(Rochester, NY)… Rochester Knighthawks President and General Manager Dan Carey announced today that the team has signed three former University at Albany Great Danes to multi-year contracts. Jake Piseno and Graydon Hogg each signed two-year deals, while rookie Conner Fingar signed a three-year entry-level contract.
Piseno and Hogg each enter their second seasons as Knighthawks on opposite ends of the floor. Hogg found his way into the lineup as the team’s third lefty last season. The Oshawa, Ontario, native, was selected 15th overall by the Knighthawks in the 2023 NLL Entry Draft. Piseno, a Liverpool, NY, native, was drafted by Rochester 20 picks later.
Fingar joins the Knighthawks after five years at Albany. The Penn Yan, NY, native has been under the watchful eye of the Knighthawks’ front office staff for many years as the captain of the Hawkeyes in the Upstate Collegiate Box Lacrosse League (UCBLL). He was the Knighthawks’ first pick of the 2024 NLL Entry Draft, taken 27th overall.
Hogg played 13 games for the Knighthawks last season, tallying 14 goals and 10 assists. Before being drafted to Rochester, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound forward played five seasons for the Great Danes. In 61 games, he scored 112 goals and 44 assists. Before his time in the States, he played four seasons of Junior “A” ball with the Whitby Warriors, where he racked up 105 points (45+60) in 50 regular-season games.
Last summer, he played in three games for the Boston Cannons in the Premier Lacrosse League, scoring three goals and adding an assist.
Piseno joined the Knighthawks with less box experience than his Albany teammate but made up for it with his athleticism. Over five years with the Great Danes, he tallied 291 ground balls and 138 caused turnovers. The 5-foot-8, 180-pound defenseman was named the America East Defensive Player of the Year twice, in 2023 and 2024. In his final year, he was named the recipient of the prestigious William C. Schmeisser Award, given to the nation’s best defender in Division I men’s lacrosse. He was on the USILA All-American first team.
The summer before he was drafted, the Knighthawks got their eyes on Piseno with the Hawkeyes in the UCBLL, where he helped lead the team to a 2023 Mearns Cup and an appearance in the National Collegiate Box Series championship. That same summer, he got the call to play for the Haudenosaunee national team in the World Lacrosse Championship. He totaled six points, 11 ground balls, and 11 caused turnovers in eight games. That earned him a spot on the All-World team and Best Defender honors at the tournament. In 2025, he was a member of the Haudenosaunee national team at the Atlas Cup and the Super Sixes.
He was selected by Knighthawks legend Tim Soudan in the Premier Lacrosse League Draft in 2024. In only two years as a Denver Outlaw, he’s already been to two All-Star Games. Last year, he was named a First Team All-Pro and the Long Stick Midfielder of the Year, causing 12 turnovers and scooping up 34 ground balls.
“This is the way I approach him, ‘take the leash off,’ right?” Carey said. “You see him in the field game, he’s played that his whole life, he’s comfortable and he’s very disruptive, but last year I think there was maybe some hesitation on his end… There are a lot of nuances that come with the box game compared to the field game, so as he continues to get more experience, I think, for him, it’s confidence, that’s the biggest thing.”
His game has proven to transition to the box. In eight games for the Knighthawks last year, Piseno averaged 4.75 loose ball recoveries per game and caused nine turnovers.
Fingar came to Albany at the same time as Hogg and Piseno but spent an extra season there after not playing in 2023. As a Great Dane, the 6-foot-1, 200-pound midfielder tallied 25 points, but his defensive contributions were the key with 22 caused turnovers and 114 groundballs.
Fingar caught league attention with his four seasons playing for the Hawkeyes in the UCBLL. While playing under Knighthawks captain Dan Coates, he earned the C in 2024 and led the Hawkeyes to an undefeated season and an NCBS National Championship. This summer was his last with the Hawkeyes. He was named to the NCBS all-tournament first team after tallying 29 loose ball recoveries and three points 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.