England claim fourth consecutive gold at Women’s European Championship in Braga

England defeated Israel, 12-5, in the final of the Women’s European Lacrosse Championship in Braga on Saturday afternoon, marking its fourth consecutive title in the event and eighth in the championship’s 12 editions.

Milly Home dazzled in the final with four goals and two assists. England goalkeeper Dylan Whittington made four saves to back a strong outing on the whole from the England defense.

Home finished the tournament with 13 goals and eight assists, and England had a balanced attack supported by Jordan Carr with 21 points, Georgina Southorn with 21 points and Ella Cohen with 13 points. Whittington finished the tournament with a save percentage of 56 percent.

England won a rematch of the 2019 final in Netanya and has continued its stretch of dominance among European teams after a third place finish at the World Lacrosse Women’s Championship in 2022 in Towson.

Israel picked up its second silver medal in the event and has finished in the top four in each of its three appearances. The team had four of the top five points earners in the tournament, as Jordan Lipkin, Jackie Stoller, Zoe Martin and Hannah Hillcoff all contributed over 27 points in seven games.

Scotland narrowly edged Wales for the bronze medal, 9-7, in a thrilling rivalry matchup. Chess Gray scored what would ultimately be the winning goal on the day.

Scotland earned its sixth bronze medal in the event and returned the podium after narrowly missing out in 2019.

Ireland bested Germany, 10-7, to claim fifth place, tied for its second-best finish in the event in five appearance. Ireland goalkeeper Emily Gaven was named the player of the game for her strong second half performance in net, making six saves on nine shots.

The championship also served as a qualifier for the 2026 World Lacrosse Women’s Championship in Japan, with the top seven teams securing qualification, a field rounded out by Czech Republic after a dramatic win over Italy on Friday.

The eighth through 16th place teams also qualified for the planned Division II Women’s Championship in 2026.

Italy, who finished in eighth, made its best ever finish in the event. Spain was the other team to make a program-best 14th place finish while Poland and Portugal made their debut in the event:

1. England
2. Israel
3. Scotland
4. Wales
5. Ireland
6. Germany
7. Czech Republic
8. Italy
9. Latvia
10. Netherlands
11. Sweden
12. Switzerland
13. Poland
14. Spain
15. Norway
16. Finland
17. Belgium
18. Austria
19. Portgual

Full results and statistics from the championship can be found here.