Robert Morris (8-11-1, CHA 3-1-0) vs. Syracuse (3-12-0, CHA 0-8-0)
Friday, Jan. 9, 2009 ? 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2009 ? 7:00 p.m.
Tennity Ice Arena ? Syracuse, N.Y.
RMU in Review ? This past weekend the Colonials dropped two games to the Bemidji State Beavers and move to 1-3-1 in the all-time series against the Beavers. On night one, Robert Morris fell 2-0 to the Beavers, however, senior goalie Brianne McLaughlin still had an exceptional performance, recording her seventh 30-plus save game of the year. The netminder tallied 39 saves, a .951 saving average and a 2.03 GAA. The Beavers and the Colonials started even, with neither squad scoring in the first perioed, but Bemidji was able to find the net once in the second period and once in the third period for the win.
On night two, Bemidji defeated the Colonials again, this time with a 3-1 decision. The Beavers got the first strike of action, scoring at 6:30 in the first period. RMU sophomore Kylie Rossler answered back in the second period at 10:54, as she flipped the puck into the top left corner of the net, with senior Alissa Dorman and junior Jessica Riley adding the helpers. Unfortunately, Bemidji captured their second goal three minutes later and then added to their lead again in the third period, ending the game, 3-1.
Scouting the Syracuse Orange ? Last week, Syracuse faced CHA foe No. 4 Mercyhurst and fell in both games by scores of 5-1 and 9-2, respectively. In game one, freshman Megan Skelly tallied the Orange's lone goal, with sophomores Stefanie Marty and Julie Rising adding the assists. In game two, Skelly led Syracuse again, recording another goal and one assist, while freshman Kylie Klassen added the other goal for the Orange.
In the Orange and Colonials last meeting, Robert Morris slipped past Syracuse by one goal in both games, winning 1-0 on night one and 3-2 on night two. In the 1-0 win, sophomore Sara O'Malley grabbed the Colonials' lone goal, with freshman Brianna Delaney and senior Samantha Ullrich adding the assists. In the 3-2 win, senior Megan Picinic led the way with a goal and an assist, while senior Morgan Beikirch tallied two assists. Also in the win, freshman Kathryn Stack scored her first collegiate goal.
In the Orange's first season as a Division I program, they are led by freshman Megan Skelly, who has racked up eight goals and six assists for 14 points. Sophomore Stefanie Marty and freshman Lisa Mullen are tied for second with 11 points each.
Brianne Barrier - Senior netminder Brianne McLaughlin has once again proved herself as being one of the top goalies in the country after stopping 63 of 65 shots against the Gophers in the Colonials season opener against the No. 3 Minnesota Gophers and scoring a save percentage of .969 to lead Robert Morris to a 3-2 victory. Last season McLaughlin was named All-CHA First Team and has already started to rack up the awards this year. McLaughlin earned U.S. College Hockey Online National Defensive Player of the Week and CHA Defensive Player of the Week for her performance against Minnesota. In the Colonials 20 contests thus far, McLaughlin has tallied 546 saves, has a .930 saving average, a 2.60 GAA and has a 7-8-1 record. Currently, McLaughlin has 3,386 saves and needs just 204 to become the national leader and she is also ranked ninth in the nation with her .930 save percentage.
Pressure Points ? The Colonial squad has a knack for putting up strong performances in pressure situations. So far this season, the Colonials have played in nine games that were decided by a one goal difference and Robert Morris has come out victorious in six out of those nine games.
Miles Above the Rest- Every season, senior captain Kristen Miles manages to be one of the Colonials' top scorers. She is currently first in the career records books for goals with 36 and recently tied senior Morgan Beikirch to be the Colonial's top point scorer with 64 total points. Just like in past seasons, Miles is atop the Colonial leader board in points this year with 13 and leads the squad in assists with nine.
Delaney Delivers - Freshman forward Brianna Delaney continues to be one of the Colonials' primary offensive threats. She currently leads the squad with eight goals and eight assists for 16 points. Her 16 points makes her one of the top scoring freshman in the CHA and the nation, as she is ranked 18th nationally with 0.80 points per game.
Back in Conference Action - The Robert Morris Colonials have not competed in conference play since Nov. 15, when the Colonials faced CHA foe Niagara and earned their first conference loss of the season. Presently, RMU holds a 3-1 CHA record and will look to improve that record with two wins against Syracuse to remain ahead of Niagara and the Orange.
Scoring Double ? Although no Colonial has yet to score a hat trick this season, four Colonials have notched double goal games. Freshman Brianna Delaney earned the first multi-goal game for the Colonials against Cornell (11/1/08), which was followed by a pair of goals by Kristen Miles against Rensselaer (11/21/08). In the Colonials second win over Maine, both Whitney Pappas and Sara O'Malley captured two goals (11/29/08).
