Women's Hockey | 12/5/2019 12:20:00 PM
PITTSBURGH -- After going unbeaten in the month of November and spending three straight series on the road, the
Robert Morris University women's hockey team returns home to finish the fall semester, jumping back into College Hockey America play with a two-game set against rival Mercyhurst.
[RV] ROBERT MORRIS (9-5-2, 4-0-0 CHA)
vs. [RV] MERCYHURST (9-4-1, 4-0-0 CHA)
Friday, Dec. 6 at 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 7 at 5:05 p.m.
RMU Island Sports Center
STATS via Sidearm
VIDEO via Stretch Internet ($)
PROMOTION
The Colonials will be holding their fourth-annual Teddy Bear Toss, benefiting cancer patients at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. Any fan who brings a new stuffed toy to the game gets $1 admission.
Click here for more details on the promotion.
CATCHING UP
RMU might have had its program-record-tying seven-game win streak ended last Saturday at St. Lawrence, but the Colonials still ride an eight-game unbeaten streak (7-0-1) after a victory and a draw against the Saints in Canton, N.Y. RMU has also gone 5-0-1 in its past six road games, part of an impressive surge before the winter break that has the team again receiving votes in the USCHO national poll.
Senior captain
Jaycee Gebhard recorded two assists in a 3-2 win last Friday, tying
Brittany Howard '18 for the most career assists by a Colonial (102). Junior
Lexi Templeman also excelled, scoring two goals against St. Lawrence, while freshman
Raygan Kirk won CHA Goalie of the Week honors for the second time, as she stopped 46 of 49 shots for a .942 save percentage.
HISTORY LESSON
RMU's rivalry with
Mercyhurst dates back 14 years, almost to the day. While it took the Colonials seven years to collect their first win over the Lakers, the recent history in the series has been much closer than first blush. Indeed, since the start of the 2016-17 season, the Colonials are 4-5-1 against their Interstate 79 rivals, going 2-2 at home.
The two teams split the four-game season series in 2018-19, with each team winning once on the other's home ice. Then-sophomore
Emilie Harley's hat trick powered RMU to a 4-1 win on Neville Island last Feburary. In a 5-1 victory at Mercyhurst last October, Gebhard paced the attack with a goal and two assists, while
Emily Curlett set up a pair.
OPPOSITION RESEARCH
Mercyhurst has largely mirrored the Colonials this season, going 4-0 in its early CHA action while being unable to grab a win against strong non-conference competition, going 0-3-1 in tight games against No. 5 Clarkson and Colgate. Also like RMU, the Lakers faced Union at home, sweeping the Dutchwomen in a two-game set last weekend.
The only head coach the Lakers program has known, Michael Sisti is in his 21st year in charge. Although the Lakers tied an 18-year low with 15 wins last season, they are off to a solid start with senior Finland native Emma Nuutinen (10g, 10a) leading the offense. Classmate Sam Isbell has a team-best 14 assists, while junior Kennedy Blair has a .923 save percentage in 13 starts.
COLONIAL CHAT
Senior alternate captain
Natalie Marcuzzi discusses the importance of the fourth-annual Teddy Bear Toss and why the student-athletes take it upon themselves to put it on:
KNOW BOBBY MO
• The Colonials' seven-game win streak last month tied the team record, set from Nov. 23, 2013 through Jan. 5, 2014. (That run was part of another program best: A 14-game unbeaten streak -- 12-0-2 -- that propelled RMU to a national ranking.) The last time RMU won even five in a row was late in the 24-win 2016-17 season, which ended in the NCAA tournament.
• Gebhard continues her assault on the team record books. RMU's No. 2 all-time leading scorer with 166 career points, Gebhard is on pace to beat last year's record total of 51 points, as she has already piled up 31 (10g, 21a) and ranks fourth in the nation with 1.9 points per game. With 18 regular-season games left, Gebhard is 15 shy of
Brittany Howard's RMU record of 181 career points.
• In addition to last year's CHA scoring champ Gebhard, juniors Templeman and Curlett were named to the All-CHA Second Team last spring. Templeman, who piled up 26 assists last season, already has 17 helpers in the opening 16 games. Curlett, meanwhile, has the third-best points-per-game mark (1.2) among all Division I defenders, notching eight goals and 11 assists.
• Sophomore
Michaela Boyle has been a revelation in her first 16 RMU games, scoring 12 goals to rank ninth in the nation, along with six assists. Her hat trick Nov. 24 at RPI was the fastest (3:43) in team history, making her just the fourth Colonial ever to score a 'natural' trick. A native of Massachusetts, she is the second Colonial ever to score two hat tricks in the same season, joining Rebecca Vint '15.
