PITTSBURGH – The Mercyhurst women’s hockey team had two long streaks end Saturday.

Could another long streak end today?

The Lakers’ nine-year stranglehold on the College Hockey America Tournament championship ended Saturday with a 3-2 title-game loss to host Robert Morris in front of 584 fans at Island Sports Center.

The top-seeded and sixth-ranked Lakers’ defeat also snapped their 11-year streak of conference titles that dated back to the 2000-01 season, when they played in the Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association.

Now the Lakers’ hopes for an eighth straight NCAA Tournament berth rests in the hands of the Division I selection committee. The eight-team field is unveiled today at 6:30 p.m. at NCAA.com. But after Saturday’s game, the Lakers’ thoughts were on how they lost to the second-seeded Colonials (19-9-4).

Mercyhurst (23-7-3) outshot RMU 47-15 and totaled 118 overall shots. But Colonials goaltender Kristen DiCiocco made 45 saves while her teammates blocked 50 shots. Twenty-one shots missed the net.

“What are you going to do?” Lakers coach Michael Sisti said of his team’s statistical dominance.

RMU recorded seven of their 15 shots while building a 2-0 first-period lead. Katelyn Scott scored her first goal of the season 3 minutes, 41 seconds into the game. Then Thea Imbrogno scored at the 11:39 mark.

Mercyhurst sliced its deficit in half on Jess Jones’ power-play goal with 3:54 left in the second. But RMU regained a two-goal lead at 3-1 on Brianna Delaney’s goal with 28 seconds left in the period.

Bailey Bram scored 27^th goal of the season with six seconds left for the Lakers. But they weren’t able to score the equalizer to force overtime. Instead, the Colonials and coach Paul Colontino, a former student, player and coach at Mercyhurst, secured the first conference title in the program’s seven-year history.

Sophomore Christine Bestland and senior Pamela Zgoda were named to the all-tournament team.

The CHA champion doesn’t receive an automatic bid to the national playoffs, because NCAA rules require a minimum of six teams in a conference. CHA has four teams, including Niagara and Syracuse.

However, Sisti said he believes his Lakers “have clearly done enough” to earn a berth. He pointed to their 23 wins, CHA regular-season championship and two-game sweeps of St. Lawrence and Providence.

No. 10 St. Lawrence (24-9-4) won the ECAC Hockey title with a 3-1 win Saturday against No. 3 Cornell (29-4-0). Providence (16-16-4) faces Boston University today for the Hockey East Association title.

Mercyhurst also split two games at fourth-ranked Boston College (23-9-3) and lost two of three against Cornell. Sisti said Wisconsin (31-4-2), which lost in the semifinals of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs on Friday, and Cornell will earn berths despite not winning their conference titles.

Sisti figures Saturday’s loss cost his team a top-four national seed and home-ice advantage in next weekend’s NCAA quarterfinals. Yet he said, “I’d like to think we’re going to be playing next week. I think we deserve (a berth). What’s tough now is that it’s up to the committee.”

Robert Morris (17-8-3, 6-2-2 CHA) at No. 6 Mercyhurst (21-6-2, 7-1-2)

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

Where: Mercyhurst Ice Center

On the air: www.b2livetv.com (live stream), www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)

Up next: at Robert Morris (Saturday, 7 p.m.), CHA Championship at RMU (March 2-3, TBA)

Fast facts: Mercyhurst slipped to sixth from fifth in the USCHO.com Division I poll despite a 2-1 record last week, which was capped by sweeping a two-game College Hockey America series against Syracuse last weekend. … The Lakers can capture at least a share of their 13^th straight regular-season conference championship. They won three straight Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association titles from 1999-2002 before the league folded to form CHA. … Seniors Bailey Bram, Jess Jones, Hillary Pattenden, Kelley Steadman, Jill Szandzik and Pamela Zgoda play their final regular-season home games tonight. … Bram (21 goals, 33 assists, 54 points), Steadman (26-12-38), Jones (10-28-38) and sophomore Christine Bestland (18-30-48) have combined for 88 of the team’s 137 goals and 207-of-374 points. … Pattenden needs five wins to become the first NCAA D-I goaltender with 100 career wins. … RMU has broken the 7-year-old program’s record for wins in a season. The original mark was 12 set in 2007-08 and tied in 2008-09. … The Colonials are unbeaten in four straight games and are 4-1-1 in their last six outings.

