Student Spotlight with Jasmine Cole

NEW JERSEYAN: A freshman from Montclair, N.J., Jasmine Cole, 18, is a standout player on the Penn field hockey team. The 2013 Quakers finished second in the Ivy League behind Princeton, and completed their season with a 13-4 record, the most overall wins since 2004 and one victory shy of the school mark.

SUPER FRESH: Playing the attack position, Cole finished second in the nation in goals per game at season’s end, averaging 1.06, and led the Quakers with 18 goals and 39 points. For her exceptional play, she was named co-Ivy League Rookie of the Year and she was the first freshman in Penn field hockey history to be selected First-Team All-Ivy. She was also a First-Team All-Region selection by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. Her coach, Colleen Fink, says Cole “has an uncanny way of getting around her defenders, using her speed and strength, and she is able to put herself in great scoring positions.”

FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT: Cole started playing field hockey during her freshman year of high school at Montclair Kimberly Academy, and played varsity all four years. When she first started playing, she says she was attracted to the fact that “there weren’t really a lot of rules, you could just go wherever you want.” Her high school field hockey teams won two state championships, and she also won two state championships as a member of the lacrosse team.

HAT TRICKS: Cole says her favorite game from this season was the Sept. 21 victory over Cornell, the team’s first Ivy win. Cole recorded a hat trick in the 4-3 victory—which avenged last year’s shutout—scoring three of the Quakers’ four goals. She also scored a hat trick in Penn’s 5-2 win versus Saint Joseph’s.

DEAR OLD PENN: Both of Cole’s parents—Brian and Sherrie Cole—are Penn alumni. Jasmine says she has been visiting campus her entire life, and didn’t even bother applying anywhere else.

THERE IS NO OFFSEASON: Cole says she prepares for the field hockey season year-round; during the offseason, the team lifts weights on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and works out in the pool on Mondays and Wednesdays. Cole also practices with her field hockey club coach over the summer.

TEAM FIRST: Cole says she is looking forward to next season and building upon this past season’s success. “It was a great season,” she says. “It was a lot more than I expected, for sure. I think the team got along really well. We really clicked on and off the field, so that really had a huge impact. Everyone worked really hard to get where we were.”

Jasmine Cole