippine Lacrosse Association Facebook)
We are talking about a nation that has been playing lacrosse the longest among those outside North America — a nation with a lacrosse history spanning decades (if not centuries).
The first quarter was tight, with both nations trading punches. The Philippines scored the first goal out of the gates within two minutes, while Scotland scored the next two. The Philippines finished the first quarter with the fourth goal of the game to make it a 2-2 tie going into the second quarter.
But, from here on out, the Filipinos dominated! The Philippines scored within 8 seconds of the second quarter starting, and then scored another goal less than a minute later! The Filipinos would score three more goals, all unanswered until Scotland scored their third goal at the end of the half. The Philippines thus led Scotland at halftime, 7-3!
The third quarter featured a solo Filipino goal, while the Philippines outscored Scotland 3-1 in the fourth quarter to win once again by a score of 11-4.
This match brought out the best of current Rutger University Scarlet Knights’ star, John Dugenio (#13), the man behind all of the fast goals. Over the past three years, he has been starring in New Jersey (one of America’s historic universities) as the key face-off guy, the player who starts the game each quarter and after each goal, trying to win possession back for his team. And, the previous two weeks, the Bridgewater, New Jersey native has been repping his heritage with the Philippines by leading their face-offs! So, what makes this John Dugenio guy so special?
See, in lacrosse, the faceoff is similar to basketball’s tipoff, except that it happens every quarter and after each goal. Unlike in basketball’s tipoff, the man facing off can keep the ball and run with it to try to score or get an assist. And, this is exactly what John Dugenio did all tournament! He won over 82% of his faceoffs, scored 10 goals, and assisted on 4 goals.
These latter two stats were off the charts for his position because generally, the faceoff player focuses on faceoffs only and is then subbed off during play (lacrosse has in-game substitution like in ice hockey, so play does not have to stop). The reason for this is that the faceoff guy can extend the possessions you get exponentially. So, for the previous two weeks, #13 was lucky for the Philippines.
In addition, the man behind all the saves and shot stops was Dan Morris (#8), a goalie who has won the NCAA Division 1 National Championship with the Maryland Terrapins (2017) as the starter, and who has competed in the highest level of the sport in the Premier Lacrosse League, winning the National Championship for the Whipsnakes (2019) as a starter.
In lacrosse, the highest level of the sport is the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL), as well as the National Lacrosse League (NLL) for indoor lacrosse — both in the US and Canada. But, after this, most would consider NCAA Division 1 (field lacrosse) the highest level of lacrosse, which is the highest university league in America, or, the many second-tier leagues of indoor lacrosse across Canada.
So, to put Dan Morris’s accomplishments into basketball terminology, that would be equivalent to the Philippines having the Denver Nuggets’ Christian Braun but with Nikola Jokić stats. These two players were just some of the many well-experienced and skillful Filipinos who had been lacing up the cleats for the previous two weeks.
This set up the last match, against Mexico!
Mexico proved to be an intriguing team in this World Championship. Despite their low ranking resulting from previous poor performances, their roster comprised some of the most talented players in the tournament. These players brought a wealth of high-level experience and, for the first time, came together to represent a nation known for its delectable cuisine and, apparently, a burgeoning lacrosse prowess.
San Diego, California, located on the border with Mexico, served as a home ground for Mexico. Moreover, all of the Filipino and Mexican matches were held at San Diego State University. Can you guess their team name? If you remember the recent NCAA Tournament for Men’s Basketball, they go by the name Aztecs!
In other words, the Philippines basically had an away match against the best Mexican lacrosse team to date, with pictures of Aztecs and the word “Aztecs” displayed on and around the field.
The match started off with very even play. Then, at the 8:50 mark of the first quarter, Neil Adrian Macaladad (#9) went from the right to the left over the top of the defense in the attacking zone, and once he got on the left side of the goal, passed the ball into Matt Speciale (#2) who came running across the face of the goal to the right side and caught the ball with his stick and then shot for the goal and scored to put the Philippines up 1-0!
(Philippine Lacrosse Association)
The Philippines continued to dominate play for the rest of the first quarter, but just could not find the back of the net. And then, a terrible turnover led to an easy Mexican goal with just 1 minute and 29 seconds left in the opening quarter. The Filipinos had squandered their advantage.
