Women's Hockey | 11/29/2018 10:20:00 PM
PITTSBURGH -- The
Robert Morris women's hockey team concludes its longest homestand of the season against the Nittany Lions of Penn State University, its fourth different College Hockey America opponent of the 2018-19 campaign, Friday and Saturday. The opening faceoffs from the RMU Island Sports Center are scheduled for 7:05 and 5:05 p.m. ET, respectively, and both games can be seen live on the CHA Digital Network (subscription required).
A free, continuous student shuttle will run between Lexington and Concord Halls and the front doors of the Island Sports Center 6:00-10:00 p.m. Friday.
Friday marks the team's third annual Teddy Bear Toss. Fans are encouraged to bring a new teddy bear (tag must be intact) and throw it on the ice after the Colonials score their first goal, with all stuffed animals to be donated to the Autism Society of Pittsburgh after the game. Funds will be raised for the organization Friday night as well.
Teddy bears will also be available for purchase at the rink for a minimum $5.00 donation to the Autism Society.
Fans will be able to "Skate with the Colonials" after Friday's game. Access to the post-game public skate with RMU players is free with your own skates, or just $3.00 to rent a pair from the ISC front desk.
Visit the Island Sports Center lobby on gameday for tickets. RMU Athletics is offering free admission to Saturday's game for all fans who bring a new, unwrapped toy for its annual U.S. Marine Corps Reserve "Toys for Tots" initiative.
In addition, fans are welcome to register for the Clearview Federal Credit Union "Penalty Box Trivia Challenge" prior to both games for a chance to win $50.
Robert Morris (6-8-4, 4-1-1) vs. Penn State (7-7-2, 2-4-0) - Nov. 30-Dec. 1
Fri., Nov. 30 (7:05 p.m.) - LIVE STREAM ($) | LIVE STATS
Sat., Dec. 1 (5:05 p.m.) - LIVE STREAM ($) | LIVE STATS
The Colonials, the two-time CHA regular-season champions, lead PSU by five points for second in the conference entering Friday.
RMU is 16-4-5 all-time versus the Nittany Lions, going unbeaten in 11 of 14 meetings at Colonials Arena since 2012. The Colonials prevailed 7-2 in their last meeting, the 2018 CHA Semifinal at the HarborCenter in Buffalo, New York Mar. 2.
Caitlyn Sadowy scored twice,
Natalie Marcuzzi got the game-winner,
Sarah Quaranta had two assists and
Lexi Templeman added a goal and an assist.
Jaycee Gebhard leads all active Colonials with eight career points (4 G, 4 A) versus Penn State. Her power play goal in their Jan. 27, 2018 matchup was the game-winner.
Key Notes
• Gebhard, the October CHA Player of the Month, led the Colonials with four assists against No. 7 Cornell Nov. 23-24, capped by her setup of
Emily Curlett's equalizer with 4:04 left in the series finale. Her 27 points (10 G, 17 A) are third-most in the country, only three behind national leader Elizabeth Giguere (Clarkson), and her 15 power play points (4 G, 11 A) lead Division I.
• Furthermore, Gebhard has maintained the overall NCAA lead with her 253 faceoff wins. Her .597 faceoff win percentage is second in CHA coming into Friday. RMU, as a team, still has the most faceoff wins in Division I (609).
• Gebhard has a point in 11 straight games dating back to the team's Oct. 20 victory at Mercyhurst, her longest run as a collegian. Her concurrent six-game goal streak Oct. 20-Nov. 9, 2018 was also the longest of her RMU career.
•
Emily Curlett, the RMU Athletics Women's Student-Athlete of the Week, scored two third-period power play goals to produce a 3-3 tie with No. 7 Cornell Nov. 24. This marked the 22nd time in program history Robert Morris earned at least a point from a nationally ranked opponent. She also led the team defensively, blocking a series-high 12 shots by the Big Red.
• With 81 career points,
Maggie LaGue is the second-highest scoring defender in RMU history. She is now seven points back of fellow senior
Kirsten Welsh.
•
Amber Rennie became the eighth player in RMU history to hit the 40-career goal mark versus No. 7 Cornell Nov. 23. She scored in both games against the Big Red and enters Friday with points in five of her past six outings.
•
Lexi Templeman has registered a point in eight of her last ten games. Her 13 assists, including one on Rennie's goal Nov. 24, put her second in CHA and tied for sixth in Division I.
• Rennie scored 2:33 into the first period of a 4-2 win versus Penn State Jan. 27, 2018 to trigger RMU's last Teddy Bear Toss. A crowd of 624, plus staffers, threw 412 stuffed animals onto the ice for UPMC Children's Hospital and raised $2,322 for the local chapter of Our Clubhouse.
