Casey Powell (born February 18, 1976) is an American retired professional lacrosse player from West Carthage, New York. In 1998, he graduated from Syracuse University, where he was a four-time USILA All-American. Powell was the NCAA Division I Most Outstanding Player in 1997 and 1998. Powell was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2017, and the Professional Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2022.[1] He is widely regarded as one of the greatest lacrosse players of all time, and has been referred to as the greatest all-around attackman of his generation.[2][3][4][5][6]

Casey Powell
Born (1976-02-18) February 18, 1976 (age 48)
West Carthage, New York, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight195 pounds (88 kg)
ShootsBoth
PositionMidfield / Attack / Forward
NCAA teamSyracuse University (1998)
NLL draft1st overall, 1998
Rochester Knighthawks
NLL teamsColorado Mammoth
Boston Blazers
Orlando Titans
New York Titans
Anaheim Storm
Rochester Knighthawks
MLL teamsFlorida Launch
Chesapeake Bayhawks
Hamilton Nationals
Rochester Rattlers
Long Island Lizards
Pro career1999–2016
NicknameCP
Websitewww.caseypowell.com
Medal record
Representing  United States
Field lacrosse
World Lacrosse Championship
Silver medal – second place 2006 England
Box lacrosse
World Indoor Lacrosse Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Czech Republic
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Onondaga Nation
U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame, 2017
Professional Lacrosse Hall of Fame, 2022

Powell played in Major League Lacrosse, the semi-professional field lacrosse league, from its first year in 2001 through 2016, although he played in only 8 games between 2009 and 2013. Yet Powell ranks sixth in goals (243), second in assists (237), and third in points (484) on the MLL career totals list as of 2017.[7] Powell also tops the all-time MLL playoff point chart with 40. In 2005 and 2014, he won the MLL Offensive Player of the Year award. Powell earned the MVP award in 2014 at age 38. After retiring from professional lacrosse, Powell shifted focus to other business and philanthropic endeavors. Powell started the World Lacrosse Foundation, a non-profit organization for the advancement of lacrosse in 2015.[1] He is a founder of Speed Lacrosse, a modified version of the sport. His younger brothers, Ryan and Mikey, were also lacrosse stars at Syracuse; all wore jersey #22.[8]

Syracuse University

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Powell was a three-time first-team All-American attackman and midfielder, and helped Syracuse win the 1995 NCAA National Championship.[9] Powell is the only player in NCAA Division I lacrosse history to earn first-team All-American honors at more than one position. He even won Most Outstanding Player at two positions, midfield in 1996 and attack in 1998.[1] Powell followed Gary Gait in wearing the revered number 22 jersey at Syracuse University. His two younger brothers, Ryan and Mikey, carried on the tradition as well.

Major League Lacrosse

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In 2001, Powell was signed by the Long Island Lizards of Major League Lacrosse (MLL), and led the Lizards to the first-ever MLL Championship. In 2003, the Lizards won the Championship again, and after the season, Powell was traded to the Rochester Rattlers in a five-player deal. During the 2004 season, Powell finished second on the Rattlers with 57 points (32 goals, 24 assists, 1 two-point goal). 2005 was a career year for Powell. He led the Rattlers in scoring and ranked second in the league with 57 points (27 goals, 30 assists). His 30 assists were second in the league behind Conor Gill's 34, and was named Offensive Player of the Week three times in the final four weeks of the season.[citation needed]

Casey and his brothers sat out the 2009 MLL season, as they did not report to their teams as of April 1 contract deadline.[10] Powell returned in 2011, and played for the Hamilton Nationals.

During the 2011 season MLL Championship game, Powell injured his knee and needed to be helped off the field, he had 4 goals in a 10-9 Nationals loss to the Boston Cannons in the MLL championship game, his lacrosse future in doubt.[11] But just days later he announced that an MRI revealed no tear in his ACL, so the injury was not as serious as first thought.[12]

After playing only three games in the 2012 season, Powell retired from the MLL,[13] but was drafted by Chesapeake Bayhawks in the supplemental draft that year. He returned in 2013 and played with the Bayhawks.