The second quarter started off really good for the Philippines who dominated the first half of this quarter. At the 10:53 mark, a scrambled play in the Philippines’ attacking zone was picked up by John Tornabene (#22) on the left side, who passed it to the center to Chase LaDrido (#7), who then passed it over to the right side to Mario Ventiquattro (#24). Mario Ventiquattro then shot the ball with lots of power and to the top of the goal to score, putting the Philippines up 2-1.
Then, with 7 minutes and 9 seconds left in the second, Chase LaDrido (#7) got the ball towards the top of the attacking zone, and then made his way closer to goal from left to right and as he got close and to the right of the goalie, he shot the ball back left, toward ground, and between the Mexico goalie’s legs for a goal. The Philippines went up 3-1!
Now was the time when, in the previous four matches, the Philippines would have ridden this momentum to build a larger lead and secure a comfortable win. But remember how I wrote this was an away game?
Well, the Mexicans must have thought so because they were not going to disappoint their fans.
Seizing an opportunity after a Filipino defender lost his stick, Mexico capitalized by advancing toward the goal and scoring on a one-on-one shot against Dan Morris from the left side at the 4:58 mark.
To close out the first half, with just 9 seconds remaining, Mexico executed a play from behind the goal. They swiftly moved towards the goal, passed the ball to an open player on the left wing, who then fired a shot at the goal and scored.
That two-goal Filipino lead was gone. And so was the Philippines’ momentum.
Within two minutes into the second half, Mexico’s goalie made an unbelievable save. And then the Mexican goalie passed the ball up the field and found a teammate on the left wing who beat his defender one on one and shot the ball at goal to score to put Mexico up, 4-3 (13:11)!
It seemed all was lost, and it appeared that the true Aztecs were running away with this game.
However, do you remember lucky #13?
After a great faceoff win, the Filipinos methodically moved down the field until they regained possession and passed the ball to John Dugenio at the top of the left side of the attacking zone. He skillfully dodged his defender, sprinted past him, and unleashed a shot from the left side of the goal, almost parallel to the side post.
Miraculously, the ball soared to the top of the goal, sailing over the Mexican goalie’s outer shoulder, and found the back of the net from an incredibly challenging angle. With that extraordinary play, John Dugenio brought the Philippines back into the game, leveling the score at 4-4 (11:53)!
The Filipinos were not done this quarter either, as just two minutes later, an arid pass from a Mexican defender found John Dugenio in the middle of the field. Once Dugenio had the ball secure in his stick, he sprinted toward the attacking zone and passed the ball up to a wide-open Matt Speciale (#2). Only the Mexican goalie stood in front of him and the goal, and after some fakes, Matt Speciale was able to put the ball past the goalie for a score (9:39). The Philippines would close out the third quarter leading 5-4.
The fourth quarter started off back and forth, but the Philippines seemed to have the upperhand, that is until the 8:55 mark, when Mexico got the ball behind goal, and went around the back and snuck in a shot that went into the goal. Then, less than 3 minutes later, Mexico set up another play starting from behind goal — except in this play, the player behind goal found a player toward the middle of the attacking zone on the right side and passed the ball to him. This Mexican player in the middle-right of the attacking zone then shot the ball low and toward the ground past Dan Morris for a goal (6:01). The Mexicans now led 6-5!
Could the Philippines respond?
After John Dugenio secured the subsequent faceoff and skillfully scooped the ball backward to his teammates, a scramble ensued, resulting in a penalty on Mexico. As a result, JJ McKenna (#25) seized the ball in his stick, and when play resumed after the whistle, he advanced with the ball from the right side of the field, just on the defensive side of the Philippines’ midfield.
Once McKenna crossed the midfield, he took on his defender, skillfully evading him, and sprinted down the right wing. As he reached a position parallel to the goal, McKenna released a shot off the bounce, successfully beating Mexico’s goalie and scoring! At the 5:31 mark, the game was now tied at 6-6 with the latest goal from the Philippines.