• On Jan. 13, 2017, versus Lindenwood, fans threw 425 stuffed animals as part of the team's first Teddy Bear Toss, when
Brittany Howard buried RMU's first goal. Over $1,600 was raised for patients at UPMC Children's Hospital.
An "A" For Effort
•
Jaycee Gebhard led College Hockey America with her 25 assists in 2017-18, tying for 14th nationally. She is in a second-place tie on the NCAA chart with her 17 apples this season. Gebhard, with her 62nd career helper on
Kirsten Welsh's third-period equalizer versus Minnesota State Nov. 16, passed Rebecca Vint '15 for fifth-most in RMU history. With 66 career assists, she needs two more to tie Brianna Delaney for fourth. She has recorded one in five of her past six games during the team's Nov. 9-Dec. 1 homestand.
Worth The Wait
• Robert Morris went 3-0-4 in overtime in 2017-18. After its 3-3 tie with No. 7 Cornell Nov. 24, the Colonials have not lost in their last 17 games that went to overtime (5-0-12), dating back to a 3-3 tie on Oct. 22, 2016 at Merrimack. Over that span, RMU owns three ties in its last four regular-season meetings with Penn State.
Chasing History
•
Maggie LaGue earned the secondary assist on the game-tying goal by
Emily Curlett Nov. 24 versus No. 7 Cornell, putting her past 2018 RMU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Brianna Delaney '12 for the third-most in Colonials history (69). LaGue entered the 2018-19 season with the most career helpers ever by a Robert Morris blue-liner.
Achievement Unlocked
•
Kirsten Welsh's insurance goal against Penn State Jan. 27, her 12th goal of 2017-18, set a new RMU single-year record for defenders. Mikaela Lowater '17 had 11 in her own junior campaign.
Sarah Quaranta, whose seven career assists against the Nittany Lions are the most among active Colonials, set up the goal. Furthermore, it was the eighth short-handed marker of the season by the Colonials, which tied their single-year record (2005-06).
Oh Captain, My Captain
•
Amber Rennie,
Kirsten Welsh and
Maggie LaGue are the first tri-captains in program history. Ten different players have now worn the "C" under
Paul Colontino, while
Jaycee Gebhard was named the lone assistant captain. The '18-'19 leadership group has combined for 61 (25 G, 36 A) of the team's 115 points (53.0%) entering Friday.
Once More, With Feeling!
•
Emily Curlett enjoyed her third career multi-goal game in the Colonials' come-from-behind tie with No. 7 Cornell Nov. 24. It was the first multiple-goal effort by an RMU player in 2018-19.
Jaycee Gebhard (three),
Amber Rennie (two),
Lexi Templeman,
Caitlyn Sadowy,
Kirsten Welsh (two) and Curlett (two) are the active Colonials who had multi-goal games in 2017-18. Behind the 13 by
Brittany Howard '18, the 12 by Rebecca Vint '15 and the ten by Brianna Delaney '12, Gebhard is next in line in Robert Morris history with seven all-time, and Rennie has four.
They Are "Soph"
• Curlett set a career high with her seven blocked shots against No. 7 Cornell Nov. 24. The 2018 All-CHA Rookie Team selection led conference defenders in 2017-18 with 70 blocks and now leads the NCAA with that amount after finishing second in D-I in blocks as an RMU newcomer.
•
Lexi Templeman finished the 2017-18 season with a .559 faceoff win rate, third among CHA rookies, and also made the All-CHA Rookie squad. Templeman has maintained the CHA lead (.667) through Thursday and is now tied for fourth in the NCAA. Her .714 win percentage in home games is currently sixth in D-I after going 12-for-16 from the dot against No. 7 Cornell Nov. 23-24.
The Third Period Is Our Period
• Robert Morris rallied from three goals down in the third period to tie Minnesota State Nov. 16, and from two down to tie No. 7 Cornell Nov. 24. The Colonials had not previously erased a multi-goal, third-period deficit to earn at least a point since Nov. 26, 2016 (Windjammer Classic vs. St. Cloud State). Their 21 third-period goals are tied for second in the NCAA, and their +11 margin in thirds is tied for third in D-I.
In Our Defense...
• Last season, the Colonials amassed 102 total points from their defensive corps, ultimately tying them with national champion Clarkson as the highest-scoring unit in Division I. Entering Friday, the 2018-19 squad has combined for 13 goals from its defensive corps, which puts it in the Division I lead. Individually,
Kirsten Welsh is one off the top of the NCAA among defenders with her five goals, and
Maggie LaGue's 12 points are sixth.
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