It's a tradition for members of the Hempfield High School boys' lacrosse program to help instruct the younger players who are participating in Hempfield Youth Lacrosse.

Nathan Louie and Logan Pennell, seniors on the Black Knights' varsity squad, have taken that responsibility to heart and continue to go above and beyond, Hempfield Youth Lacrosse president Mitch Kopp said.

"It's really great to see them spend their free time helping the younger kids," Kopp said. "The younger kids look up to these guys. We are really blessed to have them help out."

Nathan is a goalie, which comes in especially handy since it's such a specialized position. He is often found providing tips to the younger netminders after high school practice.

"I don't even think we have a goalie coach for most of the youth teams," said Nathan. "Coming out and helping these young goalies get better is really beneficial to them. ... When I grew up through the youth program, there were always high school players coming down to practices and helping out. That was so beneficial to me as a player. Now that I'm older, I feel like I have to come out and help, and I love helping the kids get better."

Logan, a defensive midfielder on the high school squad, can teach offense and defense, as well as faceoff techniques. "He seems to really enjoy working with the young kids," said Kopp.

The youth program tailors its schedule around the high school team's practice slate during the season, which enables the high-schoolers to visit after their workouts. In the high school offseason, some youth practices begin as early as 7 a.m., and Nathan and Logan make frequent appearances.

"For a high school kid to come to a Saturday practice at 7 or 8 a.m. says a lot," Kopp stated.

Logan has been an assistant youth coach for the last two years and has spent a great deal of time with the 10U and 12U teams. "I just kind of make my way around to all the practices whenever I can," he said.

He focuses on the fundamentals. "A lot of the stuff is the basic stick skills and playing, but then it's also just loving the game and wanting to run around and have fun," said Logan. "Being the younger guys, we can add a little more to than some of the older coaches, so we can run around and play with them, and you can do games just to get them moving."

He plans to continue coaching lacrosse. "I want to be a teacher after high school and college, so it would be a great thing to coach, too," Logan said.

Nathan also plans to stay involved with the sport. "After I'm done with college and I have a job, coaching is definitely something I want to do on the side, because I love working with the kids and just being a part of the team."

Nathan and Logan both said they have been inspired by their youth program coaches. "My first goalie coach (John Black) was really helpful to me," Nathan said. "Even though I was new, he helped me every day with the basics and everything, and he was there the whole way up through high school.

Logan added, "I'm not even a goalie, but John Black was always one of my favorite characters just because he was the hype guy. He'd always run around and jump around on the sideline and scream with us. Logan also noted that he and Nathan's Freedom club lacrosse coaches Jason Kell and Bob Miller keep the game interesting and enjoyable.

Logan encourages the youth players to hone their skills all year long. "It's beneficial for a lot of the kids to come out here and hit the wall (on the Hempfield High School campus), even outside of practice, especially those who want to play a lot when they are in their season playing with the team," he said. Coming out and hitting the wall for 15 minutes a day or throwing a friend and getting some shots will be extremely helpful."

Nathan concurs. "I think the biggest thing that helped me get better was in the summer or during the season, all of us would come down after school every day and pass off the wall, take shots for an hour or two every day. Being consistent is the biggest thing to get better."

The youth lacrosse program is recognized each year at a Hempfield varsity game, and the Black Knights' players pose for photos and sign autographs. "Watching the youth kids come to high school games is great," said Logan. "They all have something to look forward to, and then come to support and see us all play, and we come down to some of their games after a practice. It's just kind of a big family of Hempfield lacrosse, and we all kind of support each other through every way we can."