At the 3:14 mark, Chase LaDrido (#7) received the ball behind the goal. He executed a fake move, initially feigning a rightward direction (his left) to go around the goal. However, he swiftly changed his direction and spun back to the left (his right). LaDrido then passed the ball toward the top of the attacking zone to Neil Adrian Macaladad (#9). Macaladad caught the pass, unleashed a powerful shot aimed towards the ground, and successfully beat the Mexican goalie, scoring a goal! With this goal, the Philippines now took the lead, 7-6!
With only 1 minute and 59 seconds remaining, Mario Ventiquattro (#24), Italy’s beloved Filipino player, began with the ball in the back left corner. Mexico, aiming to defend more effectively, had withdrawn their goalie and resorted to double-teaming Ventiquattro to prevent the Philippines from wasting time.
As soon as the referee’s whistle signaled the resumption of play, Ventiquattro seized the opportunity. He executed a fake run between the two defenders and swiftly juked to the right (his left, towards the center of the goal), breaking free and advancing towards the goal. Ventiquattro then passed the ball to #7 Chase LaDrido, who positioned himself just on the left side in front of the goal. LaDrido wasted no time and fired a low shot into the empty net, scoring with only 1 minute and 53 seconds left. With this goal, the Philippines surged ahead, leading 8-6!
On Mexico’s last attacking possession, Filipino defender, Michael Garchitorena (#39), ran back and forth with his player as he was guarding and locking him down. And when the Mexican attacker was compelled to pass the ball away, the recipient of the pass attempted a shot but had it thwarted by Dan Morris (#8), the Philippine goalkeeper. Following a scramble for the ball, Mexico was called for a penalty. The ball went back to the Filipinos with just 31.1 seconds left.
The Filipinos had done it! The Philippines utilized their time out, effectively limiting Mexico to just a few seconds on their defensive end. A lengthy pass from Mexico consumed the remaining time on the clock, and the Philippines emerged victorious with a final score of 8-6! With this remarkable accomplishment, the Philippines claimed a top 15 spot for the second consecutive World Championship, with an unprecedented difficult schedule.
(Time in Manilla/Local Time in San Diego)
| Thursday 29 June 1:00/Wednesday 28 June 10:00 | Peru 4 versus the Philippines 13 |
| Friday 30 June 1:00/Thursday 29 June 10:00 | Scotland 4 versus the Philippines 11 |
| Saturday 1 July 10:00/Friday 30 June 19:00 | Mexico 6 versus the Philippines 8 |
| World’s #15: | Philippines |
Who were the Favorites?
While lacrosse became very popular with French settlers and the settlers from the British Isles, it really only took hold in the Anglosphere, and only stayed popular in the US Northeast and Canadian Southeast, as well as parts of Australia and the United Kingdom.
The other parts of the US have seen significant growth in the sport and so have other parts of Canada recently. Today, lacrosse is Canada’s official national summer sport, while ice hockey is Canada’s official winter sport.
The significance of the American Northeast and Canadian Southeast is that in this region, is the old Iroquois Confederacy, a historic confederation of six sovereign Native American tribes where lacrosse is the biggest. The Iroquois version is where modern lacrosse derives most of its game play and rules from. Many people even go so far as to say that the Iroquois themselves are the Native American group who invented the first versions of the sport.
The Iroquois Nation thus have their own national team for lacrosse called the Haudenosaunee, and they represent the various Iroquois people, US reservations and Canadian reserves, and historic land they have ruled and continue to rule.
The USA entered this World Championship as by far the best nation historically with 10 world championships and 3 silver medals. The USA would thus be the favorites again, as they have had the best field lacrosse players and were the host nation.
Canada entered this tournament as the second best nation historically and presently, with 3 world championships, 6 silver medals, and 4 bronze medals. They posed the greatest threat to American lacrosse hegemony as they often had challenged the USA in the Final.
The Haudenosaunee were the third favorite this year, but had only achieved two bronze medals. The Iroquois play in the heart of the lacrosse world and have been increasing their talent in field lacrosse lately.
What is odd is that the Iroquois had been better in box lacrosse than in field lacrosse, as they have five silver medals, with Canada having five gold medals, and the USA having five bronze medals. The Iroquois also continue to play their own versions of lacrosse as well.
