The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team are one win away from reclaiming the College Hockey America tournament championship.
Lauren Jones snapped a scoreless early in the second period, and the top-seeded Lakers held on with a strong defensive effort, in a 2-1 semifinal win against defending champion and fourth-seeded Robert Morris Friday afternoon at Mercyhurst Ice Center.
The Lakers (27-6-1) will face the winner of today’s 4:30 p.m. semifinal between Syracuse and Rochester Institute of Technology in Saturday’s 3 p.m. title game. Christine Bestland scored into an empty net for the Lakers. Brandi Pollock scored for the Colonials (15-15-3), which ended Mercyhurst’s nine-year run as CHA champion in the championship game a season ago.

Syracuse 2, RIT 1 (OT)
At Mercyhurst Ice Center, Sadie St. Germain scored 10 minutes, 8 seconds into overtime to secure second-seeded Syracuse’s spot in the title game. Fourth-seeded RIT (16-16-5) snapped a scoreless tie on Kim Schlattman‘s goal 6:32 into the second period. But the Orange (20-14-1), which outshot the Tigers 45-23, forced the extra period on Allie LaCombe‘s power-play goal with 12:15 left in regulation.

- Victor Fernandes

College Hockey America tournament schedule
Semifinals – Today
at Mercyhurst Ice Center
No. 1 Mercyhurst 2, No. 4 Robert Morris 1
No. 2 Syracuse (19-14-1) vs. No. 3 Rochester Institute of Technology (16-15-5), 4:30 p.m.
Championship game – Saturday
at Mercyhurst Ice Center
Mercyhurst (27-6-1) vs. Syracuse-RIT winner, 3 p.m.
Note: Champion doesn’t earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I tournament.

SUMMARY

Mercyhurst 2, Robert Morris 1
Robert Morris 0 0 1 — 1
Mercyhurst 0 1 1 — 2
1st Period — None. Penalties — Fergus (R) tripping, 7:03; Carlson (R) body checking, 14:56.
2nd Period — 1. Mercyhurst, Lauren Jones 14 (DeSutter, Chippy), 7:22. Penalties — Byrne (M) cross checking, 14:46; Bram (M) slashing, 15:12; Byrne (M) cross checking, 17:01.
3rd Period — 2. Mercyhurst, Christine Bestland 27 (Dingeldein, DeSutter), 19:10 (en). 3. RMU, Brandi Pollock 2 (Joslin), 19:35. Penalties — Fergus (R) hooking, 7:04; Luczak (M) body checking, 11:00; Collias (R) high sticking, 13:33.
Shots on goal — RMU, 7-11-8—26; Mercyhurst, 11-7-7—25.
Goaltenders — RMU, Kristen DiCiocco 13-13-3 (24 shots, 23 saves); Mercyhurst, Stephanie Ciampa 18-1-0 (26 shots, 25 saves).
Power plays — RMU (0-4), Mercyhurst (0-4).
Referees — Adam Bell, Rich Jebo. Linesmen — John Quigley, Rob Sauda.
Attendance — 825.

Three stars
* Stephanie Ciampa, Mercyhurst (25 saves) ** Lauren Jones, Mercyhurst (goal) *** Kristen DiCiocco, RMU (23 saves)