- Victor Fernandes

MANKATO, Minn. – The Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team is on a rare losing streak.

The eight-ranked Lakers suffered their second straight defeat- their first skid of any length since October 2008 – with a 3-2 overtime loss to unranked Minnesota State-Mankato at Verizon Wireless Center on Friday night.

Nicole Germaine scored with 49 seconds left in overtime to drop the Lakers to 1-2-0 this season and improve the Mavericks to 3-0-0.

The teams complete the two-game series today at 1:07 p.m. The Mavericks took a 1-0 lead into the third period, and then extended it to 2-0 on Emmi Leinonen’s goal 9:07 into the third. But the Lakers rallied to tie at 2, as Wayne State transfer Gina Buquet and freshman Kristine Grenier scored 13 seconds apart.

Grenier scored the equalizer with 4:29 left. But that momentum wasn’t enough for the Lakers in the third.

Pamela Zgoda and Christie Cicero had an assist apiece for the Lakers. Mercyhurst transfer Lauren Barnes had an assist for the Mavericks.

SUMMARY

Mavericks 3, Lakers 2 (OT)

Mercyhurst  0  0  2  0  —  2

MSU  1  0  1  1  —  3

1^st Period — 1. MSU, Emmi Leinonen 1 (Smith), 16:45. Penalties — Rogan (MSU) 11:38; S. Bram (MC) body checking, 13:07.

2^nd Period — None. Penalties — Andersson (MSU) interference, 11:25; Byrne (MC) tripping, 13:45; Andersson (MSU) tripping, 14:58.

3^rd Period — 2. MSU, Leinonen 2 (Smith, Barnes), 9:07 (pp). 3. Mercyhurst, Gina Buquet 1 (Zgoda), 15:18. 4. Mercyhurst, Kristine Grenier 1 (Cicero), 15:31. Penalties — Leinonen (MSU) elbowing, 2:56; B. Bram (MC) roughing, 5:51; Otto (MSU) roughing, 5:51; B. Bram (MC) interference, 8:22; Luczak (MC) tripping, 12:20.

Overtime — 5. MSU, Nicole Germaine 2 (Zrust, Smith), 4:11. Penalties — None.

Shots on goal — Mercyhurst, 9-9-8-3—29; MSU, 11-10-4-2—27.

Goaltenders — Mercyhurst, Hillary Pattenden 1-2-0 (27 shots, 24 saves); MSU, Alli Altmann 2-0-0 (29 shots, 27 saves).

Power plays — Mercyhurst (0-4), MSU (1-4).

Attendance — 162.

Ashley Harper, a senior goaltender on the 2010-11 Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team, was named College Hockey America’s top scholar athlete, the conference announced Thursday.

She also joined 65 other student-athletes on the CHA All-Academic Team. She was joined by teammates Vicki Bendus, Stephanie Ciampa, Meghan Corbett, Lauren Jones, Melissa Lacroix, Kyleigh Palmer, Kelley Steadman and Pamela Zgoda.

The Mercyhurst men’s hockey team had six players named to the Atlantic Hockey Association’s All-Academic Team – Grant Blakey, Steve Cameron, Randy Cure, Patrick Goebel, Nick Jones and Max Strang.

Paul Colontino, associate head coach of the Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team, has announced his resignation to become the head coach of the women’s hockey team at Robert Morris University, a College Hockey America affiliate located in Moon Township.

Colontino becomes the third head coach in the history of the RMU women’s ice hockey program after the departure of Nate Handrahan, who accepted the same position at The Ohio State University earlier this month.

“Good coaches are hard to come by,” said Mercyhurst Director of Athletics Joe Kimball. “This is a great opportunity for Paul. He has been a valuable asset and has played a major role in the success of our women’s hockey team. We wish him nothing but the best in this new endeavor.”

