About Us | Novato Nighthawks Lacrosse Club

Novato Nighthawks Lacrosse Club, Lacrosse

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The NLC provides opportunities for boys and girls ages 6-15 to play lacrosse. NLC strongly believes in the basic tenant that winning is not the most important goal in youth sports but that there is a second, more important goal of using sports to teach life lessons through positive coaching.

Mission Statement

The Novato Lacrosse Club (“NLC”) is a non-profit group of parents and participants organized to provide coaching, facilities, scheduling and playing opportunity for the youth of the North Bay Area of California to participate in the sport of lacrosse.

NLC strives to follow and abide by the guidelines set forth by Positive Coaching Alliance (“PCA”).We strongly believe in, and endeavor to adhere to, PCA’s basic tenant that winning is a goal in youth sports but that there is a second, more important, goal of using sports to teach life lessons through positive coaching.

History

Founded in 1969 as part of Novato’s city recreation program, the Novato Lacrosse Club (“NLC”) is the oldest lacrosse club in California, perhaps on the entire West Coast.

NLC enjoyed unprecedented success in the 1970’s and 80’s: the boys varsity program won ten consecutive Northern California Club Championships and five consecutive State Club Championships from 1975 to 1985.

In 1997, a boy’s junior program was added for grades 7th and 8th and in 1998 a girl’s varsity team began to compete for the Club. A Pups level team for grades 4th through 6th was added in 2002. NLC currently fields teams for grades 1st through 12th.

In the summer of 2001, the Novato Unified School District (“NUSD”) voted to approve varsity lacrosse as a CIF (California Interscholastic Federation) sport as part of a two-year pilot program at the two Novato high schools, Novato High and San Marin High. In 2004, the NUSD extended this pilot program for varsity level lacrosse at both high schools.

Today the club is still going strong with 16 total teams and over 400 players across the skill levels.