Knighthawks Sign 2025 Draft Class
Published on October 29, 2025 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release
(Rochester, NY)... Rochester Knighthawks President and General Manager Dan Carey announced today that the team has signed 2025 draft picks Adam Thistlethwaite, Mitchell Dunham, Seth Martineau, Amos Whitcomb, and Clifford Gaston to three-year rookie deals, pending league approval.
Thistlethwaite was the Knighthawks' first pick in the 2025 NLL Entry Draft, selected 24th overall. The 6-foot-2 lefty is the next in a long line of University at Albany Great Danes headed to Rochester, joining college teammates like Jake Piseno, Graydon Hogg, and Amos Whitcomb.
The Cobourg, Ontario, native was an easy pick for the Knighthawks staff in the second round. Last summer, he played under Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen for the Peterborough Lakers (Major Series Lacrosse).
"He's young, strong, athletic, and has great range and ability to get on hands to eliminate time and space," Hasen said. "He also can push in transition and create some chaos in the front end if and when needed."
Rochester also locked up both its third-round selections, signing Martineau and Dunham. Martineau played his Junior "A" ball for Kitchener-Waterloo until this past summer, when he was traded to the Toronto Beaches midway through the season. Measuring 6-foot-6, 230 pounds, he is the biggest rookie entering training camp. The Windsor, Ontario, native was taken with the 43rd overall pick in the 2025 NLL Entry Draft.
Dunham played three years at Mount St. Mary's before transferring to Richmond for his senior year. He was the 47th overall pick in this year's NLL Entry Draft. In 56 career collegiate games, the Hamilton, Ontario, native started in every contest he played.
At Mount St. Mary's, he racked up 187 ground balls and 86 caused turnovers. In his senior season with Richmond, which culminated in the NCAA quarterfinals, he led the team with 38 caused turnovers and 52 ground balls. In the Spring of 2025, he was selected in the third round of the Premier Lacrosse League Draft by the Utah Archers.
Rochester also signed a pair of local products, securing Whitcomb and Gaston for the next three seasons.
Whitcomb hails from Salamanca, NY, and is a member of the Seneca Nation and a former Albany Great Dane. He was taken with the 57th pick of this year's NLL Entry Draft.
Whitcomb played four years for Albany after a high school career that saw him captain the Salamanca varsity team for three of those years. In his time at Albany, his best season was as a freshman when the team's points leader was Hogg. In 2022, Whitcomb scored 17 goals and had nine assists. He finished his career with 49 goals, 21 assists, and a .630 shot on goal percentage.
Gaston joins the Knighthawks after playing all four years of his collegiate ball down the road at RIT. The Welland, Ontario, native was Rochester's final pick of the 2025 NLL Entry Draft. As an attackman for the Tigers, Gaston ended his career second in all-time goals (229) and points (315) behind only Ryan Lee. Last summer, he played for the Hawkeyes at the National Collegiate Box Series at RIT's Ritter Arena, finishing seventh in points with 11 (8+3) in five games.
Rochester begins the 2025-26 NLL season on Sunday, Dec. 14, with a 6:00 p.m. matchup against the San Diego Seals. The Knighthawks then return home to Segar & Sciortino Field at The Blue Cross Arena on Saturday, Dec. 20, when they host the Philadelphia Wings at 7 p.m. For ticket information, please call (585) 510-1616 or email tickets@knighthawks.com.
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