Colonials in the CHA ? In the Colonials 10 weeks of competition thus far, three Colonials have earned CHA Honors. Senior goalie Brianne McLaughlin earned CHA Defensive Player of the Week after her clutch performance against No. 3 Minnesota and the following week sophomore Whitney Pappas earned CHA Defensive Player of the Week, while freshman Brianna Delaney captured CHA Offensive Player of the Week for their performances in Robert Morris' double wins over Syracuse. Pappas and Delaney recently secured their second CHA honor after consecutive wins over the Maine Black Bears on Nov. 28-29.
Securing the Win - When the Colonials enter the third period, Robert Morris intensifies their play. So far this season, the Colonials have earned three of their eight wins with game-winners in the third period and captured their lone tie with a goal late in the third period. Also, the Colonials are 5-0 when leading after the second period, due to the Colonial defense's ability to shut-down opponents in the third period.
Mellon Memories - For the first time in the RMU women's ice hockey program, the squad competed in the Pittsburgh College Hockey Showcase at Mellon Arena and put on one of the most exciting shows of the season, thus far. In front of one of Robert Morris's biggest crowds and with the score knotted 1-1 against Niagara, Morgan Beikirch dropped the puck in the net with less than a minute left in regulation to win the game for the Colonials, 2-1.
A Pittsburgh Penguin Product - It will not be freshman defenseman Paige Pietrangelo's first residence in the steel city as she embarks on her hockey career at Robert Morris. The rookie spent the first year of her life in Pittsburgh, as her father Frank Pietrangelo competed as a goalie for the Penguins from 1987-92.
Pietrangelo quickly became a fan favorite upon his arrival with the Penguins, and although playing back-up to Tom Barrasso for most of his time in Pittsburgh, he is remembered by Penguin fans for his clutch performance in the 1991 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In the sixth game of the first round against the New Jersey Devils, Pietrangelo was put in the game late in the first period and was faced one-on-one with Peter Stastny. Pietrangelo dove to his left and made a remarkable glove save, which is known to this day in Penguin hockey history as “The Save”. The Penguins ended up winning game six 4-3 to force a game seven in which Pietrangelo earned a 4-0 shut-out win. The Penguins went on to win the Stanley Cup that season, with Pietrangelo contributing a 4-1 record. throughout the playoffs.
On the Internet - All Robert Morris men's and women's hockey home games can be heard live on the internet by visiting www.sports.yahoo.com. Gero Von Dehn returns for his fifth season of play-by-play while Bob Kennedy will provide color commentary.
Home Sweet Home - The women's ice hockey team will have all the luxuries of the RMU Island Sports Center for 18 games this season, including eight straight home games in the month of November. The Colonials opened up the home and conference season on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 10-11 against CHA newcomer Syracuse and came out victorious in both contests. To date the Colonials are 4-6-1 on home ice. Last season, the Colonials had most of their success at the RMU Island Sports Center, earning seven of their 12 wins on home ice.
Sharing the Wealth - The Colonials really know how to play as a team, which is shown from the fact that in all of Robert Morris' wins this season seven different players have scored the game-winning goal. Against Minnesota, Jacki Gibson tallied the game clinching goal, in the Colonials' two contests against Syracuse Sara O'Malley and Megan Picinic put in the game-winners , against Cornell freshman Brianna Delaney scored the deciding goal and in RMU's win over Niagara senior Morgan Beikirch captured the game-winner. In the Colonials victories over Maine junior Jordan Riley and Picinic clinched the winners and in the Colonial's most recent win over Sacred Heart senior captain Alissa Dorman earned her first goal of the season, which happened to be the game winner.
Depending on Defense ? When the Robert Morris defense is able to hold their opponents to just one goal or less, the Colonials will win. So far this season they are undefeated (4-0) when holding their opponent to one goal or less.
Making Defensive Strides - The Riley sisters are the first set of twins to play a sport for the Colonials since the Aloi sisters, Natalie and Nicole, played softball and graduated from Robert Morris in 2001.
Meeting Moxley ? Candice Moxley enters her first season as an assistant coach for the Colonials. Moxley has had numerous stints as an on-ice instructor, while also coaching high school hockey. Moxley was a stand-out at Niagara University from 2002-05 and led her team to a frozen four appearance in 2002. She was named captain in 2003-04, was named All-CHA Second Team and earned the Taps Gallagher Award for Sportsmanship in her senior year. Following her collegiate career, Moxley played two seasons in the National Women's Hockey League.
Two is Always Better - The Riley sisters are the first set of twins to play a sport for the Colonials since the Aloi sisters, Natalie and Nicole, played softball and graduated from Robert Morris in 2001.