No. 9 Mercyhurst University (26-6-1) vs. Robert Morris (15-14-13)
Syracuse (19-14-1) vs. Rochester Institute of Technology (16-15-5)
When: Today, 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, 3 p.m.
Where: Mercyhurst Ice Center
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst begins its quest for a 10th College Hockey America tournament championship in the last 11 years with a healthy lineup. Junior F Christie Cicero (severe concussion, sprained neck) rejoined the lineup Feb. 23 against RIT. … The Lakers can capture their 12th conference title in the last 13 years, dating back to the 2000-01 season in the Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association. … Win or lose, the Lakers learn if they will make a NCAA-record ninth straight NCAA Division I tournament appearance when the eight-team field is unveiled Sunday at 6 p.m. on NCAA.com. … Mercyhurst lost the first three regular-season meetings with defending CHA champion Robert Morris before posting a 9-1 home win Feb. 9. … The Lakers swept all four respective meetings with Syracuse and RIT. … Junior F Christine Bestland finished the regular season ranked fourth nationally with 40 assists, fifth with 66 points and ninth with 26 goals. She also tied for second with 10 power-play goals and tied for eighth with six game-winning goals. … Sophomore Ds Molly Byrne and and Vaila Higson were tied for fifth among all defensemen with 31 points apiece. … F Emily Janiga is third among all freshmen with 40 points, one spot ahead of F Jenna Dingeldein (39 points). … Senior G Stephanie Ciampa ranks second with a .944 winning percentage (17-1-0), fourth with a 1.40 goals-against average, tied for seventh with a .935 save percentage and tied for eighth with four shutouts. … RMU needed two wins last weekend over Lindenwood, including a three-overtime victory in the opener, to reach the semifinals. … RIT, which beat Penn State twice by one goal last weekend, looks for a CHA championship in its first season in the league and at the D-I level. … Syracuse reached the title game two of the last three years.

- Victor Fernandes

Mercyhurst University (14-15-3, 12-11-2 AHA) vs. Robert Morris (18-12-2, 13-11-1)
When: Friday and Saturday, 7:05 p.m.
Where: Friday at RMU Island Sports Center, Pittsburgh; Saturday at Mercyhurst Ice Center
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.rmucolonials.com & www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst enters the final weekend series of the regular season tied for sixth with Rochester Institute of Technology in the Atlantic Hockey Association with 26 points. The Lakers are three points behind third-place Holy Cross, two behind fourth-place Connecticut and one behind fifth-place RMU. … The Lakers can finish as high as third, which would secure a bye through next weekend’s first round of the AHA playoffs. They can finish as low as eighth, which would clinch home-ice advantage in a first-round series. … They are winless in six straight games (0-5-1) for the first time since a six-game losing streak early in the 2008-09 season. … Mercyhurst beat RMU 8-1 in Pittsburgh Feb. 5 for the team’s last win. … The Lakers are tied for ninth in NCAA Division I with 3.25 goals scored per game. But they were held to two goals in five of six games during this winless skid. … Lakers coach Rick Gotkin needs two wins to become the 26th college coach to reach 450 career wins. … Junior G Jordan Tibbett (lower-body injury) rejoined the lineup last weekend after missing the previous month. … Sophomore F Nardo Nagtzaam (lower body) won’t play the rest of the season. … Freshman F Kyle Cook (upper body) has missed the past month. … Sophomore F Chris Bodo is third nationally with 10 power-play goals. … Junior F Daniel O’Donoghue is tied for the national lead with three short-handed goals. … The Colonials can set the program’s single-season wins record with a victory this weekend. … Senior G Eric Levine has set the Colonials’ single-season record with 17 wins. … RMU is unbeaten in its last three games.

- Victor Fernandes

MOON TOWNSHIP – The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team made history Saturday afternoon, but not for a good reason.
The fourth-ranked Lakers were swept in a two-game College Hockey America series for the first time in the conference’s 11-year history, as they lost to rival Robert Morris 2-1 in front of 202 fans at RMU Island Sports Center. Mercyhurst also lost 3-1 to RMU Friday night.
Mercyhurst (14-3-1, 6-2-0 CHA) was last swept in any regular-season series more than four years ago – by Clarkson Oct. 24-25, 2008. They have lost two straight regular-season games for the first time since October 2011.
The Lakers dominated RMU statistically in the series finale, as they outshot the Colonials 41-23. But RMU goaltender Kristen DiCiocco made 40 saves to outduel Lakers senior Stephanie Ciampa, who earned her first loss of the season in 10 games. DiCiocco allowed only Shelby Bram’s power-play goal with 5 minutes, 39 seconds left in the game.
After a scoreless first period, the Colonials (9-3-2, 5-1-0) built a 2-0 lead on power-play goals scored less than three minutes apart by Dayna Newsom and Thea Imbrogno. RMU recorded 13 of its 23 shots on goal in the middle period.
The Lakers, which head into the Christmas break, begin the second half Jan. 3 with a 7 p.m. exhibition game against the Buffalo Bison at Mercyhurst Ice Center. They resume regular-season action Jan. 11 at home against Syracuse.

