Buffalo, N.Y. – The No. 9
Robert Morris University women's hockey team enters the
2017 College Hockey America (CHA) Championship as the No. 1 seed, and will meet the lowest remaining seed in the semifinals on Friday, March 3 at 4 p.m. following the quarterfinal round on Thursday, March 2 in the HARBORCENTER in Buffalo, N.Y.
Robert Morris (22-4-6, 15-3-2 CHA) secured the No. 1 seed in the postseason tournament with a sweep of Lindenwood on the road last weekend, and clinched its first ever CHA Regular-Season Championship title.
For the first time in the history of the tournament, all games will be played at a neutral site. The quarterfinals have also been adjusted to follow the single-elimination format of the rest of the tournament. The CHA squad that comes out victorious will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Official Pregame Party
The 1921 Club is hosting the official pregame party for Robert Morris women's hockey fans traveling to the 2017 CHA Championship. Please join your fellow Colonials fans on Friday, March 3 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at
(716) Food and Sport Restaurant prior to RMU's 4 p.m. puck drop in the semifinals. If the Colonials advance, another fan social will be held on Saturday, March 4 at (716) from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. prior to the 4 p.m. championship game.
Robert Morris versus the CHA
Syracuse | 15-12-5, 14-4-2 (CHA)
The Colonials are 12-15-9 overall versus the Orange. RMU went 2-1-1 against Syracuse in the regular season.
Mercyhurst | 15-17-2, 11-8-1 (CHA)
RMU is 11-41-3 all-time against Mercyhurst. This season, the Colonials claimed the regular-season series with the Lakers, 3-0-1.
Penn State | 9-20-5, 8-10-2 (CHA)
Robert Morris went 3-1 against Penn State this season, and is 14-4-2 against the Nittany Lions in program history.
RIT | 6-26-2, 4-14-2 (CHA)
The Colonials swept the regular-season series with the Tigers, 4-0, and lead the all-time series between the two teams, 13-10-3.
Lindenwood | 5-24-2, 3-16-1 (CHA)
Robert Morris is 21-7-1 all-time against Lindenwood. The Colonials went 3-1-0 versus the Lions this season.
Key Notes
Robert Morris captured its first ever CHA Regular-Season title with a sweep at Lindenwood last weekend.
RMU will face the lowest remaining seed in the CHA Semifinals following the quarterfinal round Thursday.
Robert Morris is playing for its second CHA Championship (first since 2011-12) and first ever trip to the NCAA Tournament.
The Colonials finished first in the CHA standings (15-3-2) and achieved the second 20-win season in program history.
RMU enters the postseason having won five of its six last contests, including the last three games. Senior goalie
Jessica Dodds has shutout victories in two of her last four starts.
Head coach
Paul Colontino, freshman
Jaycee Gebhard, and redshirt junior
Brittany Howard were named CHA Coach, Rookie, and Player of the Year, respectively. Howard, senior goalie
Jessica Dodds, and sophomore defenseman
Kirsten Welsh earned All-CHA First Team honors. Gebhard was named to the All-CHA Second and Rookie Teams.
Top-line trio
Amber Rennie,
Brittany Howard and
Jaycee Gebhard have combined for 116 points through 32 games, averaging 3.63 points per game.
National Radar
Robert Morris continues to earn top-10 recognition nationally at No. 9 in the USCHO.com Poll and the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll. They are ranked ninth in the Women's Division I PairWise Rankings, a system that attempts to mimic the method used by the NCAA Selection Committee to determine participants for the NCAA Division I women's hockey tournament.
Top Talent
RMU ranks second in the nation in penalty kills (154), tied for fourth in power-play goals (29), eighth in goals per game (3.19), ninth in goal margin per game (+1.12), and tenth in goal margin (+36).
CHA Nod
Freshman forward
Jaycee Gebhard was named CHA Rookie of the Month for February. She leads the league in goals (22), goals per game (0.69), power-play goals (nine), power-play points (17), plus-rating (+38), and plus-minus (+20). Gebhard paces the nation in power-play goals and points per game among rookies (1.38). Redshirt junior forward
Brittany Howard was named CHA Player of the Month in February. She leads the CHA in points (48), assists (30), power-play points (17), power-play assists (11), and points per game (1.50).
Getting It Done on Defense
Sophomore defenseman
Maggie LaGue is tied for second in the nation power-play assists (11) and tied for eighth in power-play points (13). She ranks tenth in points per game among defensemen (0.66). Fellow sophomore defenseman
Kirsten Welsh ranks fifth in point per game among defensemen (0.72).
Milestone Watch
Redshirt junior forward
Brittany Howard improved to second place on the all-time individual career points (130) list. She is five points away from being crowned the new all-time points leader in RMU history. Freshman forward
Jaycee Gebhard is one point shy of setting a new RMU record for single-season points by a rookie. She is currently tied with Rebecca Vint for most points scored by a freshman in her first year. She is also tied with Vint for most goals scored by a rookie in her debut campaign.
CHA Sweep
Robert Morris raked in multiple awards at the CHA Championship Awards Banquet Wednesday evening: Head coach
Paul Colontino – CHA Coach of the Year;
Brittany Howard – CHA Player of the Year (first in RMU history), CHA Scoring Trophy (first in RMU history), All-CHA First Team;
Jaycee Gebhard – CHA Rookie of the Year (fourth in program history), All-CHA Second Team, All-CHA Rookie Team;
Jessica Dodds – All-CHA First Team;
Kirsten Welsh – All-CHA First Team
Trending
Redshirt junior
Brittany Howard has posted a point in 26 of 32 games on the season. Freshman forward
Jaycee Gebhard has points in her last seven outings to tie her career-high seven-game point streak. Sophomore defenseman
Kirsten Welsh has points in eight of her last 10 games played.
Making Their Mark
The 2017 squad improved to second place all time in wins (22) in a season in RMU lore. They are the winningest team in CHA contests in program history (15-3-2).
A Brand New Season Begins
The Colonials secured a first-round bye in the 2017 CHA Tournament. The
tournament central page includes a game schedule and link to ticket sales for the event, which is set to be held at the HarborCenter in Buffalo, N.Y., March 2-4.
Follow RMU Women's Hockey:
@RMUWHockey
@rmuwhockey
Robert Morris University Athletics
