Gary Gait

Gary Charles Gait (born April 5, 1967) is a Canadian retired Hall of Fame professional lacrosse player and currently the head coach of the men’s lacrosse team at Syracuse University, where he played the sport collegiately.

He was a four-time All-American for the Syracuse Orange men's lacrosse team from 1987-90 (including first-team honors from 1988 to 1990), and was on three NCAA championship-winning teams.

Gary Gait and his twin brother Paul played lacrosse for the Syracuse Orange of Syracuse University from 1987 to 1990, where they set numerous records during their time there.

Gait was named an All-American by the USILA four times — three times as a First Team selection and once as an Honorable Mention.

Gary graduated as Syracuse University's all-time goal leader with 192 career goals.

He twice won the Lt. Raymond Enners Award, given to the most outstanding college lacrosse player, in 1988 and 1990.

He led the Orange to three NCAA DI Championships and was named the NCAA Player of the Year in 1988 and 1990 and the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament in 1990.

The Gait twins are also widely known for popularizing innovative plays such as behind-the-back passes and shots and the "Air Gait," an acrobatic scoring move where they would jump from behind the goal crease and score a goal in mid-air by dunking the ball over the top goal crossbar and land on the opposite side of the crease.

This move was later banned in NCAA play.

He played in the NLL for 17 years, winning Rookie of the Year in 1991, earning league MVP honors for five straight years, from 1995 to '99 and winning All-Pro honors each season.

Gait led the league in points and goals seven times, won three league championships and finished his indoor career with 1,091 points, a league record at the time.

Gait started playing in the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (later the National Lacrosse League) in 1991.

He was drafted by the Detroit Turbos who got both Gait brothers in a slightly controversial double-pick.

In this season he won the MILL championship and was given the Rookie of the Year Award.

He played with Detroit for one more season before him and his brother were both traded to the Philadelphia Wings in 1993.

This trade was highly controversial as the Wings traded all of their draft picks to Detroit for the two players.

Gait played five seasons on the Philadelphia Wings.

Gait visited the championship his first four years on the Wings and won the title twice (1994 & 1995).

In 1995 Gary's brother Paul was traded to Rochester, separating the brothers until they played together on the Washington Power in 2001.

He was voted league MVP in 1996 and 1997 and was crowned Championship MVP in 1995.

Gait spent more time with the Wings than any other single NLL/MILL team and is where he is most remembered for playing.

In 1997, the NCAA Lacrosse Committee named Gait, along with his twin brother and Syracuse teammate, Paul, to the 25th Anniversary Lacrosse team.

Gary was traded to Baltimore for the 1998 season so he could play closer to his home.

Gait only played two seasons with the Baltimore Thunder.

In Gait's first year on the team they went to the Championship which was a new best-of-3 style series.

They were defeated two games to zero by his former Philadelphia Wings.

Gait was still voted league MVP for the 1998 season for how much he helped Baltimore improve.

In 1999, Baltimore went 8-4 in the regular season but lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Rochester Knighthwaks.

The Baltimore Thunder re-located to become the Pittsburgh CrosseFire in 2000 and so Gary moved with the franchise.

In Pittsburgh's only season, they went 6-6 and missed the playoffs.

This was the first time in Gait's NLL/MILL career that he missed the playoffs, he would only miss 3 times in his entire 18-season career.

Gait also played five seasons in MLL from 2001 to 2005, winning the league title three times and co-MVP honors in 2005.

He helped Canada win the 2006 World Lacrosse Championship, the country's first world championship since 1978, by scoring four goals in the final against the United States.

Gary Gait is widely considered one of the greatest lacrosse players of all time.

He and his brother are credited with popularizing behind-the-back passing and shooting.

His signature move is the "Air Gait".

Gait holds the Syracuse career goals record at 192 and the single-season goals record at 70, an NCAA record until 2008.

On January 24, 2017, he was named the Interim Commissioner of the United Women's Lacrosse League.

He played collegiately for the Syracuse Orange men's lacrosse team and professionally in the indoor National Lacrosse League and the outdoor MLL, while representing Canada at the international level.

Gait has been inducted into the United States Lacrosse National Hall of Fame and the National Lacrosse League Hall of Fame.