Robert Morris University Ice Hockey News

Posted by: Justin Panucci
Email: [email protected]
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Posted on: August 5th, 2004

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Posted on: July 19th, 2004

The 2004 - 2005 Robert Morris University ACHA DI Ice Hockey Team Schedule has been announced.

<Click here to view>.
-----------------------------------------------------------------Congratulations to RMU Goalie Marshall Scott for being named as one of the 2003-2004 ACHA DI ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICANS.
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RMU will play the University of Pittsburgh on Friday, February 20th, 8:00PM @ the Airport Ice Arena. RMU will play its home and regular season finale on Saturday, February 21st, 9:30 PM when it hosts Buffalo at the RMU Island Sports Center.

Prior to the RMU/Buffalo game on Saturday Feb. 21st, the RMU Ice Hockey Alumni will take on the Celebrity All-Stars @ 8:00PM at the RMU Island Sports Center! Cost of admission is $5.

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POSTED 2. 3. 2004
RMU PICKS UP WIN OVER SLIPPERY ROCK 3-2 in OT
The RMU Ice Hockey team played on its home ice for the first time in over a month and didn't disappoint its large crowd that found its way into the RMU Island Sports Center this past Friday night. RMU's Joey Olson scored 51 seconds into overtime to give the Colonials the 3-2 victory.

Slippery Rock's gritty defense kept the game close for much of the game, however RMU still found ways to generate shots and offensive production. Aaron Lapresti started the scoring for RMU when Chris Cummings skated the puck up ice and centered to Lapresti for a one-timer, five hole past SRU goalie Jason Kortz. However, RMU would not score again until the second period. SRU's Sean McIntyre scored on a nice backhander 5 minutes into the second [period] to tie the game at one. Seven minutes later, RMU's Ben Shank answered with a goal of his own following a setup pass from Chad Bugala to give the Colonials a 2-1 lead.

Meanwhile, RMU goalie Matt Schwartz played solid in net, making key saves and stopping two breakaways to hold the Colonials' lead. However, McIntyre would answer yet again for his second goal of the game early in the third to tie the game at two.

Just before the end of the third, SRU's Joe Daln took a penalty and was given a 10 minute misconduct penalty, giving RMU a prime opportunity to end the game on the power play. RMU did take advantage of the opportunity and ended it in OT when Bill Garman took a shot from the point and put it on net. The shot was rebounded by Chris Cummings. Cummings' rebound bounced out to Olson who calmly deked and backhanded a shot for the game winner.

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RMU DEFEATS DELAWARE; FALLS TO WEST CHESTER
1.12.2004 - RMU won 2 of 3 on the road this past weekend. RMU posted a win over highly ranked Delaware by the score of 4-3 with RMU trailing 3-0 at one point. RMU also defeated Lehigh by the score of 4-2, however lost to West Chester by the score of 6-3. Chris Cummings scored the game winners versus Delaware and Lehigh. Shawn Bakke and Bill Garman were forced to sit out of the Lehigh and West Chester games due to knee injuries but Aaron Lapresti made his return this weekend after being out for 2 months with a knee injury and scored 2 goals.

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12.12.2003 - Following the two cancelled games versus Bucknell, RMU officially got back on its winning ways this past weekend versus Ithica College and Syracuse University. RMU, while on the road, defeated Ithica on December 5th by the score of 8-1 and defeated Syracuse by the score of 8-2 to improve to 13-6 overall this season. Versus Syracuse, Brian Kleynjans continued his offensive tear with 4 assists, Brian "Distant Relative" Panucci scored twice for his first goals of the season and added an assist. Colin Ludwig had 3 points while Joey Olson and Chris Cummings each had a goal and an assist apiece. Goalie Marshall Scott got the win making 42 saves on 44 shots.

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11.20.2003 - The two games versus Bucknell (November 21st & 22nd) have been cancelled this week.

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11.10.2003 - RMU’s recent struggles continued this weekend as it lost 7-4 to West Virginia University at the Island Sports Center this past Friday night despite out-shooting the Mountaineers 42 to 36.

