The schedule will once again be highlighted by the team's third consecutive appearance in the Pittsburgh College Hockey Showcase. However, the team will skate in a different arena than in its previous two Showcase matchups with the brand new home of the Pittsburgh Penguins, the CONSOL Energy Center, serving as the venue for this season's game. The RMU women will hit the CONSOL ice Sunday, Oct. 17, at Noon against Northeastern, kicking off a RMU hockey tripleheader at the new rink.

RMU's schedule will once again serve as a strong test for the Colonials, featuring a three-time national champion, two of last season's national semifinalists, 12 games against teams that finished last season ranked among the nation's top 10 and the longest in-season road trip in program history.

"Each year we try to put together a schedule that challenges our team, playing against the top competition across the country, and I believe we have been able to do that again this year," said Handrahan. "The only difference is that we will have a lot of great games right here in Pittsburgh. Last year we were on the road extensively in the first semester."

Robert Morris will give plenty of opportunities for fans to get familiar with the team early on in the season, playing 12 of its first 15 games on home ice.

The Colonials will open the season Friday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m. as they host Providence, the beginning a two game series against the Friars. The Friars should provide RMU with a strong opening weekend test as they finished last season ranked No. 10 in the final USA Today / USA Hockey national rankings. The two games with Providence are the start of a six-game homestand to open the slate for RMU.

The following weekend, Oct. 8-9, RMU will host Ohio State for the first time in program history. The Buckeyes finished last season receiving votes in USCHO's final national rankings, finishing just outside the top 10.

A week later, the Colonials will host the Northeastern Huskies, who finished last season ranked No. 10 in USCHO's final poll, for the first time in program history. The teams will meet at the Colonials' regular home rink, the Clearview Arena at the RMU Island Sports Center, Saturday, Oct. 16, before they play a rematch the following afternoon as part of the aforementioned 2010 Pittsburgh College Hockey Showcase.

The Colonials will hit the road for the first time the next weekend, Oct. 22-23, as they travel north to play two games at Cornell. The Big Red reached the national semifinals last season and finished the year ranked No. 2 in the final USA Today / USA Hockey national rankings. Robert Morris is 1-0-0 all-time against the Big Red, having captured a 2-1 comeback victory, Nov. 1, 2008, in Ithaca, N.Y.

RMU will open its College Hockey America (CHA) schedule a week later, Friday, Oct. 29, with a game at Mercyhurst. The Lakers spent a portion of last season ranked No. 1 nationally, reached the national semifinals and finished the year ranked No. 3 in the final USA Today / USA Hockey national rankings.

After a weekend off, the Colonials will return home to commence another six-game homestand and continue with CHA play when they host Wayne State. The games, Nov. 12-13, will be the first meetings between the teams since they met in last season's CHA Tournament when the Colonials eliminated the Warriors with a 3-1 victory, picking up the first CHA Tournament victory in program history in the process.

The following weekend, Nov. 19-20, will see Robert Morris move back to non-conference competition as it hosts three-time national champion Wisconsin for the first time since 2006. The Colonials recorded one of the biggest wins in program history last season when they knocked off the defending national champion Badgers, 3-1, in Madison.

Wisconsin is just one of the top teams that will visit Pittsburgh within the season's first two months, and Handrahan is certainly pleased that RMU will play host to some of the premier women's hockey teams in the country in 2010-11.

"When you have teams like Ohio State, Wisconsin and Providence coming to your campus, it's always a great thing. Last year we had a very young team that was thrown into the fire very early on, and they showed they could handle it. We are excited to have an experienced group who is hungry to play a schedule of this caliber," added Handrahan.

A week after Wisconsin visits, Nov. 26-27, RMU will host the University of Maine. The matchups will mark the fourth straight season the teams have met, the longest such streak for RMU and any non-conference opponent. The Colonials currently hold a six-game winning streak against the Black Bears and will look to improve upon it in their final home non-conference games of the season.

After playing a dozen home games in the season's first two months, RMU will hit the road for eight straight games spanning the holiday break, the longest in-season road trip in program history. The Colonials will embark on their record-setting road trip with a visit to Minnesota State for a pair of games, Dec. 3-4, the team's first since 2006. The subsequent weekend, Dec. 10-11, Robert Morris will resume CHA play with a visit to Niagara, the team's final games of the 2010 calendar year.

RMU's first two contests of 2011 will be the team's final nonconference games of the season. The Colonials will continue their road trip with the team's inaugural visit to UConn, Jan. 7-8. The Huskies should represent another tough test for the Colonials as they finished last season ranked No. 9 nationally.

Robert Morris will conclude its road trip by returning to CHA play for good with a visit to Syracuse. The Colonials and the Orange will play a pair of games, Jan. 14-15. The following weekend the Colonials finally return home and will welcome CHA power Mercyhurst for a two-game set, Jan. 21-22.

RMU will continue its homestand after a weekend off when Niagara makes its return visit to Pittsburgh, Feb. 4-5. The Colonials will travel to Detroit to play their second two-game set with Wayne State the following week, Feb. 11-12, before Syracuse makes its return trip to Pittsburgh for two games, Feb. 18-19. The second contest against Syracuse will be the Colonials' final regular season home game of the year.

The Colonials will finish their regular season schedule by concluding their four-game season series with Mercyhurst with a single game in Erie, Feb. 25.

Robert Morris will then take part in the CHA Tournament. Syracuse will host the 2011 edition, which is set to take place March 3-5, 2011.