The Minnesota Swarm have announced the team has signed its top draft pick, forward Miles Thompson, to a two-year deal. The Swarm selected Thompson with the third overall selection in the 2014 NLL Draft.
“Miles was one of the most electrifying players in all of college lacrosse during his four-year career at UAlbany and we’re excited to add a player of his caliber to our roster,” said Swarm Owner and Governor John Arlotta. “Swarm fans are going to enjoy watching him play for many years to come at ‘The Hive’ with his ability to both score and distribute the ball.”
Thompson, 23, was a co-recipient of the prestigious 2014 Tewaaraton Trophy (lacrosse equivalent of football’s Heisman Trophy) with his brother, Lyle, and finished his four-year career at the University at Albany as the school’s all-time leader in points (293) and goals (189). The Thompson Brothers became the first Native Americans to ever win the Tewaaraton Trophy this past spring.
Known as one of the game’s most lethal scorers, Thompson matched a NCAA record with 82 goals in ’14 and was a USILA First Team All-American. Thompson ranked first in the nation with a 4.56 goals per game average, and recorded a season-high eight goals against Harvard in the regular season. The native of Onondaga Nation, N.Y. also added 37 assists last year, which gave him 119 points on the season, the second most all-time in a single season for a Division I player. As a member of the “Thompson Trio”, Thompson and the rest of his teammates at UAlbany captured the attention of the entire country last year during their run to the NCAA Quarterfinals, where they eventually fell to Notre Dame in a nationally-televised overtime contest.
In the World Lacrosse Championships this summer in Denver, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound righty helped lead the Iroquois National Team to a bronze medal finish.
The contract is currently pending league approval.
