Coach Nick Lawyer is seeing good things from his Thompson Falls-Plains-St. Regis girls soccer team as the program enters its third year of existence. High school practice officially kicked off Friday in Montana prep sports.

Lawyer said that although the Hawk girls lost a lot of talented players from last year’s squad, which almost qualified for the playoffs, he has the makings of another fine squad with the 22 players he has out in an established program.

“Year three is a big year,” Lawyer said. “It’s a big change point for us. We’re shifting from being a startup to establishing ourselves long-term. We’ve been competitive in soccer for the past two years. We finished in the middle of the pack the last two years. This year, we’re going to look to make a push to the playoffs.”

“The girls roster is particularly young, with three seniors, three juniors, five sophomores, six freshmen, and five eighth graders representing communities across Sanders and Mineral counties, including Thompson Falls, Plains, St. Regis, and Trout Creek,” he added.

Solveig Nygaard (graduated) and Katherine Wrobleski (moved) are no longer with the program, leaving senior goaltender Ava Lawyer as the Hawks’ only returning All-conference player.

Coach Lawyer points to Elsie Myers, Emalyn Roofener, Lexi Volk, Kylee Huff, Jade Durham and Shelby Harmon as the other main players he will build the 2026 Thompson Falls-Plains-St. Regis team around.

He said the team will continue to utilize their Coca-Cola approach (“crisp, direct and refreshing,” Lawyer said) on offense, and look to control the center of the field on defense.

“We want strong, resolute defense that is well organized and focused on denying goal-scoring opportunities,” Lawyer said. “Then when we get the ball, we want to transition quickly. We want to play direct passes, move the ball quickly, and go try to attack right away.”

Lawyer likes to think of his team as family first. “We want a fun environment where the soccer team is a family, and that’s forever,” he said. “You join our soccer program, you participate in soccer, you become part of the family.”

As always, the playoffs, which would require a top-three regular season finish in Northwestern A league play, is the ultimate goal.

“A playoff spot is a good stretch goal for us,” he said. “I think we could achieve it if we work hard, if the pieces fall into place, and if the girls show strong performances throughout the season.”

The Hawks’ first matches are two non-conference contests in Polson against Loyola August 28 and Polson August 29. Northwest A conference play begins September 8 at Libby.

The Hawks’ first home match is scheduled for September 12 at 5 p.m. in Thompson Falls against Whitefish.

In his 18th season coaching soccer at some level, Lawyer is ready for another campaign.

“I’m most excited to watch, encourage, grow, and coach the development and improvement in the players,” he said. “That’s where the real joy of coaching is for me. This is my 18th year of coaching soccer, and I still love it. I still enjoy every day out on the pitch helping the kids grow.”