‘Dreams come true’: CJ Kirst joins his three brothers in the Premier Lacrosse League

In the backyard of the Kirst home in Bernardsville, N.J., brothers CJ, Connor, Colin, and Cole prepared for another game of pipes — a lacrosse game they often played. The four brothers would line up in a four-man faceoff with the ball placed in the middle of the yard.

At the count, the brothers ran to the ball in a two-on-two matchup with one thought in mind: Don’t make it into the net.

Instead, they had to aim at the pipe of the goal to get a point. Once one team scored, they went back into their four-man faceoff and did it all over again. This had become part of the Kirst brothers’ daily routine, whether it was before or after school.

“We’ve created some backyard games that I couldn’t even describe to you now,” CJ Kirst said. “But we brought a couple to our camps and clinics that we do. It was always fun and games until we started keeping score. And then someone always ended up crying. And deep down, I like to think that our parents did love that part of us. It always ended in something going on, some issue that night. I think my mom, my dad really did love it.”

That was nearly a decade ago. Now, their backyard games have turned into professional competitions. Connor, 27, Colin, 26, and Cole, 24, joined the Premier Lacrosse League in 2021, 2022, and 2023, respectively.

The 22-year-old CJ is the latest brother to enter the league and was drafted by the Philadelphia Waterdogs with the first overall pick in May. Meanwhile, Caden, the youngest brother, is a freshman with Rutgers’ lacrosse team.

» READ MORE: Radnor’s Ryan Goldstein helped Cornell earn its first national lacrosse championship in 48 years

CJ is set to compete against his brothers Connor and Colin of the Boston Cannons on Friday in Denver. Cole plays for the California Redwoods, who faced the Waterdogs on June 28, although CJ did not play as he was recovering from right hand surgery.

“Initially, we’re going to try to take it seriously — not talking to each other and make sure our game faces are on,” CJ said. “But I know when we first get out there, we’re going to be talking to each other and doing whatever it takes to win. So, I’m excited to get my brothers a nice fist bump and a nice good luck. But I think all three of us are really excited to compete against one another because it’s not very often you get to compete at the highest level against your siblings.”

Their backyard lacrosse games weren’t the only sport the Kirst brothers competed in. Growing up, they played football, basketball, and street hockey.

But lacrosse slowly began to take over their lives. Their father, Kyle, played goalkeeper at Rutgers and was part of the 1990 NCAA Tournament team.

“We were playing all sorts of sports, but something gravitated us toward lacrosse,” CJ said. “And when your older brothers are doing it and are doing it at a high level and have aspirations of playing in high school, in college, and then professionally, I just wanted to follow in their footsteps. It just became a huge dream of mine to be at this level. I was super fortunate to start at a young age and create so many relationships that have lasted a long time through that.”

» READ MORE: These twin sisters are ‘generational’ in lacrosse. They have each other to thank for it.

Last fall, CJ had the chance to play with Connor on Team USA. CJ’s Cornell squad faced Colin and Rutgers in the Final Four in 2022.

Growing up together, each brother had one characteristic that stood out from the others. CJ was the quickest, Connor was the strongest, Colin had the best hands, Caden was the most competitive, and Cole was the most energetic.

Despite their differences, CJ said they each have athleticism on the lacrosse field.

“We were always staying after to watch each other’s games and even now supporting each other, texting each other before every game,” CJ said. “Lacrosse is such a huge part of our relationship, as it is with all my brothers. I think that’s a huge part of why we’re all so close.”

Thanks to their competitive household, CJ thrived against others his age. In second grade, he realized he was better than his peers. He has Cole to thank for it.

“I was playing on my brother Cole’s fourth-grade team [when I was in second grade],” CJ said. “I always played up with him in elementary school, middle school. It was just the easiest way for my dad to coach us and to carpool the games at that time. I think that was kind of the moment where I realized I loved competing and loved playing against the older kids. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Cole. I wasn’t comfortable doing it initially, but he led the way.”

Although Cole played a big part in helping CJ fall in love with the sport, his biggest fan is their mother, Michelle.

“She’s been the most supportive mama,” CJ said. “I [don’t] think anyone could imagine having five boys playing college lacrosse and four now playing professionally. She’s put in the effort to come to every single game, travel to every single stadium across the U.S. and Canada for the indoor games. She’s just always been there and has been our rock. Speaking on behalf of my brothers, I know none of us would be here or in the position that we are now without her.”

Kirst gave his mother the game ball from when he scored his first professional goal, against the Carolina Chaos on July 26.

Success seems to come easy for Kirst, who carried Cornell to a national championship in May. He scored six goals against Maryland to help the Big Red win their first title since 1977.

His performance was enough to win the Tewaaraton Award, the Heisman of lacrosse, and earn him a nomination for an ESPY for best college athlete. He’s hoping to find more success in the big leagues.

“I’m representing something that’s bigger than myself,” Kirst said. “I learned that pretty quickly being at Cornell, representing the university and representing the alumni and my teammates. Now, playing for Philadelphia, and just knowing that I had a dream of playing professional lacrosse and now that I’m doing it, it’s my job to give back to all those kids who come to our practices or have a Waterdogs jersey. I just want to show them that a dream is something you can achieve and just try to give back to that little kid that was inside of me as well.”

As Kirst lives out his dream, his goal is to win a championship. The Waterdogs last won a title in 2022.

“I’m looking forward to bringing a championship back to Philly,” he said. “I know this team and this old veteran group has done it before. We just really want to compete and bring home a championship at the end of the day. So, that’s our goal and that’s what I’m hoping to do here.”

But before he can get to the championship, he’s focused on playing against his two brothers.

“I’m playing against my brothers, and this week it’s been pretty cool talking to them and just getting excited for that moment,” Kirst said. “I don’t think I’ve ever played against Connor. I played against Colin before. That’s kind of my ‘Holy cow, this is real. Dreams come true.’”