HELENA — Wednesday was supposed to be the Capital City’s "lacrosse-town" battle but continued weather issues postponed the event. The Last Chance Lacrosse Club's West Side squad was scheduled to take on the LCLC's East Side but now the matchup will take on May 4.
The two major challenges these young athletes seem to be facing are Montana weather concerns and simply finding the available space to play. Still, West Side coach Nathan Nachtscheim and his crew were outside practicing “no matter the conditions.”
Nachtscheim's son Jayden grew up playing lacrosse for the Helena Huskies before they transitioned into the Last Chance Lacrosse Association. After playing lacrosse at the collegiate level in Colorado with assistant coach Nick Garcia, Jayden Nachtscheim recently came back to Helena and found himself helping coach the local club team with his father, and they haven’t looked back since.
Over the next couple of weeks, they will continue to get these guys prepared for the state tournament, which is scheduled in Bozeman this year.
Lacrosse is growing in Montana, and “its exciting. We've got a lot of teams across the state, Bozeman, Billings, (the) Kalispell area, Butte, Great Falls, Missoula, they say it’s the fastest sport on two legs,” Nachtscheim said
Harsh winds and bitter cold have held them back, but for the West Side team, “There's something about Capital High pride that sets these guys aside from the other teams out there," said Nachtscheim.
This team's bond is evident with all of the players coming directly from Helena Capital High School compared to the other LAX teams across the state, which are made up of multiple students combined from various high schools.
LCLC was scheduled to play in Sheridan, Wyoming, this weekend with West Side's next home game scheduled for April 27. The LCLC girls varsity team will play their next game in Missoula against the Billings Rimrocks on April 29.
