WASHINGTON,
D.C. – After leading top-seeded Cornell to an NCAA title, senior
CJ Kirst is the recipient of the 25th annual Tewaaraton Award, presented by Stifel. The Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the pre-eminent lacrosse award, annually honoring the top male and female college lacrosse players in the United States.
The 25th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony, celebrating the best player in the collegiate game, was Thursday at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.
In addition to Kirst winning the award, Princeton’s
Coulter Mackesy and Harvard’s
Sam King were also named Tewaaraton Finalists and were honored at the Tewaaraton Award Ceremony, as three of the five Tewaaraton Award finalists were Ivies.
Ivy League lacrosse has had five Tewaaraton Award winners over the past 16 years. Kirst is the fifth Ivy League student-athlete to earn the award, joining Cornell’s
Max Seibald (2009), Cornell’s
Rob Pannell (2013), Brown’s
Dylan Molloy (2016), and Yale’s
Ben Reeves (2018).
Kirst, the Ivy League Attackman of the Year, finished his 2025 campaign with 82 goals, tying the NCAA single-season goals record with fellow Ivy Leaguer, Yale’s Ben Reeves (2018) and UAlbany’s Miles Thompson (2014). In addition, Kirst added 33 assists to total 115 points, tying for second all-time in Ivy League history for points in a single season. Kirst also shattered the previous career scoring record of 224 career goals, finishing his career with 247 for his illustrious four-year career. Kirst not only contributed to Cornell’s nation’s best scoring average, but also contributed with 43 ground balls and 19 caused turnovers this season.
Kirst, a three-time first-team All-American, helped Cornell win its first national title since 1977 after finishing the season with an 18-1 record. In addition, Cornell captured the outright Ivy League regular season title and Ivy League tournament championship. Individually, Kirst was named the Lt. Raymond J. Enners Outstanding Player of the Year, was the nation’s only unanimous first team All-American, was the unanimous Ivy League Attackman of the Year, a unanimous first team All-Ivy pick, and was named the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player and Ivy League Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Statistically, Kirst led the nation with 4.22 goals per game and finished second in the NCAA with 6.00 points per game.
From Princeton, Mackesy finished his senior season with 44 goals and 19 assists for 63 points as Princeton reached the NCAA Quarterfinals. Mackesy was named a USILA First Team All-American, a unanimous First Team All-Ivy pick, and set the Princeton all-time scoring record with 167 career goals.
Harvard’s King also had an outstanding season in Cambridge after scoring 37 goals and adding 29 assists, accumulating 66 total points. King was also named a first team All-American and was named to the All-Ivy First Team.