Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University men's hockey team has been selected by the league's coaches as the favorite to win the Atlantic Hockey Association conference in the 2015-16 season.
RMU won the 2014-15 regular season conference title with a 19-5-4 league record and finished the season 24-8-5 overall. Derek Schooley was named AHC Coach of the Year and four returning players, Zac Lynch, Chase Golightly, Dalton Izyk and Brady Ferguson, received all-league honors in some form.
"It is a very nice honor to be selected by the coaches as the preseason favorite," said head coach Derek Schooley.
"We have nine seniors who have won a lot of hockey games in the past three years so I am sure that is a big reason the coaches feel the Colonials are deemed the preseason favorite," said Schooley. "Unfortunately for us, the league doesn't determine the regular season and playoff champion by a vote on paper in September."
2015-16 Atlantic Hockey Coaches Poll
1. Robert Morris (7) - 97 points
2. RIT (4) - 91 points
3. Bentley - 72 points
4. Canisius - 64 points
5. Sacred Heart - 56 points
6. Holy Cross - 55 points
7. Air Force - 47 points
8. Mercyhurst - 46 points
9. Niagara - 38 points
10. Army West Point - 29 points
11. American International - 10 points
RMU led Atlantic Hockey from start to finish in 2014-15, posting a pair of nine-game unbeaten streaks, a team-record seven-game winning streak, and wins over two nationally ranked programs. The Colonials rounded out a 14-3-2 home record with a two-game sweep of Niagara in an AHC quarterfinal series at 84 Lumber Arena.
The Colonials return all three goaltenders, eight defenseman, and seven of its' top nine forwards. Along with nine seniors, RMU welcomes six newcomers, including five incoming freshman.
"Atlantic Hockey is a very deep league and we know this going to be a very tough season ahead," said Schooley. "We have a tremendous amount of respect for all teams in our league and we are looking forward to the first puck drop of the season."
Robert Morris plays an exhibition against the University of Guelph on October 11 at 2:05pm at 84 Lumber Arena, before opening the regular season at home against AHC opponent Air Force on October 16-17. For more information, including ticket availability and pricing, visit RMUColonials.com or call 412-397-4949.
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