BROOKVILLE, N.Y.- Richie LaCalandra scored three goals and added four assists to help guide the Long Island University men's lacrosse team to its first win as the Sharks in a 13-9 victory over Quinnipiac University on Saturday afternoon.
 
LaCalandra led the way with a season-high seven points. Nick Grassa scored four goals and added an assist to finish with five points. Will Snelders and Jake Gillis both scored twice while Sean Boll added a goal.
 
Will Mark earned his first collegiate victory in net, making 16 saves, just three away from tying his career-high.
 
"I'm happy for our guys," said head coach Eric Wolf. "They work really hard and have proven to be a resilient bunch. Our assistant coaches also did a tremendous job of preparing our guys on short rest. It will be another quick turnaround for our group but we're excited to get back to work tomorrow."
 
The Sharks came out strong, taking advantage of an early man up opportunity when Snelders fired home a shot in the first minute of the game. Gillis did not wait long and extended the lead right off the faceoff. The Bobcats would respond with a goal of their own cutting the deficit to just one goal, but that would be the closest Quinnipiac would come to catching the Sharks.
 
Grassa kicked off a three-goal run for the Sharks when he found the back of the net twice within 20 seconds, before Quinnipiac called a timeout. LaCalandra would score twice before the end of the first quarter.
 
The Bobcats scored early in the second to pull within three. After the Bobcats took six shots that missed their marks, Snelders scored once again to regain a four-goal lead. Quinnipiac continued to pressure and scored once more in the first half, but the Sharks responded twice as Grassa capped his hat trick, and Sean Boll scored with just under two minutes left in the half. The Bobcats fired off five shots before the break, but were unable to get passed Mark.
 
Quinnipiac would be the first to score in the third quarter, but Grassa responded with his fourth goal of the day. The Bobcats would score once more in the third, but the Sharks were able to add to the lead as Gillis and LaCalandra both scored in the final three minutes of the quarter.
 
Quinnipiac was able to score two quick goals to get within four goals, but Doug Chase scored an insurance goal on a man up opportunity with just under 11 minutes left to play. The Bobcats would score once more, but Mark made nine saves in the final quarter to seal the first victory of the season for the Sharks.
 
The Sharks are back in action on Tuesday, March 10 when they take on the University of Massachusetts in the final non-conference matchup before Northeast Conference play starts. Game time at Garber Field is set for 2:00 p.m.