Staab, a Junior from Westerville, Ohio, is a 13-time All-American and defending NCAA champion in the 100 fly. Rumors about his status were confirmed today when a vague and brief statement was released by the official Stanford athletics page:

…defending NCAA 100-yard butterfly champion, Austin Staab, has taken a leave of absence from Stanford University for a private and personal matter and will return to Stanford at a later date.  Staab (Westerville, Ohio), a junior and 13-time All-American for the No. 2-ranked Cardinal, informed the team of his decision this week.  Stanford asks for privacy in regards to this matter, both to the Staab Family and the Stanford Swim Program.

The No. 2 ranked Cardinal rebounded from a Friday defeat against No. 3 Arizona (124-174) to defeat Arizona State on Saturday, 140-86. Both meets were swum without Staab.

All indications are that Staab does not plan to return to the Cardinal this season, and we will update our readers if any further news becomes available.

http://www.gostanford.com/sports/m-swim/recaps/012310aaa.html
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