Sports | DrumhellerMail

Boogiemen season ends before it begins

    Junior lacrosse in Drumheller will have to wait one more year.
   The Boogiemen, the junior level lacrosse team representing Drumheller, will not be playing this summer, according to team organizer, Dave Powell.
   “There were not enough guys to play. A couple of the guys made Team Alberta for football and a couple junior hockey players were injured,” said Powell.
   The news is disappointing for Powell, who had to work hard to get the team into an official lacrosse league this year. As of early March, the team was gearing up for the season.

Dave Powell...
Organizer of the Boogiemen junior lacrosse team

   “I’m more than disappointed it didn’t happen,” said Powell.
   Now, many of the players will be heading to other communities to play.
   “A few of the guys are still going to play this year. A couple guys playing lacrosse in Okotoks, Olds, and Brooks asked if they could have some guys,” said Powell.
   The Boogiemen were formed last year, but had to wait a year before they were able to join a league. In that time, they played exhibition games. This year, they may do the same.
   “I’m not going to give up on it,” said Powell. “We’re going to try to get some exhibition games here and there.”
   Lacrosse fans hoping to see the Boogiemen in league action will have to wait another year. Powell is optimistic for next season.
   “There are a lot of Midgets moving up who will be able to play at the Junior level,” said Powell. “We have a strong Midget program this year, so we’ll have a good group come out of that, which will help us out quite a bit.”

Titans gear up for spring training

    Spring training is right around the corner which means the Drumheller Titans will soon be strapping on their helmets, cleats, pants and shoulder pads in preparation for the upcoming football season.
   “Theres a lot going on this year,” said Ken Fournier, head coach for the Drumheller Titans.
   “As far as spring training goes this year, it’s more or less just to bring the young guys up and get them introduced to our system.”
   Fournier has a lot in store for the team this year as they will have to spend some time going over the American rules before they embark on their trip to Honolulu in August.
   “We also need to get ready to go for fall because it’s going to be tight with only being allowed to practice so many days before we leave to Hawaii,” said Fournier.
   “Spring training could go until early June this year,” he added.
   So far the Titans have several tournaments planned for the spring, including a tournament in Okotoks on May 4.
   “During the first tournament we’ll be missing seven of our top players, so that’ll give the young guys a chance to step up,” said Fournier.
   The team this year looks promising as the roster has quickly began to fill up for spring training.
   “We only graduated seven from last year and we’re going to bring up more than that, so we expect around the 40 mark for the spring,” said Fournier.
   Equipment checkout will be on the 23rd and 24th of April with the first on-field practices taking place on the 25th and 26th.
   Two hour practices will resume over the next several weeks from Monday to Friday beginning at 4 p.m.

Break out your lacrosse stick

    The fastest game on two feet has started running.
   The Badlands Lacrosse Association is ready for the upcoming season and has begun practicing at the Badlands Community Facility.
   Already, the rosters are full for most teams after a registration drive at the Sports, Arts, and Recreation Expo earlier this month.
   “We had a really good turnout and had most of our teams filled up that night. Everything but the Bantam team was filled,” said Ren Dumaine, president of the Badlands Lacrosse Association. “Our season has started, with practices in the Community Facility.”
   The association held its annual general meeting on Monday, March 25 in the Badlands Community Facility. One of the topics they addressed is to get more volunteers to help coach or help with the administrative end of the organization.
   “We’ll be in need of coaches in our younger groups. We’re always looking for volunteers in our younger groups,” said Dumaine. “We’re also looking at other volunteers. We could use someone to help us with marketing, because right now, we don’t have enough time to handle that as well as we want to.”
   Badlands Lacrosse continues to benefit from strong support from the community. Last year saw full rosters as well on each team. The teams were busy throughout the season and the Bantam team made a run at the league championship, making it to the semi-finals.
   Anyone who is interested in getting involved with lacrosse or registering on a team is encouraged to drop by Source for Sports.

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