BOSTON, Mass. - Graduate student attack Michael Zapatka (Newington, Conn.) tallied a hat trick while junior midfielder James Krieg (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) chipped in with two goals and one assist to lead the Western Connecticut State University men's lacrosse squad to a breathtaking rally as they stormed back to tame UMass Boston, 9-6, in a Little East Conference battle on Tuesday evening. 

With the win, the Wolves retained the top spot in the Little East Conference standings, improving to 13-3 overall and 7-0 in league play, while the Beacons dropped to 9-7 and 5-2. Reigning LEC Defensive Player of the Week Charlie Guidera (Redding, Conn.) scooped up a game-high five ground balls for the visitors, while rookie middie Chase Canfora (East Islip, N.Y.) won 10-of-16 faceoff attempts. 

Jack Schartner paced the hosts with three goals, while three other Beacons found the back of the twine. 

WestConn fell behind early and would trail 5-1 midway through the second quarter. Junior midfielder Sam Rosa (Trumbull, Conn.) found the back of the cage seconds before halftime, slicing the deficit to 5-2. 

The Wolves continued to climb back in the third as they reeled off four straight to seize a 6-5 lead. Kreig canned two and Zapatka added another while rookie middie Joseph D'Orazio (Holtsville, N.Y) also pierced the scoring column. Schartner earned the hat trick to deadlock it at 6-6 before the Wolves took the lead for good when junior attack Michael Mrzyglod (Red Hook, N.Y.) fired a shot home to make it 7-6 heading into the fourth quarter. The visitors tacked on a pair of insurance markers late in the game to round the count out at 9-6. 

Both goalies were stellar in net. WestConn sophomore Jake Kelly (Bethpage, N.Y.) turned aside 19 shots while James Boldy stopped 16 for the Beacons. The Wolves return to action for their regular season finale at conference nemesis Plymouth State on Friday at 4 p.m. The LEC Championship Tournament is slated to begin with the quarterfinal round on Tuesday.