The Moose Jaw Mustangs Minor Lacrosse Association is undergoing a lot of changes heading into the 2020 season.

In December, the board decided to added three new positions for communication, equipment and treasurer as they try to keep up with the growing numbers.

“We are in a good state. The game of lacrosse is growing throughout the province and we are just keeping up with other associations and mirror and get creative on what they are doing and keep promoting the game of lacrosse,” said Mustangs president Cody Nidesh.

Since registration open after New Year, 77 kids have registered for lacrosse as of Thursday night.

With the growing number comes the return of Moose Jaw to the Junior B Tier II division. It’s been nearly three years since Moose Jaw has been able to field a Junior B squad.

“If you go back to the late 90s, early 2000s we were a powerhouse in the province and transition, people leaving, people going, players going elsewhere, it’s more or less giving our players an opportunity to stay in Moose Jaw and keep developing our program from the grassroots to the highest level we can give our players,” Nidesh said.

The Mustangs junior team will compete in the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League against teams from Regina, Saskatoon, Prince Albert, Swift Current and Standing Buffalo.

The Mustangs will be adding another major tournament to their schedule. Along with the Chris Sauder Peewee Memorial Tournament, the Barry Stewart Bantam Tournament will take place June 5 to 7. The tournament is named after the Mustangs’ long-time volunteer and coach.

Financially, the lacrosse association struggled on the bottom line. The Mustangs were about $14,600 in the red in 2019. Many of the expenses were from one-time expenses and the association believes the losses will not continue.

“Anytime you are in the red it is a concern, but we’ve made changes at the board level,” Nidesh said.

“We realize we need to start budgeting better. A part of being in the red is we’re seeing a lot of interest in playing goalie, so heaving to buy goalie equipment, having to buy other equipment, it’s been a learning curve.”

Helping to keep the Mustangs on track, it was announced at their annual general meeting on Thursday that they are receiving a $10,000 grant from Visit Moose Jaw.

“It’s extra revenue for our association that we can put towards equipment, registration, come and try events, subsidizing floor time for our players, just an opportunity for our players to play at home,” Nidesh said.

Coming event includes come and try lacrosse on Feb. 9 at the Yara Centre for junior aged players from 4 to 5 p.m. and ages five to 15 from 5 to 6 p.m.

On the February long weekend, Saskatchewan Rush forward Jeff Shattler will be holding a youth lacrosse camp.

Nidesh says having Shattler come out to put on a camp has been a great resource.

“Jeff’s amazing. He’s approachable, anytime you want to phone him he’ll have a chat,” he said. “He cares about the kids, he wants to see the game grow within the province.”

For more information or to register for lacrosse, visit the Moose Jaw Mustangs website.