Cole Kastner Pronunciation
TIFFANY ON KASTNER
2024 – “Cole is everywhere. Why is he running extra sprints with a couple of teammates after most practices, or jumping on an assault bike and blasting away on it? We ask so much of him on gameday that he needs to put in extra fitness training to recreate the workload placed on him. Cole is a fantastic in-game communicator, directing slides and rotations that are both according to plan and also improvised, especially with our 10-Man ride schemes. We have one more year of Cole before he heads off to the basketball world, where they too will realize he possesses the highly-sought after combination of athletic and intellectual prowess.” 2023 – “The lynchpin in our 10-man ride, Cole makes decisions and plays that only he can pull off. Similar to when he was employed in a full-court press in high school basketball, Cole is given only a few rules to guide his actions as he attempts to wreak havoc on the opposing clear. But that is just scratching the surface for how much is asked of Cole: he and Cade share some of the toughest attackman assignments in all of college lacrosse. Cole is able to defend a variety of dodging styles, and he is an exceptional communicator both on the field during live action and during team meetings.” 2022 – “When given the chance, Cole made the most of it last spring. He earned more and more playing time in April, eventually becoming a starter throughout the NCAA Tournament. Rare combination of high-end speed, exceptional lateral footwork, height and savvy game sense. Cole carries the most generous of spirits, sharing his genuine care and concern for others.” 2021 – “Project 39 is off to an exciting start … air-traffic control coverage … picking up loose balls efficiently … not hesitant with the ball in his stick … learning and adapting to the 1v1 challenges of college lacrosse.”
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
- Two-time USILA Second Team All-American (2022, 2024)
- ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2022)
- Two-time Tewaaraton Award nominee (2022, 2024)
- Concluded his career third all-time in career caused turnovers (95)
- Started in all four NCAA Tournament games amid UVA’s 2021 national championship run
- Selected eighth in the fourth round by the California Redwoods in the 2024 PLL College Draft
2024
- Team captain
- USILA Second Team All-American
- Inside Lacrosse Second Team All-American
- USA Lacrosse Third Team All-American
- All-ACC Team
- Team Defensive MVP Recipient at Virginia Men’s Lacrosse Annual Banquet
- Tewaaraton Award nominee
- USILA Scholar All-American
- Ranked fifth amongst Division I players in caused turnovers on the season (35)
- Led the ACC in caused turnovers per game (1.94)
- Started all 18 games at close defense for the Cavaliers
- Tallied three or more caused turnovers in six separate contests
- Tied his career high of five caused turnovers in 13-10 comeback win at No. 16 Harvard (March 30)
- USA Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Second Team All-American
- Inside Lacrosse Preseason First Team All-American
- USILA Preseason First Team All-American
- Preseason All-ACC Team Selection
- ACC Academic Honor Roll
2023
- USILA All-American Honorable Mention (May 25)
- All-ACC selection (May 9)
- Inside Lacrosse Honorable Mention All-American (May 17)
- USA Lacrosse Magazine Third Team All-American (May 9)
- CSC Academic All-District (May 23)
- Recorded a career-high six ground balls at No. 2 Duke (April 15)
- ACC Defensive Player of the Week (March 28)
- Tewaaraton Award Watch List
- Inside Lacrosse Second Team Preseason All-American
- USA Lacrosse Magazine First Team Preseason All-American
- Preseason All-ACC Team
- Team captain
- Recipient of the 2023-24 T. Rodney Crowley Scholarship
- All-ACC Academic Team
- ACC Academic Honor Roll
2022
- Appeared in 16 games, including 15 starts
- Finished the season with 29 ground balls and 32 caused turnovers
- USILA Second Team All-American (May 26)
- Inside Lacrosse Second Team All-American (May 15)
- ACC Defensive Player of the Year (May 12)
- UVA’s first defenseman to garner ACC Player-of-the-Year honors since 2002
- All-ACC selection (May 12)
- USA Lacrosse Magazine Second Team All-American (May 10)
- VaSID Defensive Player of the Year & All-State Team (June 29)
- His 32 caused turnovers led the ACC and were good for sixth in the nation and the most by a UVA player in a single season since 2017
- Recorded five ground balls and four caused turnovers in the NCAA Tournament
- Scored an unassisted goal against Lafayette (April 28)
- Tewaaraton Award nominee (April 21)
- Tewaaraton Foundation Watch List First Round Addition (March 10)
- ACC Defensive Player of the Week (March 15)
- ACC Defensive Player of the Week (March 8)
- Tallied a career-best five caused turnovers in Virginia’s 19-8 win over then-No. 14/15 Johns Hopkins (March 5)
- Also scored his first career goal against the Blue Jays
- Registered four caused turnovers in three of Virginia’s first four games
2021
- Appeared in all 18 of UVA’s games with four starts
- Made all four starts in the NCAA Tournament
- Picked up 14 ground balls and caused seven turnovers
- Scored first career point on an assist at UNC
- Helped hold Georgetown’s Jake Carraway without a goal in the NCAA quarterfinal round, snapping the nation’s longest active goal-scoring streak at 44 games
HIGH SCHOOL
- Three-year starter
- Two-time team captain
- First-team All-West Catholic Athletic League
- Adrenaline Lacrosse four-star recruit
- US Lacrosse All-American
- Three-year starter in basketball
- MVP at the Martin Luther King Jr. Showcase at American Canyon
- Ten times named the Palo Alto Weekly Honorable Mention Athlete of the Week in basketball
- All-state second team (basketball)
- Led Bay Area with 17 double-doubles as a junior
- Averaged 17 points per game, 10 rebounds per game and three assists per game as a senior
- Norcal Sports TV All-Star game selection
- Team captain as a senior
- MVP of the West Bay Athletic League as a senior
- Earned seven letters in high school
PERSONAL
- Son of Anne and Eric Kastner
- Has two older half-brothers, Gage and Brett, and two older half-sisters, Krista and Abby
- Father, Eric, played football and rugby at Cal
- Volunteer work includes One Love Lacrosse clinic coach, volunteer at Life Moves Homeless Shelter, Community Cooks participant for Bay Area Homeless shelters, coach of local AAU program and Rebuilding Together participant in East Palo Alto
- Enjoys basketball and video editing
- Also recruited by schools to play basketball
- Pursuing a degree in commerce with concentrations in finance and information technology
- Recipient of the 2023-24 T. Rodney Crowley Scholarship, which is awarded to a UVA student who demonstrates leadership, sportsmanship, character and integrity. READ MORE