Approximately 70 girls' field lacrosse teams and hundreds of athletes will descend on Orillia this final weekend for regular-season-ending Ontario Women's Field Lacrosse (OWFL) at the West Orillia Sports Complex (WOSC) and Kitchener Park. Each weekend throughout the summer, the province's rep teams travel to a different city for a full weekend of action.
It will be the first time Orillia has hosted an OWFL event in nearly five years, officials say.
Doug Noganosh, vice president of the Orillia Lady Kings, says the event is good for both the organization and the city.
“There’s a lot of family and friends coming to watch locally,” he said. “I think it’s going to help us immensely.”
Playing this weekend are rep-level teams from ages U9 to U19, but Noganosh is hoping house league players, sponsors, and fans will also attend the event to cheer on local teams.
“It’s good for them to watch local girls play competitively against other organizations,” he said. “It helps grow the game here in Orillia.”
The Orillia U15 and U19 teams could boost their rankings with a couple of wins on Saturday at the WOSC. The U15s play at 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. while the U19s play at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
“If they win this weekend, it will really help their chances for provincials,” Noganosh explained.
On Sunday, the U9s will play at 1:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. at Kitchener Park. The U11s play at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. at the WOSC, and the U13s play at 1:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., also at the WOSC beside Rotary Place.
“Come set up your lawn chair and watch the games,” Noganosh encouraged.
The Orillia Lady Kings will have a cash barbecue concession stand for athletes and fans to enjoy throughout the weekend at the WOSC.
“We will have burgers, hot dogs, and peameal bacon,” Noganosh explained.
Money raised from the barbecue will go toward building a special tribute bench for girls’ field lacrosse pioneer, John Pritchard, who is battling a neurodegenerative disorder called multiple system atrophy (MSA). It's a rare disease that attacks both voluntary and involuntary neurological systems in the body.
“He’s been a part of the organization for years,” Noganosh explained. “On behalf of the organization we are putting a bench in John’s name at the lacrosse field.”
Noganosh says this weekend is something the Lady Kings organization has been planning for a long time.
“We are really looking forward to it,” he said. “We’ve been trying to bring this back to Orillia for quite some time, and now it’s here.”
After hosting the Trillium Cup girls' field lacrosse tournament in May, and with ten local girls making Team Ontario this year, Noganosh says the popularity of the sport in Orillia is growing at a steady pace.