Rochester Knighthawks General Manager and Vice President of Lacrosse Operations Dan Carey announced today that the team has re-signed defensemen Taylor Jensen to a one-year contract and Thomas Whitty to a two-year contract, respectively, pending National Lacrosse League approval.
Jensen, 25, completed his rookie season with the Rochester Knighthawks in 2023-24, recording one goal and four assists while appearing in 13 games. The New Westminster, British Columbia native gathered 6 loose balls during the regular season and totaled four during the Knighthawks’ post-season contest versus Toronto.
Prior to turning pro, Jensen completed a four-year collegiate career at Rochester Institute of Technology (R.I.T.) from 2020-2023. In 64 career games with the Tigers, produced 27 points (9+18) to go with 211 loose balls recoveries. Was a two-time USILA First-Team All-American and Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year. Also, he helped the Tigers to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments appearances.
As a graduate student in 2023, was named R.I.T.’s Athlete of the Year. Paced the team with a career-best 91 ground balls and 41 turnovers to go with his nine points (3+6) in 23 games.
Whitty, 25, completed his third season with the Knighthawks in 2023-24, producing five assists in 16 games. In addition to logging a career-best in assists, also had a personal-high 81 loose balls in the regular season while collecting five in one playoff contest.
In 44 career NLL games, all with Rochester, the St. Catharines, Ontario native has totaled 13 points (1+12) since the start of the 2020 campaign. Additionally, has gathered 219 loose ball recoveries while also registering 11 shots.
Whitty completed his rookie season in 2019-20 with five points (1+4) while being one of only three transition players to appear in all 12 games during the Knighthawks’ inaugural campaign. He led all Knighthawks first-year players with 12 penalty minutes while also making 52 loose ball recoveries.
Prior to joining the Knighthawks, Whitty played four seasons with his hometown St. Catharines Athletics (OLA Jr. A), totaling 26 points (5+21) in 74 career games. He scored a career-best four goals during the 2017 season before notching career-highs in assists (10) and points (11) in 20 games in 2019.
Whitty was originally a second-round selection (35th overall) of the Knighthawks in the 2019 NLL Entry Draft.