Sam Staab

Sam Staab
Staab with the Chicago Red Stars in 2024
Personal information
Full name Samantha Keala Staab[1]
Date of birth (1997-03-28) March 28, 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth San Diego, California, United States
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Position(s) Center back
Team information
Current team
 Chicago Red Stars
Number 3
Youth career
DMCV Sharks
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2018 Clemson Tigers 80 (5)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2023 Washington Spirit 93 (4)
2019–2020 → Western Sydney Wanderers (loan) 12 (2)
2024– Chicago Red Stars 16 (1)
International career‡
2018 United States U23 2 (0)
2024– United States 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 26, 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of June 4, 2024

Samantha Keala Staab (born March 28, 1997) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center back for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She was drafted by the Washington Spirit in 2019 after playing collegiately for the Clemson Tigers.

Staab debuted for the United States national team in 2024.

Early life

Staab was raised in San Diego, California. She is part Hawaiian through one grandmother.[2] She played club soccer for the DMCV Sharks in her childhood.[3] She attended Scripps Ranch High School, where she played varsity soccer all four years and captained the team in her last two years.[4]

Clemson Tigers

Staab attended Clemson University, where she played for the Tigers women's soccer team from 2015 to 2018.[4] She was selected for the ACC All-Freshman team in 2015 after starting all 20 games in her first season.[5] After making the All-ACC second team in each of the next two years, she was selected to the All-ACC first team in her senior season.[6] At the time of her graduation, her 33 career assists were tied for 4th-most in school history.[7]

Club career

Washington Spirit

Staab was drafted 4th overall in the first round of the 2019 NWSL College Draft by the Washington Spirit.[6] In April, she was signed to the Spirit's senior roster in advance of the 2019 NWSL season.[8] Staab made her professional debut on April 13, 2019, against Sky Blue FC, scoring a 59th-minute goal en route to a 2–0 season-opening win for the Spirit.[9] Staab went on to appear in every minute of the Spirit's season, becoming the second-ever NWSL player to play every minute of her rookie season. She was considered one of the league's top defenders, earning a spot on the NWSL Team of the Month for May and June, and was one of three nominees for NWSL Rookie of the Year.[10][11][12] In 2020, she played every minute of the Spirit's season.[13] In the NWSL Challenge Cup she converted a header off a set piece in the 77th minute against the Portland Thorns, scoring the Spirit's lone goal in the team's 1–1 tie.[14] In 2022, Staab played every minute of the Spirit's season.[15]

On April 29, 2023, Staab made her 73rd consecutive regular season start in the NWSL, breaking a record held by Amber Brooks.[16] As of October 20, 2023, Staab has played every minute of 90 consecutive matches, completing three iron woman seasons.[17] She was nominated for NWSL Defender of the Year in the 2023 season.[18]

Western Sydney Wanderers

Staab was signed in advance of the 2019–20 W-League season by the Western Sydney Wanderers. Staab made her debut for the Wanderers on November 14, 2019.[19]

Chicago Red Stars

She was traded to the Chicago Red Stars on January 12, 2024, the day of the 2024 NWSL Draft, for the third pick of the draft.[20]

On July 25, 2024, Staab was placed on the season-ending injury list after tearing her Achilles tendon during a match against NJ/NY Gotham FC on July 20.[21]

International career

Youth national teams

Staab attended training camp with the United States under-19 team in January 2016.[22] Staab was first selected for the United States under-23 team in March 2018 for the 2018 Thorns Spring Invitational.[23] She was called up again for the 2018 Nordic Tournament, where she was the only non-professional player selected for the U.S. roster.[24] She started all three games, and scored the game-winning goal for the United States in the final match, ensuring a first-place result in the tournament.[25]

Senior national team

Staab received her first senior national team call-up in May 2024, making her debut as a 61st-minute substitute in a friendly against South Korea on June 1.[26][27]