It must be stated though, that the Iroquois have only been able to play in the World Championship since 1990, and were not allowed entry in time for the 2010 edition in England. Therefore, to start this tournament, their two bronze medals were actually very impressive because they had less participation than the other nations. In addition, at the time, their last two world championships had seen them achieve these two bronze medals, and many people expected the Iroquois to have one of their best chances in field lacrosse this year due to the strong Native American presence in San Diego, California (USA) where the tournament was being played.
While historically many tribes were rivals, nowadays, most tribes unite, especially behind the Haudenosaunee National Team which is the only national team for First Nation people part of a world governing body for any sport. The Iroquois use this significance to insert their sovereign status, a topic you can read about in this article from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. This is one of the many reasons that makes lacrosse a unique global game, one which the Philippines have been very lucky to become a part of.
Australia entered as the fourth favorite having amassed three silver medals and six bronze medals. Australia was historically the #3 favorite, and they once again looked like favorites to achieve a medal.
England rounded out the top five favorites with one silver medal. England looked to be difficult to beat, but they posed the least threat in Pool A.
As far as the rest of the nations, they were all unlikely to win the World Championship, but it did not mean it was impossible.
Nations like Japan and Israel entered the tournament having been really good, and the Philippines was a nation many thought could surprise once again.
The Philippines, however, had the next most difficult group after Pool A. After all, Israel had finished seventh place both editions they had competed in (2014 and 2018), Puerto Rico had finished eighth place the only edition they had competed in (2018), while the Czech Republic and Sweden had both finished as high as ninth place in previous editions.
As for the Philippines, its national team consisted of many Americans, Canadians, and Australians of Filipino descent. This is why the Philippines has been able to excel on the international stage thus far, despite only gaining official recognition barely over a decade ago. So, the Philippines had the talent to battle the Israelis, Puerto Ricans, Czechs, and Swedes and thus were considered a real contender going in.
Nonetheless, the Filipinos are still so new to the international stage and so most predicted that all of these matches would be close, even if the Philippines were playing very well. For the rest of the nations at the World Championship, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland were considered the next best due to their high rankings and historical prestige, as well as Germany and Jamaica.
Here is the Philippines’ Roster and their goals and assists stats:
For more in depth stats, check out this link.
How did the tournament finish out?
The Final was played between the USA and Canada at the brand new Snapdragon Stadium, as was the 3rd Place Final between the Haudenosaunee and Australia.
Here were the results of the placement games and the final rankings:
What are the prospects for the Philippines’ future?
The Philippines’ prospects for the future in lacrosse are very high. As one can deduct from the standings and placement games, the Philippines’ group apparently was not only a very difficult pre-tournament, but (with post-season tournament analysis) also the most difficult after Pool A.
For example, when considering the collective performance of Pool C teams against non-Pool C teams, their combined record stood at 12-3. Israel reached their highest ranking following their loss to Team USA, while Puerto Rico achieved the second-highest ranking after their defeat against England. Additionally, both the Philippines and the Czech Republic obtained the highest rankings possible after their respective group stages, whereas Sweden secured the second highest rank after their group stage, solely losing to fellow Pool C team, the Czech Republic.
Furthermore, the formatting was a little off for Israel, as they were only allowed to play for seventh place and not fifth place due to Japan having a better seeding, which is partly due to Pool C being more difficult and thus harder for Israel to get a better seeding from.
This is all to say that had this tournament been divided more equally from Pool B to Pool F, the Philippines would have been likely quarter-finalists, or at the very least hovering around the top ten once again.
As far as players are concerned, the Philippines currently has NCAA Division 1 and PLL stars on their side. All they need is more players at these high levels.
Nonetheless, the future is bright for the Philippines in lacrosse, and a consecutive top 15 placement in 2023 has done wonders to accomplish the federation’s ultimate goals: to develop high-level homegrown players in the Philippines itself, while making the game a popular sport in the ASEAN nation. With World Lacrosse’s push for Olympic inclusion for the first time since 1904 and 1908, lacrosse could become the Philippines’ best chance at Olympic Gold in the near future.