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Senior captain Meghan Agosta highlighted a list of nine members of the Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team that were honored Thursday evening as award winners at the 2011 College Hockey America Postseason Banquet, held at the Genesee Grande Hotel in Syracuse, N.Y.

Agosta was named CHA Player of the Year as well as a First Team All-CHA selection, marking the fourth time in her career she captured both accolades. She also took home the regular season scoring trophy for leading the league in points.

Head coach Michael Sisti was tabbed coach of the year, senior Cassea Schols was selected as the league’s top defenseman and junior Hillary Pattenden earned the regular season goaltending trophy, rounding out the Lakers’ major award winners.

Overall, eight Lakers landed spots on the all-league teams. Agosta, senior assistant captain Vicki Bendus, Schols and junior Pamela Zgoda were named first-team picks, while senior assistant captain Jesse Scanzano, junior Bailey Bram and Pattenden all found spots on the second team. Freshman Christine Bestland was named as the team’s lone representative on the all-rookie squad.

Under the direction of Sisti, the only coach in program history, the Lakers recorded their second undefeated conference season in the past three years. Mercyhurst went 16-0-0 against CHA competition, averaging 5.25 goals per game while allowing just over a goal per game (1.38).

In conference play, Agosta led the CHA in every offensive category. She scored 18 goals and added 23 assists for 41 points. 17 of her points came on the power play, while four others came on the penalty kill, including three short-handed goals.

Bendus, the 2010 CHA Player of the Year, ranked third in scoring in conference play. Through 14 games, missing two due to participating at the 2011 MLP Cup, she scored seven goals and added 17 assists for 24 points. Her 17 helpers placed her second in assists per game (1.21), and her 10 power-play points put her only behind Agosta for the conference lead.

Schols led all CHA blueliners with two goals and 15 points, averaging nearly a point per game (0.94). Of her 15 points, 10 of them came on the power play, putting her in a tie for second with fellow Lakers Bendus and Scanzano.

Zgoda ranked fourth in the conference in defenseman scoring, netting three goals and dishing out seven assists for 10 points. Setting a new career-high in overall points with 22 this season, she was one of four defensemen to rank in top-20 in CHA scoring, placing 18th overall.

Scanzano landed a spot on the second team after ranking second in the league in points (25) and third in both goals (11) and assists (14).

Bram, playing in only 11 conference games, placed 10th in scoring with three goals and 13 points.

Pattenden played in 15 of 16 league games, recording a perfect 15-0-0 record. During that stretch, she accumulated a league-leading 1.40 goals against average and a second-ranked .924 save percentage. In 42 career conference games, Pattenden holds a 40-1-1 record.

Bestland led the conference in rookie scoring, netting 12 goals and 23 points. She also placed fourth in overall points, second in goals and fifth in assists.

- From Mercyhurst news release

PITTSBURGH – The Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team wasted no time on Saturday.

The fourth-ranked Lakers scored four goals on their first nine shots to complete a College Hockey America sweep with a 7-1 win against Robert Morris in front of 181 at RMU’s Island Sports Center.

The Lakers (20-5-0, 9-0-0 CHA) scored three times on eight shots in the game’s opening 13 minutes to take a 3-0 lead. Then 1:14 into the second period, sophomore defenseman Samantha Watt scored his first goal of the season and third of his career on the Lakers’ first shot of the period.

Thea Imbrogno’s goal with 2:34 left in the second ended Hillary Pattenden’s shutout bid. But Meghan Agosta scored her team-leading 26^th goal of the season 37 seconds later. She recorded her nation-best 62^nd point by assisting on Jesse Scanzano’s goal 27 seconds into the third.

Scanzano had two goals and an assist. Freshman Christine Bestland had a career-high four assists. Agosta (goal, assist), Pamela Zgoda (two goals), Kyleigh Palmer (goal, assist) and Vicki Bendus (two assists) added two points apiece. Pattenden had 25 saves. RMU fell to 4-18-3 overall and 1-7-1 in CHA play.

