Whether it was scoring and assisting goals, providing leadership to his team or simply displaying unmatched dedication to the game, there seems to be no limit to Jeffrey Conner’s impact on the lacrosse field.
That’s why the Strath Haven (Pa.) senior midfielder is the Warrior/US Lacrosse High School Boys’ Mid-Atlantic Player of the Year.
Conner averaged 6.24 points per game in leading the Panthers to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Class 2A championship game. Along the way, he surpassed 400 career points and posted the best season of his high school career.
“I’ve coached high school lacrosse as a head coach for 33 years,” Strath Haven head coach Jef Hewlings said. “I said two years ago, he could be the best player I ever coached, and at the end of this season, he confirmed it. He committed years ago to become the best lacrosse player he could be, and he didn’t just say that he worked at it. He was always the kid that was staying after practice or showing up early.”
Hewlings credits Conner’s ability and leadership as the reason Strath Haven reached the state championship game this season.
“If you told me this three years ago that I would be the Mid-Atlantic Player of the Year my senior year I probably would not have believed you,” Conner said. “I probably would have told you that you were crazy. A lot of hard work went into it, and a lot of late nights, and so, I’m proud.”
Conner came through with a 156-point senior season, besting his previous season high by 26 points. He finished his high school career with 405 points on 237 goals and 168 assists.
And Conner played some of his best games when it mattered most. He averaged five points per game in the Panthers’ playoff run, including an eight-point game against Trinity (Pa.) and a six-point game against Mars (Pa.) in the state semifinal.
Arguably his most impressive playoff game came during the quarterfinal matchup against 2017 state champ Springfield-Delco (Pa.). With the game on the line, Conner scored an insurance goal late to lead his team to a 12-9 win, and he finished the game with three goals and one assist.
“Coach Hewlings said, ‘We’re just going to give Jeff the ball, and you just got to do what you do, have been doing your whole career,’” Conner said. “I was in the corner when they put two All-Americans on me. Your nerves are running, and the whole crowd is cheering. You know you’re going to get [the ball]. I go back to the basics. I zone out everything and do what I have to do.”
Conner’s leadership was showcased by how he treated his teammates. He made everyone around him better.
“His teammates could have gotten turned off to him being such a good player, but he treated them with respect,” Hewlings said. “Because he did, I think he got more out of them. You got your best kid getting more out of his teammates than perhaps the coaches can get out of those kids.”
Playing the role of a leader was important to Conner. He recalls being less confident as a younger player and wanted to help bring along the underclassmen on his team.
“I used to be in that position,” Conner said. “As a freshman, sophomore and junior, I probably dropped a bunch of passes that I probably should have finished. You just have to instill confidence in every single player to help them deal with that during the season.”
Conner moves on to Charlottesville, Va., where he will play at the University of Virginia next season. And similar to when he stepped onto the field at Strath Haven as a freshman, Conner will have to prove himself.
He plans to go about it the same way.
“I’m going to come in, put as much effort as I can into it,” Conner said. “I want to try to make everyone else play better and just bring whatever I can into the program.”
WARRIOR/US LACROSSE
MID-ATLANTIC BOYS’ PLAYER OF THE YEAR
JEFFREY CONNER
School: Strath Haven (Pa.)
Year: Senior
Position: Midfielder
Coach Jef Hewlings: “To put it in a nutshell, he respects the game. He respects it enough to give the game everything he has.”
Also considered: Kyle Long, Springfield-Delco (Pa.); Jacob Kelly, Calvert Hall (Md.); Jack Myers, Gonzaga (D.C.); Canyon Birch, Manasquan (N.J.); Joey Epstein, Landon (Md.)
NIKE/US LACROSSE
MID-ATLANTIC BOYS’ TOP 10
SEASON REWIND
1. Calvert Hall (Md.), 16-3
The Cardinals claimed their second straight Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference title with an 8-6 win over Boys’ Latin to cap an emotional season that started with the passing of assistant coach Dave Huntley and then included the loss of senior captain Peter Ilardo’s father before the semifinals. They were the first A Conference team to win back-to-back titles since 2007-08 when Loyola-Blakefield won two straight.
2. Boys’ Latin (Md.), 14-5
Entering the playoffs as the No. 4 seed, the Lakers reached the conference final by defeating St. Mary’s (Md.) and McDonogh (Md.), but had to settle for being runner-up to Calvert Hall. Brendan Grimes and Brenden Crouse each scored two goals in the championship game. Latin split the season series with the Cardinals.
3. McDonogh (Md.), 13-5
The Eagles entered the MIAA-A Conference playoffs as the No. 1 seed but dropped their semifinal meeting with Boys’ Latin, 8-5, to snap a nine-game winning streak. McDonogh posted wins over Calvert Hall, Boys’ Latin, Loyola-Blakefield and Oxbridge Academy (Fla.) this season.
4. Loyola Blakefield (Md.), 14-6
The Dons defeated Severn (Md.) in the first round of the MIAA playoffs but fell to eventual champ Calvert Hall, 15-9 in the semifinals. Head Coach Ben Rubeor led Loyola-Blakefield to the conference semifinals in each of his three seasons. Gene Ubriaco takes over the program next season.
5. Gonzaga (D.C.), 17-3
The Purple Eagles avenged their only conference loss of the year when they defeated Paul VI (Va.) in the WCAC championship 10-7. Jack Myers capped his career as D.C.’s all-time leading scorer with 276 points. The Ohio State commit scored 162 goals and 114 assists in his career.
6. Delbarton (N.J.), 19-1
The Green Wave won their third straight Tournament of Champions title with a 12-6 victory over Summit (N.J.). Matt Campbell led the team with 42 goals, while Tom Schelling added 36 goals and Tommy MacCowatt had 31 goals.
7. Paul VI (Va.), 19-4
The Panthers won their first ever Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association state championship with a 10-4 win over St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (Va.) in the Division I final. Junior Jacob Angelus led the team with 109 points on 71 goals and 38 assists.
8. Bullis (Md.), 16-4
The Bulldogs won the IAC championship with a 9-8 victory over Landon (Md.) on May 11 before finishing up with an appearance at the Geico Nationals. Landon had accounted for one of Bullis’ three regular-season losses. Other highlights included wins over St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (Va.) and Episcopal School of Dallas (Texas).
9. Malvern Prep (Pa.), 15-5
Jack Traynor scored four goals and Quinn McCahon had three goals as the Friars defeated Haverford School (Pa.) 17-13 to win the inaugural Inter-Ac tournament championship. Malvern finished the season with a four-game winning streak en route to the title. They defeated Delaware state champ Salesianum along with collecting wins over Loyola-Blakefield and La Salle College (Pa.).
10. Haverford School (Pa.), 16-4
The Fords won two of three games against Malvern Prep this season to finish as Inter-Ac runner-up. TJ Malone led the team with 97 points on 55 goals and 42 assists. Luke O’Grady scored 43 goals.