Lacrosse lost one of the giants of the game when Jim Darcangelo, 67, died Saturday morning.

Darcangelo, a National Lacrosse Hall of Famer and co-founder of the sport’s first national retail store, passed away at his home in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

According to the family, Darcangelo succumbed due to cardiac arrest around 3:30 a.m. He had recently been hospitalized because of a bicycle accident that caused broken ribs and a collapsed lung but was recovering at home at the time of his death.

Samantha Darcangelo, a standout midfielder at Maryvale Prep and the University of Florida, expressed the family’s grief through a Facebook post on Saturday.

“There are no words to describe the pain. He was taken from us suddenly and far before any of us were ready,” Samantha Darcangelo wrote about her father. “He had the biggest heart of anyone I knew, always willing to go the extra mile for anyone he cared about.”

Darcangelo was a three-time All-American at Towson State College and one of the stars of the school’s 1974 Division II/III national championship team. The Corning, New York, native was a do-it-all midfielder who was named first-team All-American and College Division Player of the Year in 1974 and 1975.

Darcangelo, high-scoring attackman Bob Griebe and defenseman Wendell Thomas were the key figures for the 1974 Towson squad led by head coach Carl Runk. Darcangelo dominated between the lines in terms of gobbling up ground balls and single-handedly clearing from end-to-end, while also initiating the offense from the top with his superb dodging ability.

Griebe piled up 89 points and fellow attackman Tom Nelson scored 41 goals as Towson compiled a 13-1 record and edged Hobart for the national championship, 18-17, in overtime at Cortland State.

“Jimmy was the perfect package and as complete a midfielder as I ever saw,” said former Towson defenseman Steve “Mouse” Marshall, who graduated with Darcangelo in 1975. “Jimmy was a tremendous team leader and an offensive force — a dangerous dodger with a great shot. He and Bob Griebe were the dynamic duo.”

Runk, who took over the program in 1968, recalled recruiting Darcangelo as a package deal along with his Corning East High teammate and friend John Baldini.

“We were a small school and didn’t have a whole lot of scholarship money back then. I knew Jim Darcangelo was a franchise type of player so I offered him the best deal I could, which was about $400,” Runk recalled. “That’s the best $400 I ever spent in my life because Jim took our program to another level.”

Runk and Darcangelo last got together several months ago when Darcangelo picked up Runk at his Parkville home and they went out to lunch.

“I was shocked to hear of Jim’s passing and it has left me depressed and hurt. He was taken way too early,” Runk said. “Jim was an outstanding lacrosse player, but above all else he was an outstanding person. He was a real credit to the game of lacrosse and contributed in so many ways.”

Runk remembers that championship game with Hobart going back-and-forth and Towson squandered a rather comfortable lead toward the end of regulation.

“I got pretty worked up about how the game was getting away and Jimmy just patted me on the back and said: ‘Don’t worry coach, we’re going to win this one for you.’ Jimmy was always calm, cool and collected,” Runk said.

Darcangelo enjoyed an impressive post-college career, making the United States national team in 1978, 1982 and 1986. He helped Team USA capture the Federation of International Lacrosse world championship all three years.

Darcangelo joined the Maryland Lacrosse Club in 1976 and was instrumental in establishing a dynasty. He was largely responsible for helping recruit a core of players that helped MLC capture a slew of United States Club Lacrosse Association championships before hanging up the helmet and cleats in the early 1990s.

Darcangelo was named USCLA Player of the Year in 1979 and was the first recipient of the Krongard Award, the highest honor attainable by an active club player, in 1989.

Darcangelo was inducted into the Towson University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1986 and was selected for the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1990, his first year of eligibility.

Darcangelois survived by his wife Marilyn and children, Jaret and Samantha.