The United States under-19 men's team is now 4-0 after four rounds of preliminary competition at the International Lacrosse Federation World Championship at Percy Perry Stadium in Coquitlam, British Columbia.

Team USA opened play with a tough contest against the descendants of the game’s founders. They pulled out a 20-15 win over the Iroquois as attacker Andrew Feinberg (Owings Mills, Md./McDonogh/Brown) led all scorers with five goals. Craig Dowd (East Northport, N.Y./Northport/Georgetown) scored four. The opening-day victory was a historic accomplishment for the U.S. program. The Americans have a perfect 30-0 record in U-19 international play since the first championship in 1988. Congratulations to the team and US Lacrosse for the long-term success of the program.

On Independence Day (here, not there), the U.S. crushed the once fellow British Commonwealth member Australia, 21-7. Dowd (East Northport, N.Y./Northport/Georgetown) stood out again, leading the way with four goals. Brian Logue of US Lacrosse reports that “defenders Peter Fallon (Baltimore/Gilman/Brown), John Lade (Randolph, N.J./Randolph/Villanova) and Bray Malphrus (Chevy Chase, Md./Georgetown Prep/Virginia), anchored a suffocating defensive performance, including a shut-out in the third quarter.”

Next, the U.S. team posted the most dominant victory in program history, defeating Japan, 27-0. It was the first shutout in U.S. U-19 history. The 27-goal win was also a record. Team USA won by 26 goals in a 30-4 victory over Japan in Tokyo in 1996.

Dowd was again the U.S. leader with two goals and five assists. Feinberg scored six goals and had an assist. US Lacrosse's Logue also reports that Japanese starting goalie Kosuke Nakai made 13 saves in the first three quarters. Backup keeper Takeshi Minowa made one save in the fourth quarter. Mathew Dolente won 15 of 21 faceoff attempts for the U.S. and teammate Nick Elsmo won four of five attempts.

The Sunday game between the Canadians and the Americans was much hyped and lived up to every bit of it as the U.S. came back in the fourth quarter to edge their northern hosts 16-15 in overtime on James Green’s goal.

I have friends with kids on both of these teams. They are all great kids, but someone had to win. Dowd is well on his way to a U-19 Player of the World title with another five goals and five assists in the game. He scored four in the fourth quarter to bring the Americans back from a 14-7 deficit. Green and Anthony Mendes added offensive punch for the U.S., with Green scoring his third goal of the game in overtime. Dolente took 15 of 29 faceoffs as he met his best competition in the combination of Kevin Crowley and Adrian Scorchetti. For the Canadians, Jayson Card, Mark Cockerton and Adam Jones led the scoring.

The game may set up a great final, but the Iroquois, who lost to the Canadians 15-12 on Saturday, may have something to say about the championship. We’ll have to wait and see.

Visit the official Web site for a tournament schedule and full results.