By Adam Eisenbarth
For a local lacrosse player, success seemed to come quite easily this season.
Rimbey’s Reid Swier made his name known in his first year with the junior B tier 3 Innisfail Yetis.
The forward finished second in the league in points, behind only his teammate Connor Ablett, an impressive accomplishment considering his age.
“The league I’m in is ages 17 to 21 and so I’m 16 and 125 pounds so that can make it pretty difficult,” says Swier, whose late birthday forced him to step up his game against a more experienced competition.
He certainly was up to the task, scoring 63 points in 13 games. Along with Ablett, the duo teamed for 149 points, plenty more than some team’s totals.
Of course, the solid production meant it wasn’t just a good season for Swier, as the team finished at 12-2 before cooling off in the playoffs to miss out on provincials.
“We had a pretty good season and finished first. We went to the playoffs and didn’t do so well.”
Still, the season was a success for Swier, who was encouraged by a friend to play the sport five years ago. “This was the first year that I’ve done this well and the team did really good as well.”
Once a sport that couldn’t seem to get any attention, lacrosse has been on the rise as many hockey players have taken advantage of the compatible skills.
“When I first started it wasn’t very big but every year it seems to get bigger.”
Swier was once a hockey player but has now focused on lacrosse and also plays basketball in school.
Lacrosse seems to be a nice fit for the Rimbey Junior/Senior High student.
“It’s fun, I’m pretty good at running, and it’s a physical sport.”
Considering his success in just his first year at the junior age level, Swier is sure to be a star for years to come.