Although considered one of the oldest games, lacrosse did not gain widespread popularity until the 21st century. However, the game's popularity has grown at a whopping 80 percent rate in the United States over the last decade.
With the rise in popularity of lacrosse, the sport has produced a slew of well-known athletes. Blaze Riorden is one of them. He started playing as an attackman but soon was forced to switch to goaltender due to misfortune.
Since then, Blaze Riorden has established himself as one of the prominent goalies in PLL history, winning three straight Oren Lyons Goalie of the Year awards. Today, let's take a glimpse at Blaze Riorden's biography and discover his journey to the top.
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Blaze Riorden's Early Life And Family
The professional lacrosse player was born on 13th February 1994. Blaze Riorden's parents raised him alongside his younger brother, Connor Riorden. Blaze Riorden's father, Mike Riorden, had played lacrosse since his childhood, while his mother, Jeannie Riorden, was always a keen enthusiast of the game.
The Riorden siblings consequently grew up surrounded by lacrosse. And Blaze picked up a lacrosse stick at just the tender age of four. Well, lacrosse was not the only thing he played. In his years at Fairport High School, he earned varsity letters in both football and lacrosse.
After graduating from high school, Blaze enrolled at the State University of New York at Albany. There, he made a career-changing decision to commit to playing lacrosse and followed it as a career path. Blaze Riorden's parents supported his decision.
Riorden Started As An Attackman, Not A Goalie
Growing up in Fairport, New York, Riorden rarely thought about playing goalie. In fact, he hated the position. Blaze Riordern's father had signed his son up for the Fairport Youth Lacrosse team. However, Riorden was not listed as a goalie but as an attackman.
Within a few years, little Riorden had established himself as a top shooter of the ball. Then, unfortunately, during one practice routine in fifth grade, Blaze's shot caught the hand of his own goalie, breaking his band in the process.
After the incident, Blaze Riorden's father made it clear that he would have to hop into the net. Being an attackman at heart, Blaze was upset playing as a goalie.
Blaze Riorden started playing lacrosse as an attackman, but he was forced to switch into goalie after injuring his team's goalie. Photo Source: Riorden's Instagram.
But, who knew that this slight misfortune would turn him into one of the greatest goalies of the Premier Lacrosse League?
Blaze Riorden's Professional Career
Although the celebrity athlete is more popular as the primary goaltender of Chaos Lacrosse Club, he frequently switches between being an attackman and goalie. During his freshman year at Albany, he competed in 18 games in goal and attained the second-most wins in program history with 13 wins. As such, he was named to the American East All-Rookie Team for his impressive feat.
Blaze Riorden's Indoor Lacrosse Career
Following a promising freshman season at Albany, Riorden was invited by then-teammate Ty Thompson to play for the Akwesasne Indians in the NLL (National Lacrosse League). Here, he played box lacrosse for the first time as a forward.
Then, every summer during his collegiate years, Blaze traveled to Brampton, Ontario, to play Senior A Box and eventually won a spot with the Buffalo Bandits in 2017. Then, a year later, Blaze was signed by the Philadelphia Wings for their inaugural season in 2018.
Blaze Riorden's Road To Fame
Riorden's path to fame and wealth started when he was drafted 51st overall by the Rochester Rattlers in the 2016 Major League Lacrosse Draft. Although he primarily served as a backup for John Galloway in his first two seasons, he saw more action in his third season following John's departure.
After MLL merged with PLL on 16th December 2020, Riorden was assigned to Chaos Lacrosse Club. During his first season, he won the inaugural Oren Lyons Goalie of the Year Award. He would once again win the award the following season while helping Chaos to the Championship Game.
Blaze Riorden has won several individual awards for his role as a goalie. Photo Source: Riorden's Instagram.
The PLL athlete continuously mesmerized the audience with his outstanding performance and brilliant sense of mind. As such, he was honored as the overall MVP of the 2021 season. In addition, he became the only second goalie in PLL history to win the league's highest individual honor.
Moreover, Josh Byrne was also a significant part of Chaos LLC's winning team.
Blaze Riorden Net Worth And Earnings
It is hard not to get intrigued by all the wealth Riorden has accumulated over the years, considering he is one of the most decorated goalies in PLL history. Well, Blaze Riorden's net worth is heavily influenced by his earnings as a professional lacrosse player.
According to ZipRecruiter, the average annual salary of a PLL athlete is around $64,000. However, the mentioned sum of money varies according to the number of events won, sponsors, and titles earned. Blaze Riorden's salary must be around the same range, if not more, given his dominant performance in the league.
Blaze Riorden has amassed a substantial net worth through his endeavors as a professional lacrosse athlete. Photo Source: Riorden's Instagram.
As previously mentioned, Blaze also plays as an attackman in NLL for Philadelphia Wings. As a result, he must cash in a hefty sum from the franchise annually for his services. Even though the sportsman has not publicly spoken about his income, he likely boasts a fortune worth couple hundred thousand dollars.
Other lacrosse athletes like Trevor Baptiste, Josh Bryne, have also earned a considerable sum from their professional careers.
Moreover, Blaze Riorden's jerseys and apparels are also available in many online retail stores at the price of $30. He must get a percentage of all the sales revenue.
As such, Blaze Riorden's net worth includes income from merchandise sales. And with many more successful years ahead of him, his fortunes are sure to rise.
Who Is Blaze Riorden's Girlfriend?
As the dashing PLL goalie garners wealth and fame across the globe, lacrosse fanatics are curious to get info on Riorden's love life. But, unfortunately, most curious fans are left wondering about Blaze's girlfriend, as there is no display of romance in his social media accounts, and interviews written about him.
Perhaps Blaze's love is brewing in his hometown, where he spends his offseason, or in Philadelphia, where he resides during the regular season. Nonetheless, he has yet to speak about his significant other publicly.
Blaze Riorden is likely single at the moment as he is focused on his lacrosse career. Photo Source: Riorden's Instagram.
As the popularity of this young American athlete grows by the day, we are hopeful we will hear more about Blaze Riorden's girlfriend soon enough. However, since the PLL star leads a hectic lifestyle and is dedicated to decorating his resume with more accolades, he might not be dating anyone at the moment.
Even though it is unclear if he is single or taken, we can be sure that Blaze has realized his dreams of becoming a professional lacrosse player and competing at the highest level of the game. And with many more years to come of his success, we are confident he will soon find someone with a similar love interest.
Fun Facts And Trivia
- Riorden has over 19.1K followers on his Instagram.
- He grew up as a huge Syracuse Orange fan.
