(Rochester, NY)… Team Canada rallied for two late goals Sunday to knock off the United States to capture gold at the 2026 Pan-American Men’s Lacrosse Championship. Six members of the Rochester Knighthawks proudly donned their hardware after the 9-8 victory in Kingston, Jamaica.
“Anytime you have an opportunity to win at the international level, it’s always a proud moment,” said Carey. “We had a great group of players and staff, and I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with them. The Knighthawks were well represented, and I’m excited for Taylor, Graydon, Thomas, Ryan and Stephen to return home with the gold from the PALA Championships.”
Carey served as the general manager for Team Canada, while Stephen Lobsinger was the team’s athletic trainer and Ryan Preston handled equipment manager duties. Knighthawks players Thomas McConvey, Taylor Jensen and Graydon Hogg also represented their country and helped the Canadians finish the tournament with a perfect 5-0 record.
Jensen and Hogg celebrating as Team Canada were presented their medals in Kingston, Jamaica.
“Firstly, it’s such a huge honor and privilege to be able to represent Canada on the international stage,” said Lobsinger, who was working in his 11th tourney with Team Canada. “While I’ve been fortunate to have helped with several tournaments over the last 16 years, that overwhelming sense of pride remains. It still feels as special to wear the maple leaf today as it did all those years ago.”
“It doesn’t matter the tournament or the significance of the game, there is no more heated rivalry in sports than that of Canada and the United States,” he added. “They’re just special games.”
The victory marked the first-ever Pan-American Men’s Lacrosse Championship for Canada, who qualified for the 2027 World Lacrosse Men’s Championship, set for June 18-27 in Tokyo, Japan.
“It’s always an honor to be involved with Team Canada at the highest level,” said Preston, who was working in his fourth tournament. “I was honored to win gold with the U-20 team in Korea (last year). Hopefully, we can carry that on to next summer in Tokyo.”
Preston celebrating with the team after defeating the United States in Kingston, Jamaica.
Team Canada roared through pool play, outscoring its opponents 82-8. They opened the tournament on Aug. 17 with a 19-2 victory over Mexico. Hogg scored the first goal of the tourney for Canada as part of a two-point effort (1+1), while McConvey posted a hat trick, which was a sign of things to come as he finished third on the team with 17 points on 10 goals and seven assists.
The Canadian’s toughest game came the following day against the Haudenosaunee. Canada, however, broke open a 2-2 game by scoring the next 10 to cruise to a 17-5 win. Hogg posted three points (2+1), while McConvey added a single tally.
In the next two games, Canada dominated, earning a 23-1 win over the U.S. Virgin Islands and a 23-0 victory against Argentina. McConvey was unstoppable, scoring five times and adding five assists in the pair of games, and Hogg collected three goals and three assists. Jensen also struck for his first international goals, notching tallies in both games.
Jensen was a force as a short-stick midfielder, collecting three points (2+1) and going three-for-six on draws over five games. The event was the international debut for the native of New Westminster, BC.
Hogg and Jensen celebrating their Gold Medals together in Kingston, Jamaica.
“It was amazing. I feel like it is every athlete’s dream to wear their country on their chest,” said Jensen. “The team and coaches were great to play with, and I’m really lucky and grateful to have had that opportunity. Jamaica was amazing, and the people who shared their culture with us were awesome.”
In the title game, the battle of the unbeatens went down to the wire as Alex Simmons scored twice, including the game-winner with 20 seconds left, to defeat the Americans. The goals were part of a 4-0 fourth quarter for Team Canada.
The game went back-and-forth for the first 20 minutes as the United States took leads of 1-0 and 3-1 before Canada clawed back to tie each time. McConvey notched the Canadians’ first goal at 6:55 as he got in underneath the defense and buried his driving opportunity to even the score at one. After back-to-back U.S. goals, McConvey set up the second goal, and Hogg scored the third off a tough angle.
The Americans, however, seized control of the game by scoring four of the next five goals to take a 7-4 lead midway through the third quarter. Simmons cut the deficit to two with a goal with 4:40 to play in the frame, only to have the United States answer back 1:18 later to pull ahead 8-5.
That set the stage for a wild fourth quarter. RIT goalie Chase Strychaluk, who played the second half, made two of his six saves in the final stanza to hold the Americans off the board. On offense, Canada mounted a comeback and scored their third goal of the quarter off a feed from McConvey to tie the game at eight with 1:32 to play. Simmons then collected the winner as he dunked the ball over goalie Anderson Moore for the win.
Team Canada celebrating gold in Kingston, Jamaica.
“We always believed we could win that game, and we went into the game with that belief,” said McConvey. “We went down early, and at that point you never know what’s going to happen, but we stayed true to ourselves. We knew we had the skill and the talent to shut them down on the defensive end, and we did that. We were getting some looks (on offense) but weren’t burying them. In the fourth quarter, they started to fall. As a group, we had confidence and the belief in each other that we could get it done. We made some adjustments that definitely worked out in the fourth quarter. Overall, it was a great team effort and a great team win. It’s something that we can hang our hats on going into the world championships next year.”
For Hogg, capturing gold was a new experience in his third stint with the national team. Winning felt even more special because he could share it with members of the Knighthawks staff and a pair of his teammates.
“It was really cool. Anytime you can put on your country’s colors, it’s pretty special,” said Hogg, who chipped in seven goals and five assists in the tournament. “But to do it with guys like TMAC (McConvey) and Jensen, and obviously Danno (Carey), Lobber (Lobsinger) and Presto (Preston) — guys who are a tight-knit group and are always there for us — made it even more special. I’m really thankful I had them there, and to be able to win gold with them was an incredible experience.”