Pittsburgh, Pa. – The 2016-17 season officially gets underway this weekend, when the Robert Morris University women's hockey team heads to Providence College for a series on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 2 at 12:30 p.m. at Schneider Arena.
 
The Colonials enter the weekend with one game under their belt: an exhibition contest against the Toronto Jr. Aeros last Friday at 84 Lumber Arena. RMU topped Toronto, 2-0, on goals from sophomore defenseman Maggie LaGue and senior defenseman Mikaela Lowater.

 

ROBERT MORRIS AT PROVIDENCE COLLEGE
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1		Puck Drop	Live Stream	Live Stats
ROBERT MORRIS | PROVIDENCE		2:00 p.m.	Friars.com	GameTracker
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 2
ROBERT MORRIS | PROVIDENCE		12:30 p.m.	Friars.com	GameTracker

 
Robert Morris versus Providence College
The Colonials are 2-5-1 all-time versus the Friars.
 
 
Welcome Back
Robert Morris returns 19 players from last year's CHA Tournament semifinalist squad, including 2015-16 All-CHA First Team selections, redshirt junior forward Brittany Howard and senior defenseman Mikaela Lowater. Howard paced the league in points (40), power-play points (15) short-handed points (3), assists (23), tied for second in goals (17), and ranked tied for third in game-winning goals (4).
 
Lowater ranked first in the CHA in power-play goals (7), second in defenseman scoring (22) and power-play points (13), and tied for 10^th in goal scoring (11). The fourth-year from Thornhill, Ontario, ended the season seventh in the nation in total blocked shots (81).
 
Top Notch
The Colonials welcome back their top-four point producers, including Howard, senior Mackenzie Johnston, sophomore defenseman Kirsten Welsh, and sophomore forward Sarah Quaranta. Johnston ranked among the top 10 in the conference in power-play points (t-5^th; 9), power-play goals (t-6^th; 3), goal scoring (t-8^th; 12) and game-winning goals (t-9^th; 20). She led Robert Morris in shot percentage (.152) and ranked tied for second on the team in points (25) with Welsh.
 
A sophomore from Blackstock, Ontario, and member of the 2015-16 All-USCHO Rookie Team, Welsh captured the top spot in the CHA in defenseman scoring (25) and placed second in freshman scoring. She was third in the conference in power-play goals (5) and power-play points (11). Fellow sophomore and All-CHA Freshman Team selection Quaranta ranked third in the CHA in rookie points (24), tied for sixth in assists (19) and tied for 10^th in power-play points (8).
 
Oh Captain, My Captain
Senior forward Rikki Meilleur was named captain of the 2016-17 Colonials.
 
Fresh Faces
A talented cast of four freshmen rounds out the 2016-17 roster. Joining the Colonials this season are forwards Jaycee Gebhard, Aneta Ledlova, Emma Low-A-Chee and Natalie Marcuzzi.
 
Looking Back: 2015-16 Team Highlights
As a team, the 2015-16 squad set new team season records in the following categories:
Points (292: 108g, 184a)
Points per game (7.68; 38 games)
Goals (108)
Assists (184)
Assists per game (4.84; 38 games)
Games played (38)
 
2015-16 Individual Highlights
Senior Jessica Dodds set a new individual season record in shutouts (5).
Dodds now holds the all-time career record in wins (45) and career shutouts (11).
 
Redshirt junior Brittany Howard improved to:
Fifth all-time in career points (82: 34g, 48a)
T-second all-time in career game-winning goals (9)
Fourth all-time in career assists (48)
 
College Hockey America Honors
All-CHA First Team
Brittany Howard & Mikaela Lowater
All-Rookie Team
Maggie LaGue & Sarah Quaranta
(To date, 16 different Colonials have earned a total of 31 all-conference honors in program history, including 19 awards won by 10 student-athletes under head coach Paul Colontino dating back to the 2011-12 season)
 
College Hockey America Tournament Honors
All-Tournament Team
Kirsten Welsh
 
USCHO Division I Honors
All-Rookie Team
Kirsten Welsh
 
 
Follow RMU Women's Hockey:
@RMUWHockey
@rmu_w_hockey
Robert Morris University Athletics