NEWARK, N.J. — Eric Wolf, an America East alumnus and coach with nearly 15 years of combined experience, has been named the second-ever head coach of the NJIT Men's Lacrosse program, Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics
Lenny Kaplan announced Friday afternoon.
"We are excited to have Eric Wolf accept our offer to be the second Head Lacrosse Coach in NJIT lacrosse history. We were fortunate to have a lot of interest in the position and spoke with a number of excellent candidates. Eric quickly rose to the top of the list and I am looking forward to working with him in making our lacrosse program one of the best in the America East and the region," Kaplan said of the hire.
Wolf joins Highlander Nation after spending the last five seasons as head coach at Long Island University/LIU Post and making prior stops at Harvard, UAlbany and Siena.
"My family and I want to thank Associate Vice President & Athletic Director Lenny Kaplan as well as Senior Associate Director of Athletics Andrew Schwartz for this tremendous opportunity. The belief and trust that NJIT has put in me gives me great confidence to help lead this program to success. I'm so excited to begin the process with our staff and team and I can't wait to get to work," Wolf said after accepting the position.
In his head coaching debut, Wolf oversaw one of the more unique situations in the country as he went from leading the Division II LIU Post Pioneers for two seasons (2018-19) to overseeing the program's first three years in Division I (2020-22) after the merger of LIU's Brooklyn and Post campuses into one institution.
The Sharks adjusted to Division I and the Northeast Conference well in their first two full seasons (LIU's 2020 debut campaign was cut short due to COVID-19), qualifying for the four-team NEC Tournament both years on the strength of two back-to-back NEC major award winners in Offensive Player of the Year Richie LaCalandra and Defensive Player of the Year Will Mark. During his first two years at LIU Post, Wolf posted a pair of 10-plus win campaigns and reached two East Coast Conference Championship games behind the efforts of All-Americans Connor Farrell and William Snelders.
Overall, Wolf went 35-29 (19-8 in conference play) in five seasons at LIU, including 16-21 (9-6 NEC) in three Division I seasons, 13-13 (9-6 NEC) over the last two, and 21-10 (10-2 ECC) at LIU Post.
Prior to LIU, Wolf served as assistant coach and offensive coordinator at Harvard during the 2016 and 2017 seasons, contributing to the Crimson's run to the 2016 Ivy League Championship game.
Before Harvard, Wolf spent four highly successful seasons at his alma mater UAlbany (2012-15) as Assistant Coach, Offensive Coordinator, and Recruiting Coordinator. Under his tutelage, the Great Danes' offense led the nation in scoring three times (2013-15) and propelled the team to three America East Tournament titles (2013-15) and two NCAA Tournament victories (2014-15) across three appearances.
In addition to his time at Harvard and Albany, Wolf served as Assistant Coach, Offensive Coordinator, and Recruiting Coordinator at Siena College from 2009-11, helping the Saints to the program's first two Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championships and NCAA tournament berths (2009, 2011).
Wolf also held the position of assistant coach with the Israeli Men's National Team. During the 2014 World Games in Denver, he helped Team Israel to a 6-2 record and a seventh-place finish, and most recently helped the national team to a 5-2 mark in 2018, also finishing seventh overall.
Wolf's first experience on a collegiate lacrosse staff came a year after graduating as UAlbany's Director of Operations during the 2008 campaign.
A Long Island native from Baldwin, N.Y., Wolf played in 62 career games at UAlbany, helping the Great Danes to three America East Conference titles and NCAA Division I Tournament appearances from 2004-07. He graduated from UAlbany in 2007 with a Bachelor's in Sociology.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT ERIC WOLF
"Eric is a great young professional and an extremely hard worker. I really enjoyed and appreciated the time he spent with me as an assistant at Siena College. He did a remarkable job of building the LIU program to compete for NEC championships during the past few years. He successfully recruited and developed many talented players at LIU to help them play in the postseason and I am sure he will bring that same energy and work ethic to NJIT. He is a tireless recruiter and has a great mind for the game and developing his players."