National Lacrosse League

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Powell was the first overall draft choice of the Rochester Knighthawks of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) in the 1998 entry draft and played two seasons for the Knighthawks. He was traded to the Buffalo Bandits in 2001 and signed a contract, but never reported.[14] In 2003, the Bandits traded him to the Anaheim Storm.[14] Powell led the Storm in scoring and was named to the All-Star team in both the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

The Storm suspended operations after the 2005 season, and Powell was chosen second overall by the Portland LumberJax, although he elected not to play in the 2006 season. In September 2006, Powell was traded yet again, this time to the expansion New York Titans,[15] and was named to the All-Star team in 2007, 2008, and 2009. In the 2010 season, he was named the first American born MVP in NLL history. Following the contraction of the Titans in 2010, the Boston Blazers acquired Powell in a dispersal draft.

After one year in Boston, the Blazers also went dark, and Powell was chosen by the Rochester Knighthawks in the resulting dispersal draft.[16]

Powell has also hosted a weekly one-hour show on Sirius Satellite Radio called "Inside the NLL with Casey Powell" since 2007.[17]

Powell was named to the 2021 NLL Hall of Fame class.

International

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Casey Powell on Team USA vs. MLL All-Stars in 2006.

Powell captained the U.S. Men's National Team in the 2006 World Lacrosse Championship, winning the silver medal. He was also the captain of the U.S. Men's Indoor National Team in 2011, where he was named the tournament MVP.[18] Powell was an assistant captain at the 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. The U.S. won bronze medals in both indoor championships.

Honors and awards

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Professional Lacrosse Hall of Fame

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On June 18, 2022, Powell was inducted into the Professional Lacrosse Hall of Fame as one of the eleven members of the inaugural class of inductees.[21]

Career statistics

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NCAA

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Season Team GP G A Pts GB Sh
1995 Syracuse 15 39 28 67 51 120
1996 Syracuse 15 32 27 59 75 103
1997 Syracuse 14 43 40 83 82 132
1998 Syracuse 14 44 34 78 66 126
NCAA Totals 58 158 129 287 274 481
Source:[22]

Powell led the country in points and points per game in 1997 (83, 5.93) and 1998 (78, 5.57). 287 career points is tied for 14th all-time with his brother, Ryan Powell.[23]

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team GP G A Pts LB PIM GP G A Pts LB PIM
1999 Rochester 9 9 21 30 41 6 2 1 1 2 7 0
2000 Rochester 10 12 16 28 47 8 2 3 4 7 9 0
2004 Anaheim 15 27 41 68 82 14 -- -- -- -- -- --
2005 Anaheim 14 27 30 57 60 20 -- -- -- -- -- --
2007 New York 13 29 51 80 90 22 -- -- -- -- -- --
2008 New York 16 32 54 86 79 10 2 6 7 13 7 2
2009 New York 13 40 45 85 59 16 3 10 11 21 16 6
2010 Orlando 14 44 36 80 53 12 2 6 4 10 3 0
2011 Boston 15 34 47 81 59 10 1 4 2 6 2 0
2013 Rochester
Colorado
13 17 37 54 45 8 1 3 3 6 2 1
2014 Colorado 5 8 17 25 14 6 -- -- -- -- -- --
NLL Totals 137 279 395 674 629 132 13 33 32 65 46 9
Source:[24]
    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team GP G 2ptG A Pts GB PIM GP G 2ptG A Pts GB PIM
2001 Long Island 14 30 1 22 53 28 5 2 4 0 4 8 0 0
2002 Long Island 14 37 1 30 68 51 1 2 2 0 5 7 0 0
2003 Rochester 7 17 1 15 33 31 5 - - - - - - -
2004 Rochester 11 30 1 22 53 37 5.5 1 2 0 1 3 0 0
2005 Rochester 10 26 0 30 56 22 2 1 2 0 1 3 0 0
2007 Rochester 8 19 0 22 41 14 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 0.5
2008 Rochester 12 15 1 26 42 19 1.5 2 2 0 3 5 1 0
2011 Hamilton 2 2 0 3 5 0 1 2 5 0 3 8 6 0
2012 Hamilton 3 4 0 2 6 4 9.5 - - - - - - -
2013 Chesapeake 3 4 0 2 6 0 0 2 2 0 3 5 1 0
2014 Florida 14 30 0 33 63 18 7 - - - - - - -
2015 Florida 10 18 0 16 34 9 0 - - - - - - -
2016 Florida 9 11 0 12 23 15 1.5 - - - - - - -
MLL Totals 117 243 5 237 484 248 41 13 19 0 21 40 9 0.5
Sources:[25][26]

