Men's Hockey | 3/14/2019 3:37:00 PM

WALTHAM, Mass. -- On the eve of its eighth consecutive appearance in the Atlantic Hockey quarterfinals, the Robert Morris University men's hockey team had two members earn all-league honors.

Senior winger Alex Tonge (All-AHA Second Team) and junior goalie Francis Marotte (All-AHA Third Team) represented the Colonials when the AHA released its three all-league teams Thursday afternoon. This is the sixth straight season that RMU has had multiple players get recognized in this way.

Tonge, who made the All-AHA Third Team last spring as a junior, led RMU in scoring during the regular season with 17 goals and 17 assists, just over a point-per-game pace for 33 appearances. The native of Kingston, Ontario finished the regular season on a hot streak, netting 14 points (eight goals) in his final 12 games. He also scored a crucial penalty-shot goal in RMU's two-game first-round sweep of Holy Cross last weekend.

The eighth-ranked active career scorer in NCAA hockey with 134 points (55g, 79a), Tonge sits just outside RMU's all-time top five scorers as this weekend's quarterfinal series against Bentley is set to begin. The crafty left-handed shooter is two points behind Chris Margott '09 for fifth in program history and four back of Nathan Longpre '11 for fourth.

This is also Marotte's second time on an all-league list, as he was named one of the AHA's top rookies two years ago. Raised in the Montréal suburb of Longueuil, Québec, Marotte started every game for Robert Morris this season, ranking second in the nation in starts (36) and fifth in minutes played. He has an overall save percentage of .906 this season, but that mark rises to .920 in AHA games only, second only to Air Force's Billy Christopolous.

Marotte's career has been spectacular to date, as he has risen to the top of the program's goaltending charts in goals-against average (2.57), victories (46) and shutouts (8). He's fifth among Colonials' goalies with a .917 career save percentage and he's already piled up the third-most saves in team history. He's been particularly effective in the AHA playoffs, boasting a 10-3 record and a .928 save percentage.

Tonge, Marotte and the eighth-seeded Colonials (14-20-2, 13-15-2 AHA) will put their season on the line this weekend at second-seeded Bentley in a best-of-three quarterfinal series. RMU has won a season-best four in a row, all by one goal, and has claimed eight straight playoff series. Derek Schooley's team has made the AHA final in three straight seasons and the semifinal round in five consecutive seasons.