U.S. Women's Team History

The United States Women’s Lacrosse Association was established  in 1931, and in 1933 the first U.S. team was selected. In 1935, the U.S. sent a team to England for a tour.

The sport continued to grow over the decades with several U.S. teams traveling to both England and Australia for exhibition tours and the sport’s growth accelerated in the 1970s with the formation of the International Federation of Women's Lacrosse Associations. The IFWLA hosted its first championship in 1982 and since that time, the United States has been the most successful country on the international stage.

The U.S. has won five of the seven World Cups conducted and finished as the runner-up at the other two championships.

1982: The U.S. traveled to Nottingham, England for the first World Cup and staged a dramatic rally to bring home the Cup. Trailing 6-1 in the championship game against Australia, who had beaten them during pool play, the U.S. women rallied to tie the game 7-7 to force overtime. U.S. co-captain Jane Diamond opened the scoring in overtime and then Sandy Bryan added two more as the U.S. posted a 10-7 victory. Diamond, Sandy Hoody, Leslie Blankin and Lynn Cox were named to the all-world team.

1986: A vibrant home crowd of more than 5,000 spectators in Swarthmore, Pa., wasn't enough to lift the U.S. to a second straight World Cup. The U.S. tried for a repeat of 1982 by rallying against Australia, but the Aussies withstood the challenge and won the championship 10-7.

1989: The U.S. didn't win the battle, losing to host Australia 2-1 in round-robin play, but it won the war in Perth. Australia, England and the U.S. each suffered one loss in pool play, but the U.S. and England advanced to the championship game due to goal differential. In the final, the U.S. nipped England 5-4 with Margie Anderson scoring the winning goal in overtime.

1993: The U.S. beat Australia for the first time since 1982, nipping the Aussies 6-5 in the qualifying round and then brought home a second straight World Cup, beating England 4-1 in the championship in Edinburgh, Scotland. Jess Wilk made eight first half saves while blanking England in the period to help spur the U.S. to the victory.

1997: Playing before large crowds in Edogawa, Japan, the U.S. women once again reigned victorious, beating rival Australia 3-2 in overtime as Amory Rowe scored on a rebound in sudden death overtime. Sue Heether made seven second half saves while holding Australia scoreless in the second half and Cherie Greer was named the player of the tournament.

2001: The U.S. had it smoothest run to a World Cup, outscoring its opponents 92-21, including a 14-8 victory over Australia in the championship game in High Wycombe, England. The U.S. had beaten Australia 7-5 in pool play, and fell behind 2-0 in the championship game, but then scored the first four goals of the second half to pull away. Cherie Greer was named the MVP of the championship match for the second straight year.

2005: The U.S. attempted to become the first country to win the World Cup on home soil, but it wasn't to be as Jen Adams led Australia to a 14-7 victory before 6,820 spectators in Annapolis, Md., the largest crowd to watch a women's lacrosse game in the U.S. The two teams had tied the round-robin game 7-7, but the Aussies used a five-goal spurt in the first half to gain momentum in the title tilt and the U.S. was unable to recover. Kelly Amonte Hiller, Quinn Carney, Joanne Connelly and Jess Wilk were named to the all-world team.