After a closely played first period with RMU trailing WVU 1-0, RMU capitalized on the power play to tie the score. On the play, Chad Bugala gained the zone and passed the puck over to Shawn Bakke who moved it over to Joey Olson at the top of the right circle. Olson took the pass and slapped it past WVU goalie Jon Natonick for the goal.

In the second period, RMU and WVU traded goals often. WVU scored two quick goals to make it 3-1. However, Joey Olson struck again with his second goal of the game. Olson was able to split two WVU defensemen and snapped a shot past Natnick for his 12th goal of the year. Two minutes later, WVU regained a two-goal lead on a deflection in front of the RMU net and WVU center Drew Zinchiak put it five-hole past RMU goalie Matt Schwartz following Bill Hass’s initial shot on goal. Haas amassed 6 points to lead all players in scoring. However, seconds later Shawn Bakke scored on a slap shot from the top of the right circle following a pass from Brian Panucci.

With RMU trailing 4-3 heading into the third period, WVU was quick to strike again and retook its two-goal lead. RMU would not break and came back with yet another quick goal. RMU defenseman Bill Garman made a great play to keep the puck in the WVU defensive zone. Brian Gubish took the Garman pass and put it on net. Brian Kleynjans followed up Gubish’s shot but that was stopped as well. However, Shawn Bakke followed the play and cleaned up the loose puck for his second goal of the game and ultimately RMU’s 4th and final goal.

With WVU maintaining a 5-4 lead midway through the third period, WVU sneaked a shot past RMU goalie Matt Schwartz crushing the hopes of another RMU comeback. WVU added its final goal late in the game for the 7-4 final.

RMU’s next upcoming games are on November 15th and 16th as part of the Duquesne University Tournament. RMU’s next home game will be November 21st, 9:30PM at the Island Sports Center versus Bucknell.

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11.3.2003 - The RMU Ice Hockey team split this weekend’s series with Robert Morris College DII (Chicago). RMU fought back from a 3-2 deficit late in Friday’s game and found a way to win by the score of 4-3. However, RMU couldn’t find the same magic from the night before, losing 7-4 on Saturday night at the Island Sports Center.

Following an early RMC goal, RMU’s Joey Olson scored to tie the game at one. Midway through the second, Shawn Bakke passed to Olson, who was at the top of the circle. Olson took the pass and shot it past RMC goalie Tommy Schaul for the goal. However, late in the second period RMC regained the lead when an RMU cross ice pass was intercepted and RMC’s Dave Lannert took advantage by scoring past RMU goalie Matt Schwartz’s stick side.

RMU found itself trailing 2-1 at the beginning of the third period yet fought back once again. RMU’s Brian Grinnik took a pass from defenseman Joe Stark, sidestepped an RMC defenseman, and scored top shelf, stick side to tie the score at two.

Only two minutes later, RMC scored to go back ahead 3-2. Yet once again Grinnik was there to answer. Grinnik stole the puck following a botched clearing attempt from behind the RMC net. Grinnik took a quick shot and put it past RMC’s Schaul.

Finally, with 1:50 to go in the game, Grinnik saved his best for last when he took a pass from Brian Gubish at center ice, took off through the RMC defensive zone, and scored stick side again on Tommy Schaul for the hat trick and game winning goal. Quoted Grinnik after the game, “I have to thank my teammates for the playmaking. All I did was take the pass (on the game winner) and shoot it bottom blocker side. I did pretty much the same thing as I did on my first goal. Then, before I knew it I was being tackled by Bugala.”

RMU however couldn’t put together such a comeback the following night. Despite the 7-4 loss on Saturday night, the team didn’t give up despite falling behind 4-0 after the first period of play. RMU was able to put together two solid periods of play to finish the game and showed great resiliency. Trailing 6-1 after two periods of play, RMU scored three goals in the final frame to make it 6-4 with just over 5 minutes to play. However this deficit would be too large to overcome and RMC added a goal that destroyed any hope of another RMU comeback victory.

