PITTSBURGH -- Veterans and newcomers alike came through for the Robert Morris University men's hockey team on Friday night, delivering a 3-0 win against RIT at the RMU Island Sports Center.

The Colonials (2-2-1, 1-1-1 Atlantic Hockey) not only collected their first conference win in three tries, they also snapped a three-game winless streak since their season-starting win over No. 20 Bowling Green two weeks ago.

The year is still quite young, but all involved seemed encouraged by both the result and the process.

"We played a full 60, easy as that," said junior goalie Francis Marotte, who made 25 saves for his sixth NCAA shutout. "Everyone was going hard today."

Effort isn't usually a question on the Island, but after three straight games in which the Colonials didn't maintain the necessary competitive level, the focus during the previous week of practice was staying engaged in the fight for all three periods.

A positive tone was established in that regard in the first period Friday, as RMU hardly let RIT (2-2-0, 0-1-0 AHA) possess the puck through the first 15 minutes. The Colonials went on to capitalize on that foundation by pumping three goals past Tigers netminder Logan Drackett in the second, then played the third as if the game were tied.

Adding to the feel-good nature of the night: Freshman defenseman Geoff Lawson broke the ice with his first college goal and senior blueliner Eric Israel was a difference-maker in his return from an injury that held him out of the first four games. Lawson and Israel scored five minutes apart, with the latter connecting on a four-on-three power play to put RIT behind the 8-ball.

"It's good to be back," Israel said. "I didn't feel out of place at all from the word 'go.' Overall the team played great. Competed for all 60 minutes. If we play like that, we're going to be a hard team to beat."

Daniel Mantenuto added insurance with a solo-effort goal at 14:50, the first of the season for the junior center. With RIT coming to town averaging four goals per game, it figured to be key to keep the Tigers at arm's length. What's more, the Colonials had lost four in a row to their AHA rivals and nine of their past 11 in the all-time series.

""We knew that RIT was going to come," head coach Derek Schooley said. "They have 'D' that joins the play and some dominant forwards. When we bent, we didn't break."

RMU's power play finished 1 for 8, but it again contributed a critical goal to the cause. With Israel running the show from the point, the man-advantage effort was "dominant," to use Schooley's description. Both Alex Tonge and Luke Lynch hit posts on the PP, with Tonge also barely missing on a stuff attempt in the second period. A lengthy video review was needed to determine that the puck didn't cross the goal line.

"I told you earlier in the week we had a few tweaks," Schooley said, referring mostly to Israel's expected return and the resulting positional adjustments. "I think we won a lot of puck battles, is what it came down to. I thought our power play was outstanding."

Combine the power play's strong performance with a 5-for-5 penalty kill against an RIT team that entered the game having scored on four of 12 opportunities, and it could be argued special teams decided the game.

But that might be minimizing the Colonials' success at even strength, which continued throughout the third period. After RMU allowed two or more goals in each of its first four games, Friday's result was especially welcomed for the man between the pipes.

"We shut them down pretty well," said Marotte, who's now tied with Dalton Izyk '17 in career blankings. "Since the start of the season, we've been giving up a little bit more. We felt what it's like to come into the third period with a three-goal lead and we shut them down."

Robert Morris started on time Friday night, firing the first 10 shot attempts and the opening five shots on goal while keeping the Tigers bottled in their zone. Tonge's power-play shot off the crossbar three minutes in was the best look for either side.

Making his 114th NCAA appearance, Israel appeared on his game from the drop of the puck. The senior stepped up a few times to fend off RIT rushes and generally kept the puck moving up ice. 

It was a trio of freshmen, though, who put RMU on top early in the second.

After a puck recovery from Nick Lalonde, Kip Hoffmann orchestrated a quick regroup at the RIT line and sent Lawson in with a left-wing chance. Drackett denied Lawson's wrister, but Lawson hopped on his own rebound and stashed it under the net minder at 6:09. The goal marked the first NCAA points for all three Colonials involved in the play.

That icebreaker touched off a lively celebration, but there was more to come.

"It's always a jolt when you get a 1-0 lead, but it's a bigger goal when it's a guy getting his first college goal," Schooley said. "I think that gave us some life."

With RMU on a short four-on-three advantage just past the midway point, Tonge slipped a pass into the wheelhouse of Israel, who hammered a one-timer high into the twine from well above the right dot. Tonge's assist is his team-best fifth point of the year and the 104th of his college career, pulling him ahead of David Friedmann '16 for solo 10th on the program's all-time scoring list.

By the time Mantenuto cruised through the neutral zone 4 1/2 minutes later, the Colonials were riding high. The junior center stuck a shot over Drackett's mitt and under the crossbar to raise the lead to three through two periods and put RMU in the driver's seat.

The question hanging in the air at the Island was how the Colonials would follow up this performance. RMU is 2-0-1 on Fridays, but winless in the rematches to this point.

"I talked to our guys after the game, when we did this against Bowling Green, we came out (the next game) and we were fat and happy," Schooley said. "We felt like we were really good and we didn't have to work for it. We gotta go out and work for it. ... If you work, you have a pretty good shot. If you don't, you're probably going to get beat."

Saturday's faceoff against RIT is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Fans are welcome to wear their Halloween best, with a costume contest scheduled for the second intermission.