The U11 Coyotes celebrate their third place finish. (Facebook/ Flatlands Coyotes Lacrosse)

By Nigel Maxwell

Lacrosse

A howling success: female lacrosse club prevails in inaugural season

May 21, 2024 | 4:13 PM

A first of its kind lacrosse program in Saskatchewan, that was created to help get girls more active in sports, has experienced a very successful start.

Over the weekend the Flatland Coyotes sent three teams to Sherwood Park, Alberta, to compete at the Rock the North Box Lacrosse tournament. In a social media post, U11 Coach Krysta Williams noted that prior to the tournament, they had three practices as a team, and some of the players had never played a game before.

“Their lacrosse IQ has grown immensely, and to see the self confidence develop every time they stepped on the floor was so special. I cannot wait to see where this team and club goes. It’s a very exciting time for female lacrosse,” she wrote.

Prince Albert’s Samantha Clearsky played goal for the U11 squad. (Facebook/ Flatlands Coyotes Lacrosse)

The U11 squad played four games, and after suffering losses to the two Sherwood Park Titans teams, the Coyotes rallied to beat the Lakeland Heat 5-0. For the bronze, they once again faced the Sherwood Park Titan Team 2 and won 6-0.

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The U13 and U15 teams finished fifth and sixth respectively, in divisions that had between eight to 10 teams. Randy Labrecque coached the U13 team and said based on what he saw, it’s obvious they are on the right path to create an environment for young female athletes to come and enjoy the game.

“Have a sense of belonging and pride with the game and hopefully create some lifelong lacrosse athletes,” he said

When asked how the idea for the club came about, Lebrecque explained there’s always been interest for female athletes to be a part of lacrosse, adding though it was further propelled last year with the creation of international female divisions, and two years ago with the inclusion of female box lacrosse in the Canada Games.

He added there are several groups sprinkled across the province, who were investing their time and resources into supporting local female athletes.

“The conclusion was we are all doing the exact same thing, we are all spending the same resources, trying to accomplish the same thing but in the end we are all coming up short with numbers in order to create competitive opportunities for the girls,” he explained.

The Coyotes travel club is not part of any member association and practices are shared between Moose Jaw, Regina, and Weyburn.

Noting they have a total of 60 families registered from all over the province, Lebrecque explained they were a bit caught off guard by the sudden of rush of interest and support from Prince Albert and other northern communities.

“So in a way we almost felt like the dog that caught the bumper of the truck, sort of like what now? It’s all positive stuff,” he said.

Going forward, based on this year’s success, Lebrecque is confident they will continue to grow their numbers and be in a position next year to support more regional areas to help families with travel.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell