Moose Jaw’s Chase Folk will have a chance to play lacrosse at the highest levels in the country after being selected in the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League draft on Monday.
Folk was the eighth pick of the Saskatoon-based Saskatchewan SWAT and was selected 29th overall in the annual selection of top lacrosse talent in western Canada.
The accolade comes after Folk put together a stellar season with the Mustangs in the South Sask Lacrosse League U15 division last summer, scoring 28 goals and 47 points in only 14 games, with his 3.36 point-per-game pace enough to lead the league in scoring.
Folk also played 11 games with the South Sask Stealth in the Sask Lacrosse U15 A Box Lacrosse League, putting up 12 goals and 20 points to finish seventh in league scoring.
The U17 Mustangs called Folk up for three games as an affiliated player and he picked up his first goal in that age group as well.
Folk’s draft status certainly wasn’t hurt by how his teams performed last season. The Stealth would win the U15 provincial title, and the U15 Mustangs would go all the way to the provincial final before losing a heartbreaker to Weyburn.
The Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League is considered the equivalent of the Western Hockey League in calibre and features four teams -- the SWAT, Edmonton Miners, Calgary Mountaineers and Okotoks Raiders.
The league is traditionally an 18- to 20-year-old loop, meaning Folk will have a couple years to develop with the Mustangs before cracking the SWAT roster.
Saskatchewan is coming off a tough season in the RMLL, with a 2-12-1 record in 2023 and a first-round sweep at the hands of the Miners in the playoffs.
The regular season begins at the end of April and runs until mid-July, followed by the provincial playoffs. The league champion advances to the prestigious Minto Cup at the end of August.
Edmonton defeated Calgary in the RMLL league final in 2023 and went 1-3 at the Minto Cup, which was won by the Burlington Ont. Blaze.
You can follow the RMLL at www.rockymountainlax.com and keep up with how the Mustangs are doing this spring at www.southsasklacrosseleague.ca.
