The "X" Factor: Zach Cole's Rise to Stardom on Hawk Hill

Scan the Hawks' bench at any Saint Joseph's men's lacrosse game this season and you'll find a line of 56 players chomping at the bit to make a difference, to be a factor in the final outcome when the clock hits 0:00. And at the very end of that line, intentionally separated in order to reset and focus, will always stand #7.

Once the ball hits the back of either team's net, it's his time. Taking a deep breath, he jogs back out to the midfield, back to his spot… back to the face-off "X."

Simplicity is the name of the game as he sets his feet and lines up his hands on his stick, not giving either a second thought until the officials instruct him to get down. He doesn't hear the noise from the stands and doesn't consider the opposing face-off specialist inches from his face. Relaxed, he stares down the ball, and once the whistle blows, the 6-foot, 211-pound former football linebacker explodes toward it.

Securing that ball is a job, and Zach Cole '22 doesn't take sick days.

This story originally appeared on sjuhawks.com.