Career statistics

International

As of match played June 4, 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
United States 2024 2 0
Total 2 0

Honors

Individual

References

  1. ^ "College of Business: Bachelor of Science, Accounting". Commencement: Thursday, December 20, 2018 (PDF). Clemson University. December 20, 2018. p. 19. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  2. ^ "Beyond the Game – Sam Staab". Orange: The Experience. Clemson Tigers Athletics. September 22, 2017. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  3. ^ "Homegrown Pros: Two Sharks Drafted in NWSL". DMCV Sharks. January 12, 2019. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Sam Staab". Clemson Tigers Athletics. February 4, 2015. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  5. ^ "Clemson Women's Soccer Program Celebrates Successful Season". Clemson Tigers Athletics. March 28, 2016. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Clemson Women's Soccer star Sam Staab drafted in first round of NWSL draft". Independent Mail. January 11, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  7. ^ "Staab Earns All-America Honors, Two Other Tigers Named All-Region". Clemson Tigers Athletics. November 29, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  8. ^ "Washington Spirit announces updated 25-player roster ahead of 2019 NWSL season". Washington Spirit. April 8, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  9. ^ Giambalvo, Emily (April 13, 2019). "Washington Spirit opens new NWSL season with 2–0 win over Sky Blue FC". Washington Post. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  10. ^ Anderson, Jason (October 17, 2019). "Washington Spirit have multiple nominees for NWSL end-of-season awards". Black and Red United. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  11. ^ a b Anderson, Jason (May 31, 2019). "Four Washington Spirit players make NWSL Team of the Month for May 2019". Black and Red United. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  12. ^ a b Purdy, Jacqueline (July 8, 2019). "June Team of the Month". NWSL. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  13. ^ "2020 Challenge Cup Sam Staab statistics". Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  14. ^ Anderson, Jason (July 6, 2020). "Washington Spirit, Portland Thorns trade set piece goals in 1–1 NWSL Challenge Cup draw". Black and Red United. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  15. ^ "Stam Staab 2022 Season statistics". Retrieved October 1, 2022.
  16. ^ @NWSL (April 29, 2023). "Sam Staab now has the most consecutive starts in league history, breaking the record held by her teammate Amber Brooks 🏁" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  17. ^ "Washington Spirit's Sam Staab ties NWSL Iron Woman record". October 20, 2023.
  18. ^ Hruby, Emma (November 8, 2023). "Naomi Girma Wins NWSL Defender of the Year in Back-to-Back Seasons". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  19. ^ "Signing news: Wanderers secure Harrison and Staab". w-league.com.au. Football Federation Australia. October 23, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  20. ^ Brockway, Ella (January 12, 2024). "Spirit gets busy, deals Ashley Sanchez, Sam Staab and loads up in draft". Washington Post.
  21. ^ Salazar, Emmanuel (July 25, 2024). "Chicago Red Stars Medical Update on Defender, Sam Staab". Chicago Red Stars. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  22. ^ "Staab Invited to U19 USWNT Camp". Clemson Tigers Athletics. January 6, 2016. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  23. ^ "Clemson's Sam Staab Back in Action with U.S. U-23 WNT". ABC Columbia. March 9, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  24. ^ "U-23 WNT Headed to Norway for 2018 Nordic Tournament". U.S. Soccer. August 23, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  25. ^ "USA takes first place in 2018 Women's U-23 Nordic Tournament". Soccerwire. September 4, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  26. ^ Musarurwa, Kudzi (May 21, 2024). "Emma Hayes names her first USWNT roster". All for XI. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  27. ^ Cattry, Pardeep (June 1, 2024). "USWNT vs. South Korea score: USA win Emma Hayes' debut as Mal Swanson, Tierna Davidson record braces". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  28. ^ "NWSL Announces Winners of 2023 Mastercard Best XI Awards". November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
  29. ^ "ACC Women's Soccer: 2018 Season Awards Announced". theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. November 1, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.