- Brian Brecht, Rutgers Head Coach
"Eric is one of the most competitive people I know. He knows how to get the most out of his players and he is determined to build a winning culture at NJIT."
- Liam Gleason, Siena Head Coach
"Eric possesses a fantastic work ethic and a sharp mind for the game of lacrosse, among many other great qualities. I know he has made significant positive impacts on each program he has served and believe the NJIT men's lacrosse program is in great hands under his leadership."
- Ben DeLuca, Delaware Head Coach
THE ERIC WOLF FILE
| CAREER OVERVIEW |
| YEARS |
POSITION |
SCHOOL |
CHAMPIONSHIPS |
| 2017-22 |
Head Coach |
LIU / LIU Post |
|
| 2015-17 |
Assistant Coach |
Harvard |
Ivy League Finalist (2016) |
| 2011-15 |
Assistant Coach |
UAlbany |
3x America East Champions/NCAAs (2013-15) |
| 2009-11 |
Assistant Coach |
Siena |
2x MAAC Conference Champions/NCAAs (2009, '11) |
| 2008 |
Dir. of Ops. |
UAlbany |
|
| INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE |
| YEARS |
POSITION |
SCHOOL |
| 2014-18 |
Assistant Coach |
Israel Lacrosse MNT |
| CAREER YEAR-BY-YEAR |
| SEASON |
SCHOOL |
OVERALL |
CONFERENCE |
STANDINGS |
POSTSEASON |
| 2022 |
LIU |
7-8 |
4-3 NEC |
T-3rd |
NEC Semis |
| 2021 |
LIU |
6-5 |
5-3 NEC |
4th |
NEC Semis |
| 2020 |
LIU |
1-6 |
0-0 NEC* |
N/A |
N/A |
| 2019 |
LIU Post |
11-5 |
5-1 ECC |
2nd |
ECC Finals |
| 2018 |
LIU Post |
10-5 |
5-1 ECC |
2nd |
ECC Finals |
| 2017 |
Harvard |
6-7 |
2-4 Ivy |
6th |
|
| 2016 |
Harvard |
8-8 |
3-3 Ivy |
4th |
Ivy Finals |
| 2015 |
UAlbany |
16-3 |
6-0 AE |
1st |
NCAA QF |
| 2014 |
UAlbany |
12-6 |
5-0 AE |
1st |
NCAA QF |
| 2013 |
UAlbany |
13-5 |
5-0 AE |
1st |
NCAA 1st Rd |
| 2012 |
UAlbany |
5-11 |
3-2 AE |
3rd |
AE Finals |
| 2011 |
Siena |
13-5 |
6-0 MAAC |
1st |
NCAA 1st Rd |
| 2010 |
Siena |
12-5 |
4-2 MAAC |
1st |
MAAC Finals |
| 2009 |
Siena |
12-6 |
8-0 MAAC |
1st |
NCAA 1st Rd |
| 2008 |
UAlbany |
8-8 |
4-1 AE |
2nd |
AE Finals |
| As Head Coach |
35-29 |
19-8 |
|
|
| Overall |
140-93 |
65-20 |
|
|
| * No conference play in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic | Head Coaching experience |
| NOTABLE PLAYERS COACHED |
| PLAYER |
SCHOOL |
HONORS |
| Will Mark |
LIU |
Tewaaraton Award Watch List, 2x NEC Defensive Player of the Year |
| Richie LaCalandra |
LIU |
2x NEC Offensive Player of the Year |
| Connor Farrell |
LIU Post |
DII 1st Team All-American, ECC Faceoff Player of the Year |
| William Snelders |
LIU Post |
DII All-American, ECC Rookie of the Year |
| Jake Gillis |
LIU Post |
ECC Rookie of the Year |
| Lyle Thompson |
UAlbany |
2x Tewaaraton Award winner; 3x AE Player of the Year |
| Ryan Duggan |
Siena |
MAAC Offensive Player of the Year |
| Bryan Neufeld |
Siena |
MAAC Offensive Player of the Year |
