Tori Kostecki is entering her 15th year as the head coach of the University of North Georgia rifle team.
Before becoming head coach of the program she served as captain of the team for four years during her time as a student at North Georgia.
Most recently, Kostecki and the Nighthawks completed the 2024-25 campaign with major leaps in production. UNG broke the program scoring record numerous times during the regular season before finishing in second place at the Southern Conference Championship for the fifth time in program history and fifth time in the last seven years. Since UNG joined the SoCon in 2016, the Nighthawks have finished worse than second place in the league championship just one time.
The 2024-25 campaign was highlighted by All-Southern Conference accolades belonging to Maya Cameron who was named to the All-SoCon Smallbore Second Team and Alison Sutherlin who was named the 2025 SoCon Co-Freshman of the Year.
The successful 2024-25 season was built upon previous accomplishments in the year prior. In 10 head-to-head matches in the 2023-24 year, UNG beat its opponent six times. In the regular season, the Nighthawks set new program scoring records in smallbore, air rifle and aggregate categories a total of four different times. In back-to-back matches against nationally ranked opponents, UNG picked up a win by setting the program aggregate scoring record at 4,657 points. Those wins came against No. 19 The Citadel and No. 20 UAB.
The 2022-23 season saw the second individual in program history qualify for the National Championship under Kostecki. Then freshman Elysa Walter helped lead the team to a tie for second place finish in the SoCon before going on her own run in the NCAA National Championship. It was there that Walter would finish fifth in the Air Rifle Championship, earning the highest individual placement ever in program history.
In 2021-22, Kostecki led the Nighthawks to a second place finish in the SoCon after winning their third conference championship the year prior.
In the 2020-21 season, the Nighthawks climbed as high as No. 17 in the nation, finishing at that mark. In addition to winning a third Southern Conference Championship in five years, Kostecki led Kimberlee Nettles to the program's first ever national qualifier in any discipline. Nettles fired a 593 in the qualifiers to earn an individual spot in the national championships where she finished 36th.
In 2018, Kostecki led North Georgia to a second-straight Southern Conference Championship in the team's first and second years as a member of the conference. Under her leadership, UNG has been Georgia State Champions and the Senior Military College Champions for seven consecutive years as well as finished in the top two of the SoCon in each of the four years UNG has been affiliated with the league.
Kostecki began shooting in JROTC at McEachern High School, by sophomore year she had made the Varsity team and by her junior year she began qualifying for national-level matches.
At the collegiate level, Kostecki first attended North Carolina State University where she was again on the varsity squad. During her time in Raleigh, she qualified for the All-Conference team and finished third overall, along with several academic awards.
After a strong year at N.C. State, Kostecki transferred to North Georgia and finished her degree. Kostecki’s merits while at UNG are many, including several National Championship invitations, making the All-Conference team all four years as a competitor, winning numerous matches and awards, culminating in a national championship in her senior year.
Kostecki graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with a behavioral specialization and a minor in Psychology.
Updated: June 2025
