Knighthawks Ink Harris, Coote to One-Year Deals

September 26, 2022 – National Lacrosse League (NLL) – Rochester Knighthawks News Release

(Rochester, NY) – Rochester Knighthawks General Manager and Vice President of Lacrosse Operations Dan Carey announced today that the team has signed forward Vaughn Harris and goaltender Lukas Coote to one-year contracts, pending league approval.

Harris, 26, joins the Knighthawks having totaled 30 goals and 30 assists for 60 points in addition to 161 loose ball recoveries in 33 career games between the Buffalo Bandits, Calgary Roughnecks, Georgia Swarm, and Philadelphia Wings from 2017-2022.

During his first full season in the NLL in 2017-18, Harris posted career-highs in games played (14), goals (18), points (32) and loose-ball recoveries (105) for Buffalo. The 5-foot-10, 195-pound forward finished the campaign ranking in the top six among Bandit scorers while he was fourth in loose balls.

Before turning pro, Harris played for the Six Nations Arrows and Rebels (Jr. A&B), registering 229 points on 126 goals and 103 assists from 2009-2013.

Following his junior career, Harris notched 59 goals and 43 assists for 102 points with the Six Nations Chiefs (Major Series Lacrosse) and Ohsweken Demons (CLax) from 2014-2016. Harris, a two-time winner of the Canadian Mann Cup in 2014 and 2016, added 49 points (21+28) in 30 postseason contests between the two clubs.

Originally a second-round selection (15th overall) of the Roughnecks in the 2016 NLL Entry Draft, Harris was acquired by the Wings in the 2018 NLL Expansion Draft.

Coote, 31, rejoins the Knighthawks having appeared in four games with Rochester during 2021-22 campaign. He made his NLL debut on Mar. 26, 2022 against the Philadelphia Wings.

Coote spent the last five seasons in the Arena Lacrosse League (ALL), including four with his hometown Whitby Steelhawks. During the 2022 season, Coote went 5-2 with 245 saves in nine appearances while finishing second and sixth among all netminders with a 10.71 goals-against average .786 save percentage, respectively.

In 54 career games with Whitby and Oshawa, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound veteran netminder has posted an 18-13-1 record with a 13.00 goals-against average and a .615 save percentage. He also contributed offensively, recording 22 assists, including 11 during the 2018 season.

The Whitby, Ontario, native also went 4-1 in seven playoff contests, winning back-to-back ALL championships along the way with Oshawa (2017) and Whitby (2018).

Additionally, Coote won a Creator’s Cup with the Durham TurfDogs in 2016 in the defunct Canadian Lacrosse League (CLL), making 42 saves on 51 shots in the championship game.

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