SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Robert Morris University women's hockey team wrapped up a first-round bye in the upcoming CHA Tournament next week with a win over Syracuse Friday night, taking down the host Orange by a 2-0 final despite a 38-17 disparity in shots on goal.

The win moves RMU to 19-10-4 overall and 13-4-2 in CHA play. Kyleigh Hanzlik scored the opeing tally of the night for RMU, her sixth of the season, before Michaela Boyle added the empty-netter. Goaltender Raygan Kirk continued her incredible form in her rookie season, pitching a 38-save shutout to earn the victory between the pipes.

Kirk was under the gun from the opening puck drop Friday in New York, as a strong opening shift from the Orange keep the Colonials hemmed in their own zone early on.

A pair of face-off wins by Savannah Rennie led to chances in tight from Anonda Hoppner and Lauren Bellefontaine, however the freshman keeper was up to the task, swallowing up the chances before the Colonials could finally clear the zone.

Syracuse continued to generate chances off of face-offs, going 8-14 in the dot in the opening frame while creating zone time and establishing their forecheck.  Kirk came up big again despite the pressure, as the reigning CHA Rookie of the Week denied Kelli Roswell from the right circle with Syracuse pressing hard. 

Though RMU had their looks, some big shot blocks from the Orange and a number of misfires on the part of the Colonials kept Cuse keeper Alison Small from seeing much rubber. A stop on Gebhard with seven minutes to go was the only decent look of the frame RMU could muster.

Though Syracuse would end the period with a dominant 14-4 advantage in shots on goal, Kirk's stellar goaltending kept the game scoreless as the two squads headed into the locker rooms after 20 minutes of play.

The onslaught continued into the second for the Colonials, as Syracuse pushed the shot disparity to 24-5 five minutes into the second frame.

An exasperated RMU unit that had been chasing the puck for much of the game put themselves in the hole after a Wasyn Rice trip put them on the penalty kill for the second time, luckily Kirk came up three time with huge saves on Hoppner and Bellefontaine to stem the tide of the Orange forecheck.

Joelle Fiala nearly made it 1-0 for the Colonials on just their fifth shot of the game, however her shot glanced off the pipe and out of play.

Incredibly, Kyleigh Hanzlik opened the scoring Friday night, putting RMU ahead 1-0 on just their eighth shot of the game after outlasting what was a 27-7 Syracuse domination in shots on goal.  The sophomore collected a puck in the slot before roofing one top-shelf over Small to put the Colonials ahead despite a significant disparity in scoring chances.

The Colonials came out for the third determined to hold on to their lead, selling out to block shots and staying within a defensive structure that had seen them through so many similar situations this season.

Big blocks by Anna Fairman and Gillian Thompson helped the Colonials recover after they lost another offense zone draw early in the final frame.  One more huge block from Janey Sandoval minutes later as well as what seemed like a steady stream of saves from Kirk helped RMU keep their heads above water as they clung to a 1-0 lead.

They would hold down the fort before Boyle sunk the empty netter with seconds remaining, securing a 2-0 win and a first-round bye in the CHA Tournament next week in Buffalo. 

The Colonials will wrap up the regular season tomorrow when they face Syracuse one more time starting at 3 p.m.