Lacrosse is Bend Park & Rec’s fastest-growing youth sport
About 700 boys and girls are expected to play this spring season
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Lacrosse may not be the first sport you think of, when it comes to Central Oregon youth sports. But according to Bend Park and Recreation, it’s their fastest-growing sport.
Enrollment in the sport has increased nearly 75% since it was first introduced by the park district in 2005. About 200 kids signed up for the sport then -- and now, an estimated 700 boys and girls from Bend, Redmond and Sisters will be playing this season.
Rich Ekman, sports coordinator with Bend Park and Rec, credits the success of lacrosse to its similarities with other sports.
“It’s a sport familiar to other sports that kids participate in, like soccer and basketball," Ekman said. "So the kids are a little familiar with it, even though it’s a new sport.”
The Bend Park and Recreation lacrosse league is open to boys and girls in the first through eighth grades. The deadline to register for the league March 2. The season will begin on April 6 and finish on June 6.
Lacrosse has become the third most popular sport, behind basketball and soccer. According to the park district, close to 2,000 kids registered for basketball,`while around 2,500 kids signed up for soccer.
Greg Moore coaches his daughter's lacrosse team, and he said it's one of the more entertaining sports he watches his kids play.
“It’s really fun to watch," he said. "It’s not one of those sports that you go, ‘Oh, I have to watch my kids play.’ This is one where you can’t wait to watch your kids play.”
Bend Park and Recreation is also offering "bitty baseball" and girls softball. For more information on the spring season, you can find more information by clicking here.