• The power play has been dynamite, converting on 21 of 80 opportunities for a 26.3 percent success rate that ranks fourth in the nation. Gebhard (3g, 13a) has factored in on 16 of those PPGs, while Curlett (7g, 5a), Templeman (2g, 8a) and Boyle (6g, 5a) have also excelled on the advantage. Junior defender
Emilie Harley has five (2g, 3a) of her 10 points on the PP.
• According to a preseason coaches poll, the Colonials were picked to finish second in the six-team CHA, with Mercyhurst getting the top spot. RMU, which received one first-place vote, has finished in the top half of the CHA in seven of the past eight seasons. The Colonials have received votes in all but two USCHO top-10 national polls this season, reaching a high of No. 8.
• The Colonials welcome seven newcomers, five of them forwards. Boyle transfers from Clarkson University, where she helped the Knights to the 2018 NCAA title.
Joelle Fiala (Saskatchewan),
Marah Wagner (British Columbia) and
Maggy Burbidge (Nova Scotia) supplement the forwards, while
Anna Fairman (Michigan) and
Allyson Hebert (Ontario) add to the 'D.'
• Boyle hasn't been the only fresh face to contribute offense. Fiala (1g, 4a) and Burbidge (2g, 3a) lead the Class of 2023 with five points, while Wagner (1g, 3a) is close behind. Wagner (No. 2 Minnesota) and Burbidge (No. 5 Clarkson) scored their first goals against ranked foes. Hebert also has an assist and has missed just one of 16 games so far.
• In goal, freshman Kirk joins returners
Arielle DeSmet and
Molly Singewald. DeSmet, a sophomore from Vermont, posted a .920 save percentage in 10 appearances last season. Kirk, a Manitoban, won MVP for Team Canada in the 2019 World Under-18 World Championship. Both Kirk (.921 SV% in 10 starts) and DeSmet (.903 in eight appearances) have played extensively this season.
• Once again, RMU will boast a robust non-conference schedule to go with its 20-game CHA slate. Starting with October showdowns against No. 2 Minnesota, No. 4 Clarkson and No. 5 Cornell, the Colonials will challenge each of the four national semifinalists from last spring. To cap it off, defending national champ Wisconsin will visit Pittsburgh on Jan. 4.
• Speaking of the holiday season, RMU is teaming up with the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins for a first-of-its-kind four-team tournament to take place Jan. 4-5 at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township: The Battle at the Burgh. In addition to Wisconsin, the Colonials will welcome Northeastern and Colgate -- both of which finished in the top 10 last spring.
• Familiar faces return behind the bench, led by ninth-year bench boss
Paul Colontino. He's assisted by associate head coach
Logan Bittle '08, who enters his 10th season behind the bench after four years playing for the RMU men's team. Fellow alum
Jen Kindret '13 joins the staff; the former forward played under Colontino and Bittle at the end of her tenure a Colonial.
THE COLONTINO FILE
Returning for his ninth season in charge of the Colonials, Colontino boasted an overall record of 149-94-36 in his first eight seasons. In his first year running the team, RMU claimed its first championship of any kind, the 2012 CHA tournament title, while improving by 13 victories. A two-time CHA Coach of the Year and a one-time USCHO National Coach of the Year, Colontino was also behind two 24-win seasons (2013-14, 2016-17) and the program's first NCAA tournament berth, in 2017.
Before coming to Robert Morris, Colontino had served as associate head coach at Mercyhurst since 2006. Prior to that, he was an assistant coach with the women's team at the University of North Dakota for four years. Colontino began his coaching career as an assistant with Mercyhurst in 2000. As a player at Mercyhurst, Colontino was the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) co-Defensive Player of the Year as a senior and an All-MAAC First Team selection.
HONOR ROLL
The following Colonials have been honored by College Hockey America for their performances this season ...
Jaycee Gebhard - Player of the Week (Sept. 30, Nov. 4), Player of the Month (November)
Arielle DeSmet - Goalie of the Week (Sept. 30)
Raygan Kirk - Rookie of the Week (Sept. 30), Goalie of the Week (Nov. 4, Dec. 2), Goalie of the Month (November)
Emily Curlett - Player of the Week (Oct. 14, Oct. 21), Player of the Month (October)
Emilie Harley - Player of the Week (Nov. 11)
Joelle Fiala - Rookie of the Week (Nov. 11)
Michaela Boyle – Player of the Week (Nov. 25)
Maggy Burbidge – Rookie of the Week (Nov. 25)
MARCH WITH THE COLONIALS
In addition to reports and videos on RMUColonials.com, check out
Twitter and
Instagram for news and updates throughout the season.
NEXT UP
The Colonials will take the holiday off from games before returning to competition Jan. 4-5 in Cranberry Township, Pa., for the inaugural Battle at the Burgh invitational tournament. RMU's first game of two that weekend will be against No. 1 Wisconsin, with either No. 3 Northeastern or Colgate to follow the next day.
