ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT women’s hockey team returns to the friendly confines of the Gene Polisseni Center, as College Hockey America foe Robert Morris University comes to town for a pair of games on Friday, Nov. 6 and Saturday, Nov. 7. Friday’s contest begins at 7 p.m., while Saturday’s contest starts at 3 p.m.
On Friday, fans are urged to “White Out The Gene Polisseni Center”, as free t-shirts will be given out to the first 1,000 fans in attendance. On Saturday, RIT will hold its annual “Skate With the Tigers” event following the contest. Fans will be able to meet their favorite players and receive autographs. Limited skate rentals are available.
RIT (3-6-0, 0-3-0), the two-time defending CHA Champions, will look for its first win in conference play after suffering two tough losses at Mercyhurst last weekend by scores of 5-0 and 4-3. On Saturday, the Tigers led three separate times, but could not hold on, as Mercyhurst would tie the game late in regulation and win in overtime.
Seniors Carly Payerl (Kitchener, Ontario/Resurrection Catholic) and Jess Paton (Woodstock, Ontario/Waterloo K-W Rangers) are tied for the team lead in scoring with six points apiece. Payerl has three goals and three assists, while Paton has two goals and four helpers. Cassie Clayton (Pickering, Ontario/PEAC School) is tied for the team lead with three goals, while Taylor Thurston (Kanata, Ontario/All Saints Catholic) leads the squad with five assists. In net, Brooke Stoddart (Elmvale, Ontario/Elmvale) and Jenna de Jonge (Abbotsford, British Columbia/George Elliot) have split time in each of the last two weekends. Stoddart is 2-2-0 with a 3.74 goals against average and an .877 save percentage, while de Jonge is 1-3-0 with a 3.83 goals against average and an .870 save percentage.
Robert Morris enters the weekend with a 5-4-1 overall and 1-1-0 mark in league play. Last weekend, the Colonials split a weekend series against Syracuse, falling 4-3 in overtime and rebounding to win the next day, 2-0. Brittany Howard leads Robert Morris in scoring with 12 points on five goals and seven assists. Sarah Quaranta is right behind with a team-best 10 assists and 11 points. Robert Morris is out-scoring its opponents, 28-26 this season. In goal, Jessica Dodds is 5-3-0 with a 2.10 goals against average and .931 save percentage.
RIT leads the all-time series between the two schools, 9-6-3. RIT won the season series last season, 3-1-2, including a two-game sweep at Robert Morris in the CHA First Round playoff series. RIT has eliminated the Colonials in the CHA playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
Starting this weekend, RIT plays 10 of its next 11 games at the Gene Polisseni Center, eight in November and two more before the semester break in December.
Tickets are $5 for adults, $4 for RIT staff, faculty, and alumni, and $3 for youth. RIT students receive free admission (one ticket limit per valid RIT ID). Tickets are available at the Gene Polisseni Center and Gordon Field House Box Offices, by calling (585) 475-4121 or by visiting www.rithockey.com.
Both games will be aired online, and on WITR 89.7 FM. Live stats are available for both contests.
Come out and support the Tigers, as they go for their third straight CHA Championship.
