Bemidji, Minn. – It was not the season opener the 2015-16 Robert Morris University women's hockey team had hoped for Friday evening as the Colonials dropped a 3-1 decision to the No. 9 Bemidji State Beavers at the Sanford Arena.
 
Junior forward Rikki Meilleur was the lone-goal scorer for Robert Morris (0-1-0). Freshman forward Sarah Quaranta dished out the assist in her first collegiate outing.
 
Meilleur, redshirt sophomore Brittany Howard and senior Ashley Vesci led the Colonials in shots with three apiece. Junior defenseman Mikaela Lowater accounted for seven of the team's 17 blocked shots. Sophomore forward Katherine Murphy and freshman defenseman Kirsten Welsh both finished with a +1 rating. Junior goaltender Jessica Dodds stopped 32 pucks and allowed two goals.
 
While the offense struggled to click for either squad early, Robert Morris failed to capitalize on a power play opportunity in the first period. They managed to post just one of three shots taken in the first 20 minutes of play during the one-man advantage. The Beavers (1-0-0) outshot the Colonials, 10-3, in the first frame, and that trend would continue throughout the night, as Bemidji State outshot Robert Morris, 35-19, overall.
 
Both teams got on the board in the second period and Bemidji State struck early. Sophomore defenseman Alexis Joyce netted the first goal of the game just 1:24 into the frame. The Beavers increased their lead to two when senior forward Stephanie Anderson found the back of the net for a power play goal at the 8:21 mark.
 
RMU squandered another power play opportunity in the second period, but just seconds after the Colonials returned to full strength, Meilleur tipped in Quaranta's shot to put Robert Morris on the board and cut the Bemidji State lead to one.
 
A 4-on-4 situation led to a 58-second power play for RMU in the third, but once again the Colonials fell short and failed to take any shots in what would be their final man-advantage of the game.
 
Head coach Paul Colontino called a timeout with less than a minute remaining and the Colonials pulled goalie Jessica Dodds to put themselves in the best position for a game-tying goal, but Bemidji State sealed the deal with an empty-netter from junior center Lauren Miller.
 
The Colonials return to the ice on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 5:07 p.m. (EST) to complete the two-game non-conference series with No. 9 Bemidji State.
 
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