Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University men's lacrosse team rolled to its third consecutive non-conference win with a 15-6 victory over Detroit Mercy Saturday afternoon in Joe Walton Stadium.
 
The last time Robert Morris (3-1) recorded three consecutive out-of-conference victories was in 2012, when the Colonials went 11-4 overall and 5-0 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play.
 
"Our biggest thing is just making sure we stay consistent," head coach Andrew McMinn said about keeping the team humble during the winning streak. "We try to make sure that the wins and losses don't really impact how we actually move forward. We're still going to evaluate our play as far as what we're doing really well and what we're pleased with, and then talk about the areas we need to improve on this week. Obviously it keeps the guys in good spirits when you're getting the results you want, and now we just need to look ahead to what's going to make us better."
 
Eleven different Colonials contributed points to the win. Freshman Ryan Smith and redshirt sophomore Matt Schmidt each recorded his first career hat trick, which marked a career best in goals for both attackmen. Schmidt added an assist to tally a career-high four points. Redshirt junior Justin Mayfield tabbed a career-best four assists to set a new career standard of four points. Redshirt sophomore Jimmy Perkins scored and dished two assists for a new career-high three points. Junior attack Adrian Torok-Orban scored twice. Sophomore midfield Tyson Gibson, freshman midfield Austin Popovich, and sophomore long stick midfield Jack Toomb all recorded multi-point efforts.
 
Sophomore attack Shane Majewski and sophomore midfield Daniel Smith led the Colonials in ground balls with six apiece, a career best for both players. Smith and junior midfield Conner Yepsen both caused three turnovers. Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Heger made seven saves and allowed just five goals.

 
Detroit Mercy (1-4) entered the fourth quarter trailing Robert Morris by six goals, and cut the Colonials lead to five with the first goal of the final frame, but Robert Morris responded with four consecutive goals, including two from Torok-Orban, to remain a significant distance ahead on the scoreboard, 13-4. The Titans scored two more times in the closing quarter, but Robert Morris freshman midfield Nathaniel Kozevnikov's first career goal with 3:40 remaining earned RMU its largest lead of the day, 15-5. The Titans called timeout and scored quickly out of the break, but ran out of time to make a comeback, as the final score went in favor of the Colonials.
 
The Titans scored twice in the third quarter after struggling to score in the second, but the Colonials continued to pile it on and opened the second half with goals from Schmidt and Smith to put the home team up, 9-1.
 
The Colonials carried momentum from the first into the second period and held the Titans scoreless through all 15 minutes of the frame. Robert Morris posted four unanswered goals, including two from Smith (one man-up), to keep the Colonials rolling right into half time.
 
Detroit Mercy opened the scoring in the first with a man-up tally, but RMU responded with three straight goals to take a two-goal lead to close the opening frame, 3-1.
 
RMU outshout Detroit Mercy, 48-35, and went 1-1 on man-up opportunities. The Titans committed 23 turnovers to the Colonials' 17 miscues.
 
Next up, Robert Morris kicks off a two-game road swing at High Point on Sunday, March 5 at 4 p.m. in High Point, N.C.
 
 
First Things First
Freshman midfield Nathaniel Kozevnikov recorded his first collegiate goal in today's win.
 
Hats Off
Two Colonials recorded a hat trick in the victory over the Titans: redshirt sophomore Matt Schmidt and freshman Ryan Smith.
 
Keep it Rolling
The Colonials are currently riding a three-game winning streak, including a 2-0 mark at home.
 
Mr. Reliable
Junior attack Adrian Torok-Orban is currently riding a 19-game point streak, dating back to April 25, 2015.
 
Schedule Notes
For the first time since 2012, the Colonials will play a game under the lights of Joe Walton Stadium, when they host Canisius on Tues., April 18 at 7 p.m. in a non-conference, evening clash. Men's and women's lacrosse will also compete in a doubleheader on Sat., March 25. The men's team will open the day with a 1 p.m. faceoff with Mount St. Mary's, and the women's squad will host crosstown rival Duquesne at 4 p.m.
 
Colonials in the Pros
There are currently eleven former Colonials from the Robert Morris men's lacrosse program competing in the National Lacrosse League (NLL).
 
 
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