Austin Staats

Last updated
Austin Staats
Born (1998-04-23) 23 April 1998 (age 26)
Six Nations, Ontario
NationalitySix Nations of the Grand River
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight220 pounds (100 kg)
ShootsLeft
PositionAttack
NCAA team Onondaga Community College
NLL draft1st overall, 2019
San Diego Seals
NLL teamSan Diego Seals
PLL team Chaos Lacrosse Club
Pro career2019–
Career highlights

NLL

WLC

  • Best Attacker (2023 Revoked)
  • 2x All-World Team (2018, 2023 Revoked)
  • U-19 All-World Team (2016)

NJCAA

  • 2x National Champion (2017, 2018)
  • 2x All-American (2017, 2018)

OJLL

  • Minto Cup MVP (2017)
Medal record
Representing Flag of the Iroquois Confederacy.svg  Haudenosaunee
Men's box lacrosse
World Indoor Lacrosse Championship
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2015 Onondaga Nation
Men's field lacrosse
World Lacrosse Championship
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2018 Netanya
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2023 San Diego
U-19 World Lacrosse Championship
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2016 Coquitlam

Austin Staats (born April 23, 1998, in Six Nations, Ontario, Canada) is an Iroquois professional lacrosse player who plays for the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League (NLL), and formerly a player for the Chaos Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). He was drafted 1st overall by the San Diego Seals in the 2018 NLL Entry Draft. He is known for his aggressive style of play.

Contents

Early life and education

Austin Staats was born April 23, 1998, in Six Nations, Ontario, Canada, where he grew up learning to play lacrosse from his older brother, Randy Staats. By the time Staats graduated from Assumption College High School in 2016, [1] he knew that his grades did not meet the requirements needed to play NCAA Division I lacrosse, so instead followed his brother Randy's steps by attending and playing at Onondaga Community College (OOC). [2]

In July 2016, Staats was named to the Haudenosaunee National Lacrosse team, which he competed for in the 2016 Men's U-19 World Lacrosse Championship in Coquitlam, British Columbia. The team won the bronze medal and Staats was named to the All-World Team. [3]

Additionally, throughout his high school and junior collegiate career, Staats played for the Six Nations Arrows in the OLA Junior A Lacrosse League. [4] In 2017, led by coach Patrick Merrill, he won the Minto Cup for the Six Nations Arrows and earned MVP honors in the championship game. [5] [6] [7]

Playing at OOC, Staats had back-to-back breakout seasons in 2017 and 2018, where he totaled 156 points and helped the team go undefeated, winning the NJCAA national championship and earning All-America honors in both years. [8]

Professional career

National Lacrosse League

Rather than continuing his collegiate career and transferring to an NCAA program, Staats decided instead to become declare himself for the 2018 NLL Entry Draft. He was selected first overall by the San Diego Seals, which was their first ever draft selection and reunited him with head coach Patrick Merrill. In his first season, he scored 61 points, helping guide the Seals to the playoffs, however Staats missed the postseason after tearing his ACL with only two regular season games remaining. [9] [10] He was named NLL Rookie of the Week four times, [6] as well as NLL Rookie of the Year and he was named to the All-Rookie Team. [11]

After his ACL injury in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic shortening the 2020 season, Staats was able to play his first full NLL season in 2022. He scored 79 points and led the team to its second playoff birth, where the Seals lost 2 games to 1 in the Western Conference Final to the Colorado Mammoth. In the final minutes of the game, Staats was issued a gross misconduct penalty by the referees. [12] Though no further details were released, Staats was issued a two-game suspension to start the 2023 season. [13]

In the 2024 season, Staats scored a career high 102 points, which helped send the Seals to their fourth playoff run. The Seals lost 2 games to 0 in the semi-finals to the Albany FireWolves, and in the final moments of their final game, Staats threw two unprovoked cross-checks into the back of FireWolves player Anthony Joaquim's head. Staats was issued a major penalty for the hits, and was suspended for the first seven games of the 2025 season. [14]

Premier Lacrosse League

After his torn ACL prevented him from playing in the PLL's inaugural season, Staats made his Premier Lacrosse League debut in 2020 playing for the Chaos Lacrosse Club. [2] He scored 6 points across his 7 appearances.

In the 2021 PLL season, after playing only a single game, Staats' contract was abruptly terminated by the PLL after an off-field fight between himself and Chrome Lacrosse Club player Matt Gaudet, in which he bit off part of Gaudet's middle finger. [15] [16] Staats' PLL contract with the Chaos was reinstated in June 2022, after he completed a program organized by the PLL's Discipline and Conduct Committee. [17] In the 2022 season, he only played in two games before being let go by the Chaos.

International Competition

In 2015, Staats competed in the 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship in the Onondaga Nation in the United States, south of Syracuse, New York. The team won silver. [18]

In July 2018, Staats competed in the 2018 World Lacrosse Championship in Netanya, Israel, again playing for the Haudenosaunee National team. [19] The team won a bronze medal and he was named to the All-World team. [20]

In January 2019, World Games named Staats as their Athlete of the Month. [21] [20]

In 2023, Staats again competed for the Haudenosaunee National Lacrosse team at the 2023 World Lacrosse Championship in San Diego, California. The team again came in third, winning the bronze medal, and he was named as the Best Attacker and named to the All-World Team. [22] However, in January 2024, after an investigation by the International Testing Agency found that Staats tested positive for recreational cocaine usage, his individual awards were revoked by World Lacrosse. [23]

Personal life

Because of the low pay issued to professional lacrosse players, Staats supplements his income by being a part-time firefighter. [24]