No. 4 Mercyhurst (14-1-1, 6-0-0 CHA) at Robert Morris (7-3-2, 3-1-0)
When: Today, 7 p.m.; Saturday, 3 p.m.
Where: RMU Island Sports Center, Moon Township
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.rmucolonials.com (live audio and statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst faces College Hockey America rival Robert Morris for the first time since losing to the Colonials in the CHA Tournament championship game this past March. That defeat snapped the Lakers’ nine-year stranglehold on the CHA title and 11-year streak of conference titles dating back to the 2000-01 season, when they played in the Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association. … Mercyhurst has a nine-game winning streak by a combined 47-7 score since its only loss of the season, 3-0 to nationally ranked Clarkson Oct. 19. … The Lakers have allowed one goal or fewer in their last eight games. They had a shutout streak snapped at 303 minutes, 4 seconds with a first-period goal in a 7-1 win against Penn State last Saturday. … RMU has surrendered two goals or fewer in nine of 12 games. … Mercyhurst (fourth at 1.38 goals against per game) and RMU (10th at 2.17) rank among the top 10 scoring defenses in NCAA Division I. … Lakers senior G Stephanie Ciampa, who had a personal shutout streak end at 182 minutes, 10 seconds in that game, has started the season with a 9-0-0 record. … The Lakers complete the first half of the season this weekend. They begin the second half Jan. 3 with an exhibition game against the Buffalo Bison at MIC. The regular season resumes Jan. 11 at home against Syracuse. … The Colonials, who are coached by former Mercyhurst assistant Paul Colontino, had a seven-game unbeaten streak (5-0-2) snapped with a 4-3 loss to Syracuse last Saturday. … RMU returns home after completing a 10-game road trip with a 6-2-2 record. The Colonials play the next eight games at home. … Former Mercyhurst G Ashley Harper, a 2011 graduate, is a volunteer assistant coach for the Colonials.

- Victor Fernandes

The Mercyhurst University men’s hockey team was chosen to finish third out of 12 teams in the Atlantic Hockey Association’s preseason coaches poll, which was released Tuesday.
The Lakers received no first-place votes and 89 points. Air Force, the defending regular-season and tournament champions, earned eight first-place votes and 112 points. Niagara was second with three first-place votes and 101 points. Bentley and Rochester Institute of Technology were tied for fourth with 87 points.
Holy Cross (74) placed sixth, followed by Connecticut (65) and Robert Morris (61), which had one first-place vote. Canisius (38), Army (30), American International (20) and Sacred Heart (19) rounded out the rest of the list.

The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team will begin the 2012-13 season ranked 10th in the USCHO.com Division I poll, which was released Monday. The Lakers begin the season Saturday with an 3 p.m. exhibition game against Stoney Creek (Ontario) at Mercyhurst Ice Center. The regular season begins Sept. 28 at Rochester Institute of Technology.
Defending national champion Minnesota tops the list after receiving all 15 first-place votes, followed by Wisconsin, Cornell, Boston College and North Dakota. Boston University stands sixth, ahead of St. Lawrence, Minnesota Duluth, Northeastern and the Lakers. Robert Morris, which snapped Mercyhurst’s nine-year run as College Hockey America Tournament champion a season ago, received one vote in the poll.

HAVERHILL, Mass — Robert DeGregorio, Commissioner for College Hockey America (CHA), announced today that Rochester
Institute of Technology (RIT) has been official admitted into the CHA beginning with the 2012-13 season.

The announcement follows RIT winning its first NCAA Championship on March 17. RIT has to go through the NCAA two-year provisional period before being eligible for NCAA Tournament play, but the Tigers will be able to be a part of the CHA Tournament starting next season, since the CHA does not have an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

“We are very excited to have RIT join College Hockey America,” states Commissioner DeGregorio. “They have had a very
successful women’s ice hockey program at the Division III level and it is only fitting for them to elevate their women’s program
to Division I. It is my belief that RIT, with the continued support of the administration will meet the challenges of becoming a
Division I women’s ice hockey program. I believe that they will compete immediately for both the CHA Championship and the
National Championship beginning with the 2012-13 season.”

