Jake Withers named NLL Rookie of the Year
Rochester Knighthawk led the NLL in faceoff wins
Peterborough’s Jake Withers has been named the National Lacrosse League’s Rookie of the Year.
His Peterborough Lakers teammate Zach Currier, of the Calgary Roughnecks, was a finalist for the award.
He is the first Rochester Knighthawks players since John Grant Jr. in 2000 to ever win the award.
“I am very honoured to be named the NLL Rookie of the Year,” stated Withers, 24, in a press release.
“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.”
Withers played in all 18 regular season games and posted seven goals and five assists for 12 points. H
e 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,” stated Knighthawks defenceman 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.”
Withers rewrote the league and team record books this season, setting six 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 post-season 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 Three of the NLL Finals, he collected a team and NLL Finals record 20 loose balls and won 23 of 29 faceoffs.
He finished the post-season 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 in 2017.