Junior Brianna Delaney (Stittsville, Ontario / NCCP Raiders) and sophomore Kelsey Thomas (Hamilton, Ontario / Hamilton Hawks) led the Colonial effort as each recorded a goal and an assist.

Delaney's second-period score made her the first player in Robert Morris history to have three seasons with at least 20 points. The multi-point effort was also her team-leading seventh of the season and marked the 22nd such occasion in her career.

Thomas' goal was her 10th-career score, and her fifth-career multi-point performance allowed her to match her point total from last season with eight regular-season games remaining.

Robert Morris jumped out of the gates quickly against the nationally-ranked Lakers as freshman Thea Imbrogno (Etobicoke, Ontario / Mississauga Jr. Chiefs) sent a pass from near the defensive third ahead to senior assistant captain Sara O'Malley (Guelph, Ontario / Hamilton Hawks) who was streaking down the ice. O'Malley found herself in alone on Mercyhurst goalie Hillary Pattenden and used some nifty stick work to put the Colonials on top.

Mercyhurst was able to regroup, though, and soon took control by scoring a trio of goals over a 3:11 stretch in the middle of the opening frame. RMU was able to remain within striking distance courtesy of a strong penalty kill that held the Lakers, who led by two at the first intermission, without a power-play goal in the first despite playing with an extra man for over five minutes.

Christie Cicero kept the pressure on for the Lakers by putting one home fewer than two minutes into the second to give Mercyhurst a three-goal lead.

Despite trailing by multiple goals to a top team, Robert Morris refused to give in and began to battle back as the second period continued. The Colonials earned a power play and forced Pattenden to make three saves to keep RMU at bay. Robert Morris could only be held down for so long as Delaney and Thomas combined on two goals in under a minute to flip the momentum.

Thomas began the rally when she intercepted a Laker pass and found Delaney in the right slot. Delaney's quick release beat Pattenden on the short side at the 13:50 mark of the second. Just 55 seconds later, Delaney brought the puck into the offensive third amid heavy pressure from the Mercyhurst defense. As Delaney and Thomas converged near the goal mouth, the former left the puck right in front and Thomas used an impressive backhand while skating by to pull Robert Morris within one.

Sophomore Cobina Delaney (Stittsville, Ontario / Ottawa Senators) added a second assist on the third goal, which marked the second consecutive Thomas goal on which both Delaney sisters have assisted.

The RMU penalty-kill unit produced another strong effort in keeping Mercyhurst off the board in the waning minutes of the second stanza to keep the deficit at just one after 40 minutes were complete.

The Lakers were finally able to break through on the power play early on in the third--but only after RMU had played down two skaters for over 75 seconds--as Mercyhurst's man-advantage tally extended its lead at the 4:24 mark. Although RMU earned a few power plays in the final frame, the Colonials were not able to find some late-game magic. Mercyhurst would add a final goal with just over five minutes left to set the margin.

Robert Morris held the nation's best power-play unit entering the weekend to just a 1-for-8 mark on the evening and has now held the Lakers to just two power-play goals in their last 17 attempts against the Colonials.

O'Malley is now just three goals shy of becoming the first RMU player to reach 50 in her career.

After playing its first home game in over 50 days, Robert Morris will be right back on its own ice Saturday afternoon as the Lakers and Colonials conclude the two-game set. First puck drop is set for 2:05 p.m.