Men's Lacrosse | 11/24/2017 4:46:00 PM

MONTREAL -- Jonathan Rathauser a graduate of the McGill University men's lacrosse program, has been selected to play for the Israeli national team at the Federation of International Lacrosse world championships in Netanya, Israel, July 12-21.

The sport's pinnacle event that will feature 50 participating countries and more than 5,000 fans from abroad. This is the first time since the competition's inception in 1967 that a country outside of the United States, Canada, England or Australia has hosted the world championship and signifies a major expansion of the sport, both in Israel and globally.
 
It the second appearance at the world championships for Rathauser, a defender from Montgomery, N.J., who played in Israel's Premier League and is currently completing graduate studies in that country. He toiled four seasons with the McGill Redmen, serving as a co-captain in both his junior and senior years. He went out on a high note, helping lead McGill to the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association title in the fall of 2012, before graduating the following spring with a degree in environmental science.

Rathauser has taken annual trips to Israel with his family since he was young and his desire to represent the national team follows a strong family bond with the country. His younger brother is in the Israel Defense Forces.
 
"As the host nation for this event, and a program on the rise, there was no shortage of talent through our tryout process," said Brad MacArthur, general manager of the Israeli squad, in a press release. "Selecting this team was extremely onerous for our staff. We asked the players to put us in a difficult position to have to make decisions, and credit to them, they did. There were some excellent players that did not make this team, that have put themselves in the Israel Lacrosse player pool for the future."
 
"The group we have decided to move forward with embodies everything we had asked to see and offers us versatility in a number of areas when building a team aiming for a medal," added MacArthur. "As we enter the winter training season and move forward to July our staff is very excited about the next eight months and the opportunity to work with a great group of elite athletes."
 
The "blue-and-white", as they are known, have their sights set on improving their world ranking from their seventh-place finish at Israel's first world championship appearance in 2014.
 
Israel boasts a tremendous level of continuity as nine players return from the 2014 squad. The roster is composed of both Israeli players, as well as members of the Jewish diaspora, in accordance with the FIL rules and regulations. In conjunction with the Israel Lacrosse Tzedakah Program, each player will be competing in honor of a charity of their choosing.
 
2018 Israel Men's World Lacrosse Championship Roster:
 
G – Eric Schneider – Massapequa, New York
D – Eric Cantor – Ashkelon, Israel
D – Chris Friedman – Ashkelon, Israel
D – Andrew Kruter – Bellmore, New York
D – Isaac Paparo – Westport, Connecticut
D – Matt Popeck – Ashkelon, Israel
D – Jonathan Rathauser – Tel Aviv, Israel
D – Ben Smith – Longmeadow, Massachusetts
M – Lidor Ashtamkar – Ramle, Israel
M – Kyle Bergman – New York, New York
M – Jean-Luc Chetner – Coquitlam, Canada
M – Matthew Flapan – Tel Aviv, Israel
M – Ian Kadish – Salt Lake City, Utah
M – Ori Bar David – Netanya, Israel
M – Josh Offit – Bethesda, Maryland
M – Noah Molnar – Newport Beach, California
M – Daniel Leventhal – Chappaqua, New York
M – Yochanan Katz – Jerusalem, Israel
M – Max Kaufman – Ashkelon, Israel
M – Seth Mahler – Ashkelon, Israel
M – Max Seibald – Hewlett, New York
M – Jacob Silberlicht – Sderot, Israel
M – Nick Steinfeld – Pacific Palisades, California
F – Mor Cohen – Tel Aviv, Israel
F – Ryan Hunter – Herzliya, Israel
F – Eric Fischer – Be'er Sheva, Israel
F – Zachary Pall – Mobile, Alabama
F – Alexander Rabin – Netanya, Israel
F – Marc Skolnick – Be'er Sheva, Israel
F – Ari Sussman – New Haven, Connecticut
Injured Reserves: Matthew Cherry, Bryan Hopper, Zachary Ornstein
 
Head Coach: Bill Beroza
Assistant Coaches: Michael Horowitz, Jeff Schwartz, Eric Wolf
General Manager: Brad MacArthur
Director of Scouting: Jordan Hirsch