England were on the receiving end of a ruthless USA performance as they were defeated 18-1 in their third match at the Men’s World Championship.
Rob Pannell led the American attack with four goals and three assists while William Baxter and Hal Dwobeng combined for nine saves in the attempt to repel a USA offense stacked full of PLL professionals.
England finally got on the board in the fourth quarter through Christian Scarpello, but it would be the only score for the Englishmen on a tough afternoon in San Diego.
The USA managed to control the game throughout, scoring four in each of the first two quarters, Pannell scoring a hat-trick, and Matt Rambo two as England pressed hard to contain their professional opponents.
Baxter managed to come up with six first-half saves including three in the space of a minute capped off by a stunning final stop that denied Pannell right on the doorstep as it looked certain he would finish.
USA’s efficiency continued after the break with their dominance at the face-off (19-23) leaving England short of possession and spending long periods in defence.
Six third quarter goals including a Kieran McArdle treble took the lead up to 14 at the 3/4 time and England scoreless up to that point.
But the side kept pushing on and the goal did eventually come with 4:00 to play, a nice face dodge from Scarpello created space to run to goal and score through the goalie’s legs.
The win sealed USA’s spot as the #1 rank for the play-offs, while England now play Canada (7pm PDT/3am BST) in their final Pool Play match before the play-offs begin on Tuesday.
Box Score: England – USA (0-4; 0-8; 0-14; 1-18)
England Scorers: Christian Scarpello (1G)
USA Scorers: Rob Pannell (4G 3A), Kieran McArdle (3G 2A), Matt Rambo (3G 1A), Brennan O’Neill (1G 2A), Ryan Conrad (2G), Charlie Bertrand (1G), Liam Brynes (1G), TD Ierlan (1G), Connor Kelly (1G), Michael Sowers (1G), Trevor Baptiste (1A)
Interview: Hear from England midfielder Cam Major for his thoughts after the game, his World Championship experience so far, and the support from the English fans in San Diego.