Canadian Lacrosse Association

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    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1994 Toronto Beaches OLA Jr.A 8 14 15 29 0 5 11 5 16 7
2008 Six Nations Chiefs MSL 5 5 8 13 0 0 0 0 0 0
Junior A Totals 8 14 15 29 0 5 11 5 16 7
Senior A Totals 5 5 8 13 0 0 0 0 0 0

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c McLaughlin, Corey (September 12, 2017). "How the Unpredictable Casey Powell Landed Among Legends". USLacrosse Magazine. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  2. ^ Devitte, C. R. &. K. (2023, March 14). Hall of Fame inductee: Casey Powell. Premier Lacrosse League.
  3. ^ Brunelle, J. (2017, March 17). Casey Powell: What it takes to achieve Greatness. Lacrosse All Stars.
  4. ^ What Got You There. (2023, April 6). #39 Casey Powell - Greatest lacrosse player of all time – What got you there with Sean DeLaney. What Got You There With Sean DeLaney.
  5. ^ Devitte, K., & Rosenthall, C. (2013, August 3). The legacy of Casey Powell. Inside Lacrosse.
  6. ^ Vock, C. (2016, August 6). Casey Powell Tribute by Heeyoung Leem. Inside Lacrosse.
  7. ^ "Career Leaders - MLL". Pointstreak Sports Technologies. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  8. ^ Profile, usalaxmagazine.com. Accessed December 20, 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Casey Powell bio". US Lacrosse. Archived from the original on June 5, 2008.
  10. ^ "MLL: Powell Brothers Sit Out 2009 Lacrosse Season". laxfunnews.com. April 5, 2009. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012.
  11. ^ Kinnear, Matt (August 31, 2011). "MLL Championship Weekend: Casey Powell, Hamilton Nationals Left It All on the Field". Inside Lacrosse. Archived from the original on 2011-10-27. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  12. ^ Ingemi, Marisa (September 2, 2011). "MRI Reveals No Tear in Casey Powell's Knee". In Lax We Trust. Archived from the original on October 27, 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  13. ^ DaSilva, Matt (August 17, 2012). "Powell Retires from MLL, Eyes 2014 U.S. Team". Lacrosse Magazine. Archived from the original on 2013-07-04. Retrieved 2013-08-16.
  14. ^ a b Philly, R.A. (October 22, 2003). "Bandits Trade Casey Powell to Storm". Outsider's Guide to the NLL. Archived from the original on 2008-06-05. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
  15. ^ "Casey Powell Traded to Titans". NLL.com. September 25, 2006. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  16. ^ "Philadelphia acquires Dan Dawson". September 9, 2011. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
  17. ^ "Casey Powell Show Returns To Sirius". NLL.com. January 17, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-01-19. Retrieved 2008-02-05.
  18. ^ "Canada wins indoor lacrosse worlds". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. May 28, 2011. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  19. ^ a b "Casey Powell to be Enshrined in U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame". Cuse.com. May 23, 2017. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  20. ^ "Hall of Fame Inductees". US Lacrosse. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  21. ^ ""Inaugural Pro Lacrosse Hall of Fame Class Inducted on Long Island"". Merola, Lauren, premierlacrosseleague.com. 2022-06-20. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  22. ^ "Casey Powell Statistics". Casey Powell Lacrosse. Retrieved 29 December 2017.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ "2018 Men's Lacrosse Division I Records" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  24. ^ "Casey Powell". National Lacrosse League. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  25. ^ "Casey Powell - Major League Lacrosse 2001-2002, 2004-2016". Pointstreak Sports Technologies. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  26. ^ "Casey Powell - Major League Lacrosse 2003". Pointstreak Sports Technologies. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
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Preceded by NLL Most Valuable Player
2010
Succeeded by