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Roy Lassiter (born March 9, 1969 in Raleigh, North Carolina) is an American soccer striker, Major League Soccer's record holder for goals scoring in a season, with 27 in 1996.
After playing college soccer at North Carolina State University, Lassiter went to play in Costa Rica from 1993 to 1995, being named foreign player of the year his last season with LD Alajuelense. He signed with MLS in 1996, and was allocated to the Tampa Bay Mutiny. Immediately clicking with midfield general Carlos Valderrama, Lassiter rode the Colombian's passes to the top of the league's scoring charts with 27 goals, a record that still stands. He added four assists for 58 points to become the league's first scoring leader.
In one of the most one-sided trades in league history, Lassiter was traded to DC United in 1998 for over-the-hill Roy Wegerle. He played two seasons in D.C., winning the MLS Cup in 1999. Lassiter was traded to the Miami Fusion in 2000, to the Kansas City Wizards in 2001, and back to DC in the middle of the 2002 season. He ended his MLS career with 88 regular season goals, a record that was only passed in 2004 by Jason Kreis. Lassiter added 13 goals in MLS playoffs. He ended his professional career with A-League's Virginia Beach Mariners in 2003, but played a few games with Laredo Heat of the Premier Developmental League and the exhibition Austin Posse in 2004.
Lassiter could not translate his club success to the national level, scoring just four goals in 30 caps for the US national team. After scoring a goal for the US in 1995, he was recognized on television by police detectives in Raleigh, who had an outstanding warrant for his arrest for breaking and entering - Lassiter stole a television set when he was in college. He was arrested and had to spend 30 days in jail.
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