League play starts this weekend for St. Albert Crude in Rocky Mountain junior B Tier I lacrosse.
Saturday the Crude play the host Calgary Mountaineers at 4:30 p.m. at Acadia Rec Centre and Sunday they visit the provincial champion Red Deer Rampage at 4:30 p.m. at Kinex Arena.
The Mountaineers are hosting the Founders Cup national championship in August. The team’s run of seven consecutive provincial titles ended in 2014.
Last year, the Crude finished first in the north at 15-4-1 with a league-high 31 points, followed by an early playoff exit by the 2013 provincial finalists.
The Crude make their home debut May 9 against the Edmonton Warriors at 8 p.m. at Akinsdale Arena.
The 10th anniversary of the Crude program will be celebrated during a pre-game opening ceremony at 7 p.m. The 2006 Crude team will be introduced and a special tribute will honour the memory of Gord Brittain, the team’s inaugural manager.
The Crude have also launched their own website at www.crudelax.ca, where you can watch live-streaming of games by clicking on the YouTube icon.
Online registration for the fifth annual Leading Edge RunWild closes Monday at midnight at www.runwild.ca for the May 3 competition in St. Albert.
As of Monday, 1,583 runners were confirmed for the 21.1-kilometre half-marathon run/walk, 10-km run/walk, five-km run/walk and the WildOnes Kids MaraFun for ages six to 12.
There is no marathon this year through the streets and trail systems of St. Albert.
Last year’s half-marathon winner, Sean Seville of St. Albert at one hour, 23 minutes and 14 seconds, will defend his race crown.
Marc Meunier of St. Albert, winner of three RunWild marathons, including the first marathon in St. Albert history at the inaugural 2011 RunWild, has confirmed he will run the half-marathon as a tune-up for the Mountains 2 Beach marathon May 24 in Ventura, California.
The RunWild starts in front of St. Albert Place at 8 a.m. for the half-marathon run/walk, 8:20 a.m. for the 10-km run/walk and 8:30 a.m. for the five-km run/walk.
The finish area is on Taché Street.
The awards ceremony begins at 11 a.m. and the Marafun goes at noon from the event village in Lions Park.
The RunWild is hosted by Leading Edge Physiotherapy in support of Edmonton’s Zebra Child Protection Centre and the St. Albert 50+ Club.
Visit www.runwild.ca for more information.
