“Zach got significantly better from last year to this year,” said Gaffney. “It was the biggest improvement I’ve seen with him in a while. He put on a lot of weight in the weight room, got a lot of stronger and also focused on dialing in his technique. It showed. I definitely could tell he was going to have a breakout year.”
Gaffney saw it even before Lehigh and Saint Joseph’s scrimmaged in the preseason, the second straight year Gaffney and Cole went head-to-head.
“We hosted Lehigh last year and he beat the crap out of me,” Cole said. “This year, he beat the crap out of me in the first half and I got the better of him in the second half.”
Gaffney called the scrimmages, “the championship games of our offseason.”
“Whenever we’re home, we’ve gone at it as much as we’ve been able to get out to the field,” said Gaffney. “Then we get to do it for real in a scrimmage. It marks the end of our offseason working together.”
They may not see or talk to each other every day like in high school, but Gaffney and Cole remain connected by a lacrosse brotherhood.
“We’re definitely super close,” Gaffney said. “When I’d finish a game (at Lehigh) and get into the locker room, I’d check my stats, check other Patriot League scores and check Zach’s stats to make sure he’s doing well.”
Through years together, plenty of repetitions and simply being around each other, the two high achievers have only pushed each other to greater and greater heights.
“Conor is one of the most serious people I’ve ever met before a game,” Cole said. “He puts on his headphones and does not talk to anyone. His serious, business-like approach to everything he does is why he’s so successful, on and off the field.”
Meanwhile, Cole’s faceoff technique is improving, but he finds himself in the position he is today due in large part to a resilient mindset, which Gaffney admires.
“Since I’m two years older and more developed than Zach, I used to ‘beat him up,’” said Gaffney. “He never would get down on himself, but rather see it as an opportunity to get better.
“That has shown.”