PITTSBURGH -- Before their long-awaited home opener, the No. 9 Robert Morris women's hockey team showered their fans with gifts on behalf of the Children's Institute of Pittsburgh, only to leave them awash in offense throughout the contest.

The Colonials (8-1-2, 3-0-2) set a new regular-season, regulation-time mark for the program with 65 shots on goal, erupting in the third period for a 6-1 win over RIT (4-6-1, 1-2-0) at the RMU Island Sports Center Friday night. RMU is now unbeaten in seven straight games overall (5-0-2) and has taken its last five meetings from their College Hockey America (CHA) rival.

Robert Morris outshot the Tigers 50-9 over the final two frames.

"We got goal scoring from a lot of different lines, and that's great. When you have multiple tools in the toolbox, the confidence spreads throughout your team," head coach Paul Colontino said. "Offense is tough, because sometimes it's there, sometimes it's not, so when you get it, you're pleased with it, especially when you get it spread out the way it was. That's probably what we're most happy about."

Indeed, it was a pair of defenders that actually gave the Colonials a second-period lead they would not surrender. Rookie blue-liner Emily Curlett quickly broke a scoreless deadlock with a one-timer from the left circle on a Robert Morris power play, and Kirsten Welsh blasted one from just above the circle for the eventual game-winner.

Up front, Natalie Marcuzzi attacked relentlessly, finishing a determined effort with six shots and a plus-1 rating, and she was finally rewarded with her first assist of 2017-18 on a Lexi Templeman tip-in with under eight minutes to go in the game.

"We got momentum in that second period and just put it into that other level that we have," Welsh said. "Our back end is doing great right now. We're all supporting each other and pushing each other to do better."

The usual suspects were their usual, dominant selves as well. It was Welsh, padding her all-time lead in career points among RMU defensemen, who helped trigger a run of three goals in a span of 2:03 by setting up Brittany Howard for another power-play tally in the first minute of the last twenty.

Howard alone rung up 12 shots on the night, and Robert Morris had rung up plenty of quality chances after two periods, but only managed the one-goal lead in light of some admirable, if not historical, work in goal by Terra Lanteigne and a couple tough bounces late in the second on the uncut ice. That all changed once the Colonials' assistant captain found the net.

"The floodgates finally opened," Howard said. "Our 'D' were working on getting it past their forward fronting. They did a great job seeing lanes, the forwards up front weren't getting hit. [We were] just getting pucks on net through lanes."

A subsequent snap shot from the right side gave Howard, the reigning CHA scoring champion and current leader, her conference-best 12th goal of the campaign. She enjoyed a four-point night, as did Welsh, who got the secondary helper and now leads RMU with nine points (4 G, 5 A) in conference play.

Howard's left winger, junior Amber Rennie, who also got her season off to a hot start offensively, broke out of a brief scoring drought by sneaking a puck past Lanteigne off the ensuing faceoff for a 5-1 cushion.

Now the Colonials look for a second consecutive sweep in conference play when RIT returns to Colonials Arena for a 3:05 p.m. puck drop Saturday, having most decidedly made themselves at home.

"There was an energy in the changing room. Even on the car rides here this morning, for pregame skate, everyone was just excited," said Howard, now also tied for the Division I lead in goals. "There were a little bit of nerves starting out, but once we got on the ice and got our legs going, we were good to go."

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