Robert Morris Colonials (5-11-3, 2-4-2 CHA) @ RIT Tigers (7-11-3, 1-5-1 CHA)
Friday, January 9, 2015 / Gene Polisseni Center – Rochester, N.Y. / 3:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 10, 2015 / Gene Polisseni Center – Rochester, N.Y. / 3:00 p.m.

Top Story – Coming on the heels of the program's first midseason exhibition, Robert Morris returns to College Hockey America (CHA) play this weekend as it travels to RIT. Both the Colonials and Tigers are looking for a fresh start in 2015, as they respectively sit fifth and sixth in the CHA standings following a disappointing 2014. However, RMU closed out the first half of the season on a high note with a 4-2 victory over Penn State, whereas RIT currently sits on a three-game losing streak with losses to Syracuse and North Dakota. This series will mark the only time the Colonials are away from the Steel City this month as they return to face Quinnipiac, Lindenwood, and Mercyhurst in the following weeks.


 
Series History – The series between Robert Morris and RIT has never lacked drama. The Colonials trail the Tigers by the slimmest of margins at 5-6-1, with nine of the 12 contests coming down to one goal. In fact, the first five meetings between RMU and RIT were all one-goal affairs. Last season, the Colonials took the first three games of the series, with the final victory being the program's first on the road against the Tigers. However, RIT rebounded the following day to earn a split, and then beat RMU by a score of 4-1 in the CHA Semifinals. With the Colonials' well-documented evenness against Syracuse (9-9-8), maybe it's just something about conference opponents that don the color orange.
 
Scouting RIT – The reigning CHA Tournament champion, RIT has struggled in 2014-15 with its record sitting at 7-11-3 through the first half of the season. Senior forward Celeste Brown leads the team in goals (7) and points (12), while sophomore Mackenzie Stone paces the Tigers in assists (8). Three different goaltenders have seen time between the pipes for RIT, with senior Ali Binnington easily being the most impressive as she has compiled a record of 5-4-1 with a 1.09 goals against average and a save percentage of .957. The Colonials will probably have their fair share of chances on the power play with RIT currently leading the nation in penalties (111). The Tigers have gone on to kill 82.2 percent of those opportunities.
 
Last Time Out – Robert Morris returned to the ice this past Saturday to take on the University of Windsor in exhibition play. After a slow opening 20 minutes, the Colonials potted all four of their goals in the middle frame en route to a 4-1 victory over the Lancers.
 
Ashley Vesci opened up the scoring 44 seconds into the second period with a power-play tally off passes from Maddie Collias and Jessica Dodds.
 
Less than two minutes later, Amanda Pantaleo redirected a shot from Leah Carlson to double the lead. Anissa Gamble gained the secondary assist on the goal.
 
Vesci struck again exactly two minutes after Pantaleo's tally as she gathered a pass from Megan Eady and used a nice toe drag to light the lamp.
 
Gamble scored with 8:19 remaining in the frame on the power play. Katelyn Scott and Collias earned the helpers on the goal.
 
Windsor avoided the shutout with a tally late in the final stanza.
 
Dodds made 16 saves in the first two periods, while Carley Catherine stopped four shots in the final 20 minutes.
 
Know Your Enemy – Four current Colonials have tallied multiple points against RIT in their careers.
 
Rebecca Vint leads the way with five points (2g, 3a). Last season on Feb. 14, Vint scored a third-period, short-handed goal to give RMU a 2-1 victory over the Tigers in Rochester.
 
The three other players with multiple points against RIT are Brittany Howard (2g, 2a), Maeve Garvey (2g), and Katelyn Scott (1g, 1a). Both of Garvey's goals were unassisted tallies in the Colonials' 4-2 victory over the Tigers on Dec. 7, 2013.
 
Jessica Dodds made five starts against RIT last season, compiling a 1.81 goals against average and a save percentage of .924. Three of the nine goals she allowed versus the Tigers came on the power play.
 
Two's Company – Amanda Pantaleo became the second Colonial freshman to earn CHA Rookie of the Week honors this season following a two-assist performance against Penn State on Dec. 6, 2014.
 
Pantaleo joins Natalie Fraser as RMU's rookie award winners in 2014-15. Fraser scored twice and added an assist in a series at Lindenwood on Nov. 7-8, 2014.
 
Four distinct freshmen earned CHA Rookie of the Week honors last season: Jessica Dodds, Maeve Garvey, Brittany Howard, and Mackenzie Johnston.
 
The Meilleur's New Role – After compiling a single goal and assist as a freshman, Rikki Meilleur has flourished in her sophomore campaign, leading the team with seven goals through 19 games.
 
If the sophomore forward continues her offensive turnaround, she could become the sixth player in program history to increase her point total by at least 10 points between her first and second seasons.
 
The five to accomplish that feat are listed below:
- Alissa Dorman: 5 (2g, 3a) in 05-06, 23 (13g, 10a) in 06-07 / +18
- Megan Picinic: 4 (2g, 2a) in 05-06, 21 (11g, 10a) in 06-07 / +17
- Kristen Miles: 11 (8g, 3a) in 05-06, 24 (15g, 9a) in 06-07 / +13
- Ashley Vesci: 1 (0g, 1a) in 12-13, 14 (6g, 8a) in 13-14 / +13
- Maddie Collias: 5 (4g, 1a) in 11-12, 15 (6g, 9a) in 12-13 / +10
 
Block Party – Robert Morris currently leads the nation in blocks and is second in blocks per game. The Colonials have stopped 348 shots from reaching their goaltenders, 11 less than Bemidji State in three fewer games. RMU has blocked an average of 18.32 shots per contest, 1.37 more than second-place Connecticut.
 
Mikaela Lowater leads the team with 37 blocks, ranking her in a tie for 11th nationally. Fellow defenseman Kelsey Gunn is also in the top 20 with 34 blocks.
 
Among forwards, Rikki Meilleur ranks eighth with 27 blocks.
 
This is familiar territory for RMU, as it has ranked in the top four nationally in blocks in 2012-13 and 2013-14. The Colonials slotted third two seasons ago with 489 blocks, and were fourth last season with 575.
 
New Year, New Robert Morris? – The Colonials will have a chance to turn things around in the second half of the season as 12 of their last 14 regular-season games will be against CHA opponents.
 
Since expanding to six teams, a team outside the top two at midseason has gone onto the CHA Championship Game. RIT, who sat in third in conference last January at 4-3-1, won the title.
 
The 100 Club – Erin Staniewski is slated to play in her 100th game this weekend at RIT, joining classmates Katie Fergus (119), Katelyn Scott (115), Maddie Collias (112), Rebecca Vint (111), and Kelsey Gunn (106, 26 w/ Niagara).
 
Staniewski will become the 33rd different player in program history to don the Colonial colors in 100 contests. Current assistant coach Chelsea Walkland is the program leader in games played with 140.
 
Packed Lumberyard – Robert Morris' game against Ohio State on Black Friday brought a school record 826 fans out to 84 Lumber Arena, breaking the previous mark of 780 on Jan. 8, 2010 against Connecticut.
 
The last time RMU had played in front of a crowd that large (1,122) was on Jan. 21, 2012 at Mercyhurst when the Colonials earned their first victory over the in-state rival Lakers, 3-2.
 
Networking with the Colonials – Fans can follow the Colonials on Twitter @RMUWHockey to get updates on the team throughout the season. The account has the 16th most followers among NCAA Division I women's hockey teams at 1,289.

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