Israel claimed its first win at the 2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship in a close 9-6 victory over China on Tuesday on Jeju Island.
The two teams were neck and neck into the third quarter when Israel pulled out a three-goal run to lead 8-5, enough to see out the rest of the game, with goals from Drew Gannon, Ethan Dicturel and Shalev Tal.
The shots, face-offs and turnovers were all relatively close, but Israel goalkeeper Eyvatar Bahar came up clutch with 10 saves to make a difference.
Israel improved to 1-2 and finished in third in Pool D, while China finished in fourth.
Israel will play Kenya in placement play towards 13th place at 12:10 p.m. on Wednesday.
China will face Chinese Taipei at 7:10 p.m.
Bahar has been a bright spot for Israel in its two previous defeats and had a strong performance with a 62% save percentage against China. Through three games, Bahar has 22 saves, the sixth most in the championship.
Three players had multiple goals for Israel in Tal, Max Youssefnia and Gary Felsher, who also added an assist.
Jameson Wong made 12 saves of his own for China, while Cody Lam scored twice.
Both teams will be back in action on Wednesday.
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