PITTSBURGH, Pa.- The Robert Morris University women's hockey team returns to the ice this weekend when they host non-conference Sacred Heart on Saturday and Sunday at Clearview Arena. 

Sunday afternoon's contest will also be Senior Day, as RMU will honor the contributions of its five-girl senior class with a special pre-game ceremony.  

ROBERT MORRIS (11-5-1, 11-5-1 CHA) vs. SACRED HEART (1-5, 0-1 NEWHA) 

Saturday, February 20 at 6:05 p.m. in Pittsburgh Pa. 

Sunday, February 21 at 1:05 p.m. in Pittsburgh, Pa. 

STATS | VIDEO ($)

LAST TIME OUT

RMU is fresh off of a midweek win over the RIT Tigers this past Wednesday after COVID-19 protocols forced the cancellation of their previously scheduled series against the Tigers over the previous weekend. 

The Colonials got three goals from their blue line in the showdown, including first career tallies from Anna Fairman and Allyson Hebert as they held off RIT for a 5-3 victory.  

KNOW BOBBY MO

• The Colonials sit in firm command of second place overall in the CHA Standings with 23 points, ten ahead of third-place Mercyhurst and still within striking distance of first-place PSU with 28. 
• Last week, it was announced that the 2021 CHA Tournament would be tweaked to feature all six member programs this year. The top two seeds will receive a first round bye, and will play the winners of the 3-6 and 4-5 matchups on Friday, March 5th before the championship game on March 6th at Erie Insurance Arena. 
• Eight members of the Colonials have cracked the double-digit points threshold so far this season, led by senior Lexi Templeman who currently leads the team with 18 in 17 games.  Fellow senior Anjelica Diffendal leads RMU in goals with seven. 
• The Colonials' five-girl senior class includes defensive stalwarts Emily Curlett and Emilie Harley, versatile forwards Anjelica Diffendal and Lexi Templeman as well as goaltender Molly Singewald.  Curlett and Harley are tied for third overall in defensive scoring in CHA, while Templeman sits third in total scoring behind PSU's Kiara Zanon and Natalie Heising.  
• Templeman has been near-unbeatable in the face-off dot this year. The senior pivot and former CHA Best Defensive Player nominee has won an astounding 65.4% (259-396) of draws through 17 games this season. 
• Despite going just 1-14 over their last four games, the Colonials' power play is still tops in CHA at 17.2% (11-64).  Five players all share the team lead in PPG with two apiece.  
• Though their 89.9% clip on the PK is in the middle of the pack for the conference, RMU is just 1.8% off top-ranked Syracuse, and their 8.4 PIM per-game is the second lowest in CHA.  
• Anna Fairman and Allyson Hebert both scored their first career goals on Wednesday against RIT, joining Gillian Thompson and Ellie Marcovsky to make it four Colonials who have lit the lamp for the first time in 2021.  
• Goaltending has been a significant strength of the Colonials this year, as Arielle DeSmet (.940) and Raygan Kirk (.939) both rank within the top-twelve nationally in save-percentage.  DeSmet's 1.37 GAA is the sixth-best mark nationally, followed closely by Kirk at 1.83.   
• While RMU has conceded a conference-low six first-period goals, their defensive results as the game goes on have not been as efficient, giving up 12 second-period tallies and 13 in the final frame.  
• The Colonials welcome three newcomers to the squad this year in freshman Molly Pedone, Ellie Marcovsky and Chace Sperling. 
• Marcovsky is the latest in a long line of homegrown Western Pa. talents to continue their college hockey careers right in their own backyard.  The Mt. Lebanon native spent time with the Pens Elite program growing up, including a stint under head coach and former Colonial Cobina Delaney '13.  She joins Diffendal as one of two Pittsburgh natives on RMU in 2021. 
• Marcovsky has been one of the premier freshman in CHA this season.  With four goals and 12 points so far this year, she is third on the team in scoring and has fired 36 shots on goal through 17 games. Two of her goals have been game-winners, and only Penn State's Zanon has more overall points amongst rookies. 
• A few significant milestones have already been checked off this season for the Colonials. Anjelica Diffendal skated in her 100th career game for RMU against Lindenwood in December, while captain Lexi Templeman became one of six players in program history to score 100 career points in an RMU sweater with a two-point night on December 10. 
• Lexi Templeman's hat trick against RIT earlier this month was the first of her career and the first natural hat trick a Colonial has scored since Michaela Boyle set the program record for fastest hat trick against RPI on 11/24/19.
• Senior defender Emily Curlett is currently seven points away from tying and eight points away from breaking the all-time defender points record of 92 held by Maggie LaGue '18. 
• This weekend will see RMU play host to Sacred Heart in their lone non-conference series of the campaign. 
• Familiar faces return behind the bench, led by tenth-year bench boss Paul Colontino. He's assisted by associate head coach Logan Bittle '08, who enters his 11th season behind the bench after four years playing for the RMU men's team. Fellow alum Jen Kindret '13 returns for her second year as an assistant, a former forward who played under Colontino and Bittle at the end of her tenure a Colonial. They are also joined in 2021 by volunteer Assistant Coach Ryan Gayso.

SERIES HISTORY

The Colonials will face an old foe in the Pioneers this weekend. 

While the two schools became frequent dance partners in the early days of the Colonials women's program, Saturday will be the first meeting between the two squads in over a decade. 

Their last showdown was on January 23, 2010, a wild 13-4 win for RMU that featured a pair of goals from current assistant coach Jen Kindret, including the opening tally just 13 seconds into the game.  

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS 

Sacred Heart has not seen much action this season, and when they have it has been tough sledding for the Pioneers, who currently sit at 1-5 overall. 

The 2021 campaign has seen SHU lose three times to Quinnipiac by a combined score of 21-2 as well as two losses to LIU, the only other team they have played so far prior to Saturday. 

Their lone win of the season came two weeks ago against the Sharks, a 3-1 victory that featured three straight unanswered goals from SHU. 

SENIOR DAY

Sunday's game at 1:00 p.m. will also be Senior Day, as RMU will honor the contributions of Lexi Templeman, Emily Curlett, Anjelica Diffendal, Molly Singewald, and Emilie Harley with a special pre-game ceremony. 

Due to the absence of fan attendance, the pre-game ceremony will be included as part of the game broadcast on Stretch Internet. Additionally, a free YouTube Live stream of pregame will be available to watch as well. 

YouTube Live:

THE COLONTINO FILE

Returning for his tenth season in charge of the Colonials, Colontino boasts an overall record of 177-1109-41, for a .664 points percentage. 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.

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

RMU closes out the regular season with a two-game home stand, hosting Syracuse next weekend for a pair on Friday and Saturday evening.