BROOKVILLE, N.Y. — Striker Emil Jaaskelainen took a deserved bow in his season debut with the LIU men's soccer team on Monday.

After sitting out the opener serving a one-game suspension for incurring a red card in last year's NCAA Tournament, Jaaskelainen scored a pair of goals in the opening 11 minutes against Iona.

The Sharks ultimately withstood playing down a man for a portion of the second half and claimed a 2-1 victory against the Gaels at LIU Soccer Park.

Iona's lone goal came on a penalty kick by Sergio Gonzalez Fernandez in the 55th minute.

LIU midfielder Matthias Heiland picked up a red card in the 57th minute, resulting in LIU playing down a man while clinging to a one-goal lead.

However, Iona's Federico Russo picked up his second yellow card of the match in the 69th minute and the teams concluded the match playing 10-on-10.

It was a red card picked up in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Saint Louis last postseason that forced Jaaskelainen to sit out a season-opening 1-0 win against Stony Brook on Thursday.

Jaaselainen, who recently was named to the Mac Hermann Trophy watch list, wasted no time in his delayed season debut. After scoring the second of his goals to stake LIU to a 2-0 lead, Jaaselainen took a bow while facing a crowd.

"It was horrible," Jaaskelainen said about watching the season opener against Stony Brook. "You always want to be out there playing. But the boys did very well."

Jaaskelainen dedicated Monday's win to Ben Assane Fall, who started at striker in Jaaskelainen's absence in the opener and suffered an injury that forced him to miss the Iona match.

Against Iona, Sharks goalkeeper Sergio Peralta made five saves during a standout performance.

A combined seven cards were issued and 34 fouls called.

LIU now owns a 2-0 record heading into the completion of a season-opening three-game homestand on Friday at 4 p.m. against Fordham. The Sharks will be seeking to go 3-0 for the first time since opening the 1992 season with four straight wins.