In October 2023, Staats was charged with aggravated assault. [25] In August 2024 Staats was arrested in Brantford, Ontaro on three counts of assault. [25] [26] [27]

Player stats

National Lacrosse League

Reference: [28]

Austin Staats Regular SeasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamGPGAPtsLBPIMPts/GPLB/GPPIM/GPGPGAPtsLBPIMPts/GPLB/GPPIM/GP

2019 San Diego Seals 1432296181254.365.791.790000000.000.000.00
2020 San Diego Seals 51016262255.204.401.000000000.000.000.00
2022 San Diego Seals 1537427953355.273.532.3341091921124.755.253.00
2023 San Diego Seals 1637387583354.695.192.191314804.008.000.00
2024 San Diego Seals 18505210284385.674.672.113961518245.006.008.00
681661773433231385.044.752.03822163847364.755.884.50
Career Total:761881933813701745.014.872.29

GP–Games played; G–Goals; A–Assists; Pts–Points; LB–Loose balls; PIM–Penalty minutes; Pts/GP–Points per games played; LB/GP–Loose balls per games played; PIM/GP–Penalty minutes per games played.

Premier Lacrosse League

Reference: [29]

Austin Staats Regular SeasonPlayoffs
SeasonTeamGPG2PGAPtsShGBPenPIMFOWFOAGPG2PGAPtsShGBPenPIMFOWFOA
2020 Chaos Lacrosse Club 7 50161000200–––––––––––
2021 Chaos Lacrosse Club 1 0000100000–––––––––––
2022 Chaos Lacrosse Club 2 1023500000–––––––––––
106039160020000000000000
Career Total:1060391600200

GP–Games played; G–Goals; 2PG–2-point goals; A–Assists; Pts–Points; Sh–Shots; GB–Ground balls; Pen–Penalties; PIM–Penalty minutes; FOW–Faceoffs won; FOA–Faceoffs attempted

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References

  1. ↑ "Austin Staats - 2018 - Men's Lacrosse". Onondaga Community College Athletics. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  2. 1 2 Schafer, Josh (2020-07-14). "'Stop Sleeping On Me': Why Austin Staats could be the breakout rookie at the Championship Series". Premier Lacrosse League. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  3. ↑ Watson, Andy. "2016 FIL U19 Men's World Lacrosse Championships". www.2016worldlax.com. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  4. ↑ "Austin Staats - Ontario Jr. A Lacrosse League - on Pointstreak Sports Technologies". Pointstreak Sports Technologies. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  5. ↑ "Austin Staats - Minto Cup - on Pointstreak Sports Technologies". Pointstreak Sports Technologies. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  6. 1 2 "Austin Staats player bio". National Lacrosse League.
  7. ↑ Shanahan, Brian (August 22, 2017). "Minto Cup Headed to the Final Most Expected as Arrows Will Face Adanacs". Inside Lacrosse.
  8. ↑ "National Championships". Onondaga Community College Athletics. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  9. ↑ Staff Report (2019-04-15). "San Diego Seals star rookie injured, will miss rest of season". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  10. ↑ "San Diego loses Staats to injury". Two Row Times. 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  11. ↑ "NLL Announces 2018-19 Season Award Winners". National Lacrosse League. July 19, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Austin Staats suspended one game for incident in Game 3 of West Conference Finals (Updated)". The Lax Mag. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  13. ↑ "Austin Staats suspension was for two games, not one like first thought". The Lax Mag. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  14. ↑ Singelais, Mark (2024-05-11). "San Diego player gets 7-game suspension for incident with FireWolves". Times Union. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  15. ↑ Jordie. "[GRAPHIC] Pro Lax Player Gets Part Of His Finger Bitten Off In A Hotel Lobby Brawl". www.barstoolsports.com. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  16. ↑ Carlson, Chris (June 7, 2021). "Former OCC star Austin Staats suspended by Premier Lacrosse League after off-field altercation". syracuse. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  17. ↑ Brown, Kevin (June 9, 2022). "Austin Staats Reinstated With Chaos, PLL After '21 Fight and Contract Termination". Inside Lacrosse.
  18. ↑ Rogers, Daniel. "World Indoor Lacrosse Championship 2015 Results: Medal Winners and Final Scores". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  19. ↑ "FIL Honors Haudenosaunee Athlete Austin Staats". Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse. 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  20. 1 2 Rareview (2019-02-04). "Rising Star Austin Staats Honored As January Athlete of the Month by The World Games". World Lacrosse. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  21. ↑ "Meet Austin Staats - Athlete of the Month | IWGA". www.theworldgames.org. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  22. ↑ "O'Neill's MVP highlights 2023 Men's Championship Awards - World Lacrosse". 2023-07-02. Archived from the original on 2023-07-02. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  23. ↑ International Testing Agency (January 22, 2024). "Haudenosaunee Nationals Lacrosse player Austin Staats accepts a 3-month period of ineligibility". LawInSport.
  24. ↑ War on the Floor, Episode 2. (n.d.). Amazon Prime Video. Retrieved from https://www.amazon.com/War-on-the-Floor/dp/B0CKNVGGM5.
  25. 1 2 Sandy (2024-08-21). "Well known lacrosse player facing assault charges". The Turtle Island News. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  26. ↑ "San Diego Seals star Austin Staats reportedly arrested on suspicion of assault". San Diego Union-Tribune. 2024-08-21. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  27. ↑ Inside Lacrosse Staff (August 21, 2024). "Reports: Austin Staats Arrested, Charged With Assault". Inside Lacrosse.
  28. ↑ "Austin Stats statistics". NLLStats.com.
  29. ↑ "Austin Staats". Premier Lacrosse League. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
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