Faceoff wizzard Jake Withers receives the honor for Rochester.
PHILADELPHIA, PA. — After a dominating first season with the Rochester Knighthawks, Jake Withers has been named the National Lacrosse League’s Rookie of the Year. The 24-year-old becomes just the second Knighthawk to win the award, joining 2000 winner John Grant Jr.
“I am very honored to be named the NLL Rookie of the Year,” said Withers. “This award is a testament to the leadership of the veterans who I was fortunate enough to play with and learn from during my rookie season.
“I would like to thank (Owner and General Manager) Curt Styres, the coaching staff, and the entire Rochester Knighthawks organization for always supporting my teammates and me all season. Thank you to all my teammates who battled beside me each and every game and helped put me in a position to be considered for this award. Finally, thank you to the best fans in the league.”
During the 2017-18 campaign, Withers played in all 18 regular season games and posted 7 goals and 5 assists for 12 points. He finished second on the team, behind only Graeme Hossack, with 148 loose balls. Withers also led the NLL in faceoff wins and a .670 faceoff winning percentage to become the first rookie in league history to have the best faceoff percentage (minimum of 200 faceoffs won) since Geoff Snider in 2007.
“‘Wiz’ was a major reason we had the success we did this year,” said Knighthawks defenseman Scott Campbell. “He dominated the dot. We knew he was going to be good at faceoffs, but he exceeded everyone’s expectations. He played great ‘D,’ chipped in and made smart plays in transition, played a ton of hard and important minutes, and brought our dressing room together. I am so glad Wiz won this award. He is very deserving of it.”
The Peterborough, ONT., native rewrote the league and team record books this season, as he set 6 individual records. His most significant accomplishment was passing Stephen Peyser’s league rookie record for faceoff wins by collecting a franchise-record 279 victories. On March 31, he won 25 draws in a key late-season 16-14 victory over Colorado, which set a Knighthawks’ single-game rookie record. At the end of the regular season, he was rewarded by being named the team’s Rookie of the Year.
During the playoffs, Withers performed his best on the NLL’s biggest stage. In his postseason debut, he won 15 faceoffs and chipped in two assists on May 4 in a win over New England in the East Division Semifinals. In Game 3 of the NLL Finals, he collected a team and NLL Finals record 20 loose balls and won 23 of 29 faceoffs. He finished the postseason with team playoff records for loose balls (56) and faceoff wins (88).
Rochester selected Withers with the second overall pick in the 2017 NLL Entry Draft after an impressive career at Ohio State (OSU). In 2017, as one of the Buckeyes’ team captains, he helped OSU reach the Division I Finals for the first time in school history. He was named a Second Team All-American as a faceoff specialist and earned Big Ten Specialist of the Year in back-to-back seasons (2016-17). In 2017, he ranked fourth in the NCAA and first in the Big Ten in faceoff winning percentage (.647) and was seventh nationally with 7.6 ground balls per game.
Withers also won a Mann Cup with the Peterborough Lakers before the Knighthawks took him in the first round. It was with the Lakers that Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen, who also coaches Peterborough, realized Withers’ potential.
“Playing with men the two years before the draft allowed him to learn the pace of the game, which minimized his learning curve,” said Hasen. “Jake has great strength, great speed, a great lacrosse IQ and an even better quality – he is a team-first player.”
Ian Llord, who has played 12 seasons in the NLL, noticed right away that Withers was no ordinary first-year player.
“Every rookie has a tiny bit of a struggle, but it seemed not too hard to overcome for him because of how hard he was willing to work and the number of questions he was willing to ask,” said Llord. “He already had the faceoffs down. When he started focusing on defense and understanding what we were we trying to do, he made a flawless transition.”