“This is an exciting day for the RIT family as we unveil plans to elevate a women’s team to the Division I level,” says RIT
President Bill Destler. “We’re honored to be joining College Hockey America and to be associated with the exceptional schools in
this conference. Today’s announcement is a significant milestone for the program and the university.”

“This is a momentous event in the history of RIT women’s ice hockey,” explains Lou Spiotti, RIT’s Executive Director of
Intercollegiate Athletics. “We are very proud to be accepted into such an elite grouping of colleges and universities in College
Hockey America. A debt of gratitude goes out to all those who have helped to make this happen, including our president and his
leadership team, our trustees, our coaches, fans and the many hockey alumni who have contributed to our program.”

“We are very excited to make the move to Division I,” says RIT Head Coach Scott McDonald, the active Division III all-time
leader in winning percentage, who recently completed his sixth season behind the bench. “We see the success the men have had at
this level and want to mirror that. We are excited to play new teams and foster new rivalries. The support we receive from the
university is second to none.”

Rochester Institute of Technology joins fellow Empire State member Syracuse as well as Penn State, Mercyhurst, Robert Morris
and Lindenwood to make-up the six teams in the CHA. Each league member will play four games (two home, two away) against
the other league institutions during the 2012-13 season. The regular-season champion will host the 2013 College Hockey
America Tournament, as all teams will participate in the championship.

- From CHA news release

Atlantic Hockey Association Tournament schedule

Semifinals – Friday

at Blue Cross Arena – Rochester, N.Y.

No. 1 Air Force (19-10-7) vs. No. 4 Mercyhurst (20-15-4), 4:05 p.m.

No. 2 Niagara (17-10-9) vs. No. 3 Rochester Institute of Technology (19-12-6), 60 minutes after completion of Game 1

Championship game – Saturday

at Blue Cross Arena, Rochester, N.Y.

Semifinal winners, 7:05 p.m.

Quarterfinals (best-of-three series)

No. 5 Holy Cross at No. 4 Mercyhurst

Game 1 – Mercyhurst 2, Holy Cross 1

Game 2 – Holy Cross 3, Mercyhurst 1

Game 3 – Mercyhurst 3, Holy Cross 1

Mercyhurst wins series 2-1

No. 6 Bentley at No. 3 Rochester Institute of Technology

Game 1 – Bentley 4, RIT 1

Game 2 – RIT 5, Bentley 4 (2OT)

Game 3 – RIT 3, Bentley 0

RIT wins series 2-1

No. 7 Robert Morris at No. 2 Niagara

Game 1 – Niagara 3, Robert Morris 0

Game 2 – Niagara 2, Robert Morris 1

Niagara wins series 2-0

No. 8 Connecticut at No. 1 Air Force

Game 1 – Air Force 4, Connecticut 3

Game 2 – Connecticut 3, Air Force 1

Game 3 – Air Force 4, Connecticut 3

Air Force wins series 2-1

The Mercyhurst men’s hockey team will face Holy Cross in the Atlantic Hockey Association quarterfinals next weekend at Mercyhurst Ice Center.

The best-of-three series begins Friday at 7:05 p.m., followed by Game 2 Saturday at 7:05 p.m. Game 3, if necessary, is set for Sunday at 7:05 p.m.

The fourth-seeded Lakers (18-14-4) earned a bye in this past weekend’s first round by finishing among the top four teams in the regular-season standings.

Fifth-seeded Holy Cross (19-13-4) swept 12th-seeded Army 3-2 and 5-2 in a best-of-three, first-round series in Worcester, Mass.

The other three quarterfinal series next weekend are No. 8 Connecticut (15-17-4) at No. 1 Air Force (17-9-7), No. 7 Robert Morris (17-15-5) at No. 2 Niagara (15-10-9) and No. 6 Bentley (15-14-8) at No. 3 Rochester Institute of Technology (17-11-6).

The winners earn spots in the semifinals, which will be held March 16 at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y. The championship game is March 17 in Rochester.

- Victor Fernandes