HELENA — Last weekend, the Last Chance Lacrosse Club teams played multiple games versus a variety of opponents. The West Side squad had to forfeit due to injury, as they recently lost their goalie (among others), for the remainder of the year. The East Side was not as unlucky, they had the opportunity to play both Missoula and Great Falls and came away victorious in both matches, winning 13-1 in the nightcap.
The Helena Guardians fell at home Great Falls. “You got to have the heart for the game, when you get hit, you got to get right back up and go get that ball,” said Great Falls' Kaden Buchanan. Buchanan and his team took more than a few hits Saturday afternoon, ultimately heading back home with an 8-3 win.
Helen High sophomore James Fox played well despite the loss, saying, “We came in, we knew we would have to battle, and we did that.” Great Falls is currently ranked first in Division 2 and will be moving back up to Division 1 after this season's conclusion.
The Guardians are split into three teams, Fox currently plays on the D2 for West Side and he added, “We have to stay positive, we don’t get a lot of time to practice with each other, so having fun is really the biggest thing right now.” He and his fellow teammates, such as Dawson Moyer, Hagen Paddock as well as Peyton Lorenz, proved that on the field this Saturday.
The recent development of organized lacrosse in the Helena valley can be traced to a small handful of volunteers dedicated to sharing "the fastest game on two feet" with the area’s youth. LAX pioneers founded the the Helena Lacrosse Club in 2012. Helena lacrosse offered programs for all ages through the 2018 season and continues to oversee the only lacrosse program in the area for students first through eighth grade.
Approximately five years ago, a new Montana High School Lacrosse Association was formed, and rules required these teams to separate from any programs for younger students. Therefore, The Last Chance Lacrosse Club was officially established on July 25, 2018. Their athletes and teams competed under the banner of Last Chance Lacrosse for the first time in the spring of 2019. They have since rostered Division I (formerly varsity) and Division 2 (formerly junior varsity) teams since 2021 for both girls and boys in high school.
Last Chance Lacrosse players are from the following schools: Helena High, Helena Capital, East Helena, Townsend, Jefferson, St. Andrew School, the Project for Alternative Learning, and Helena home schools.
The Last Chance Lacrosse Club is a local non-profit organization dedicated to providing Helena area students with opportunities to both learn and play high school-level lacrosse in a setting that values attitude and effort while prioritizing academics, citizenship and sportsmanship. For information, visit : click here.