SUMMARY

Mercyhurst 7, Robert Morris 1

Mercyhurst  3  2  2  —  7

Robert Morris  0  1  0  —  1

1^st Period — 1. Mercyhurst, Pamela Zgoda 3 (Bendus, Bestland), 7:26. 2. Mercyhurst, Kyleigh Palmer 1 (Bendus, Bestland), 9:38. 3. Mercyhurst, Jesse Scanzano 15 (Palmer, Bestland), 13:15. Penalties — Rossler (M) slashing, 14:11; Mercyhurst, too many players on the ice, 18:19; Agosta (M) roughing, 18:42.

2^nd Period — 4. Mercyhurst, Samantha Watt 1 (Scanzano), 1:14. 5. RMU, Thea Imbrogno 7 (O’Malley, Newsom), 17:26. 6. Mercyhurst, Meghan Agosta 26 (Lacroix), 18:03 (sh). Penalties — Lacroix (M) tripping, 2:38; Schols (M) cross checking, 3:24; Newsom (R) hooking, 3:58; Pietrangelo (R) holding, 6:09; Kindret (R) cross checking, 10:29; Stack (R) body checking, 13:03; Scanzano (M) roughing, 13:03; Pappas (R) roughing, 13:03; Bendus (M) slashing, 17:54; Delaney (R) hooking, 18:35.

3^rd Period — 7. Mercyhurst, Scanzano 16 (Agosta), :27 (pp). 8. Mercyhurst, Zgoda 4 (Cicero, Bestland), 16:25. Penalties — Lacroix (M) tripping, 4:31; Stoa (R) interference, 10:57; Zgoda (M) hooking, 19:46.

Shots on goal — Mercyhurst, 8-15-10—33; Robert Morris, 13-9-4—26.

Goaltenders — Mercyhurst, Hillary Pattenden 18-5-0 (26 shots, 25 saves); Robert Morris, Meeri Raisanen 1-5-0 (9 shots, 5 saves), Daneca Butterfield (24 shots, 21 saves).

Power plays — Mercyhurst (1-6), Robert Morris (0-7).

Referees — Jeff Shernan, Joe Sherman. Linesmen — Jeff Pickering, Steve Walters.

Attendance — 181.

Behind a balanced attack that saw seven different players score a goal, the Mercyhurst College women’s hockey team disposed of Wilfred Laurier, 7-0, in an exhibition contest Saturday afternoon at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.

The Lakers, playing without the services of six players, including senior captains Meghan Agosta, Vicki Bendus and Jesse Scanzano due to Hockey Canada’s evaluation camp, overwhelmed the Golden Hawks in their first and only tune-up before the start of the regular season.

Overall, 10 players got on the stat sheet, with senior Cassea Schols leading the way with a one-goal, three-assist effort. Senior Kylie Rossler, junior Kelley Steadman, sophomores Lauren Jones and Samantha Watt and freshman Christie Cicero each recorded a goal and an assist. JuniorKyleigh Palmer pocketed two points as well with a pair of assists. Junior Pamela Zgoda scored once and junior Meghan Corbett and freshman Lauren Barnes each dished out an assist.

Mercyhurst outshot Wilfrid Laurier 33-25 and rolled to its exhibition rout with two goals in the first period, three in the second and two more in the third. Three of those scores came on the power play with the Lakers converting 3-for-11 with the extra-man advantage. The penalty kill, meanwhile, squashed all seven Wilfrid Laurier power-play opportunities.

Junior Hillary Pattenden earned the decision in goal with 13 stops over 40 minutes of action. Sophomore Stephanie Ciampa finished out the game with 12 saves in the third period.

Wilfrid Laurier’s Kristen Kilgallen suffered the loss with 18 saves through the first two periods before Rachel Hamilton came in relief in the third, recording eight saves and allowing two goals. Mercyhurst opens the 2010-11 campaign on Oct. 1 when the Lakers welcome St. Cloud State for a 7 p.m. contest at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.

- From Mercyhurst news release