During the attempted comeback, Brian Kleynjans took a pass from Brian Panucci and lasered a shot top shelf past RMC goalie Tommy Schaul. Grinnik notched another goal for RMU’s second goal, and Joey Olson scored twice on passes from Bakke, including a slick breakaway goal that got RMU back into the game. RMU goalie Matt Schwartz suffered his first loss of the season making 28 saves despite several point blank shots from the RMC offense.

RMU’s next game is this Friday night, 9:30PM at the Island Sports Center vs. West Virginia University.

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10.26.03 - With the news of cracking the Top 20 in the ACHA DI rankings being discovered earlier in the week, the RMU Ice Hockey Team showed why it is a Top 20 team and defeated visiting Hobart College this past Saturday night by the score of 9-6 at the Island Sports Center. RMU won for the seventh time this year despite suffering from several injuries to the club. RMU goalie Marshall Scott and forwards Shawn Bakke, Dayne Habbib, Aaron LaPresti, and Brian Panucci were all forced to sit out of Saturday night’s game.

RMU out-played, out-muscled, and out-skated Hobart en route to the victory while several RMU players played major roles. Forward Chris Cummings tallied a goal and 3 assists while Joey Olson continued his scoring tear with 2 goals and 2 assists and has now totaled 18 points in 9 games this season. Alex Kumnik and Brian Gubish both scored 2 goals and RMU put the game out of reach by the end of the first period. C.J. King and Brian Kleynjans also scored in the RMU offensive onslaught.

Meanwhile, defenseman Chad Bugala assisted on two goals, defenseman Bill Garman physically dominated the opposition with several big hits, and RMU goalie Matt Schwartz won his 3rd game of the season making 24 stops on the night. The RMU offense kept Hobart goalie Scott Gilbert busy, peppering him with 40 shots and scoring on several goals on rebounds. The RMU power play unit also looked great scoring twice.

RMU will now focus its attention on Robert Morris College of Chicago. The two will play a ‘Halloween Thriller’ on October 31st, 9:30PM at the Island Sports Center. Come out and see the two Robert Morris’ battle each other in what proves to be a scary match up.
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10.25.03 - The new article game summary of RMU vs. Hobart will be posted soon. Please check back again. Thanks.

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10.12.03 - The RMU Ice Hockey team continued to cruise through its opposition with two more wins this weekend versus Pittsburgh and Slippery Rock. RMU controlled both games, out muscling and out skating their opponents.

Some fantastic scoring and puck movement highlighted Friday night’s 6-3 win over Pitt. C.J. King stole the show with a hat trick. RMU’s offense has really come around and has been on a tear. The first line composed of Joey Olson, Shawn Bakke, and Dayne Habbib continued to impress with flashy puck movement and scoring chances. The Aaron Lapresti, Chris Cummings, and C.J. King line accounted for 4 of RMU’s 6 goals. King was quick to acknowledge and thank his line mates following the game stating: “I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to score if it weren’t for them.”

The turning point of the game came midway through the third period following a Pitt goal to cut the RMU lead to 4-3. From the faceoff at center, RMU answered quickly when King scored his third of the game. Aaron Lapresti skated the puck into the Pitt defensive zone, passed it off to Shawn Bakke, who in turn passed to King. King skated the puck in front of a screened Pitt net and ripped a shot top shelf, stick side past Pitt goalie Chris Garman. The goal in essence sealed the “W” for RMU.

Colin Ludwig scored the first goal of his Colonial career and Brian Grinnik notched a goal as well, while goalie Matt Schwartz improved to 2-0 on the season making 14 saves.

In Saturday night’s heated showdown, the dedicated and highly emotional “RMU Faithful” made their presence known at Bladerunner’s in Cranberry as RMU defeated Slippery Rock 5-0 in a heated affair.

RMU came out strong and scored twice in the first period. Twenty-seven seconds into the game, Shawn Bakke skated the puck up ice and made a slick drop pass back to Dayne Habbib who lasered a shot past SRU goalie Jason Kortz’s stick side. This goal would set the tone for the game, revving up the RMU fans. The second goal was as nice as the first with fluent cross-ice passing starting from Bill Garman to Joey Olson to Shawn Bakke for the goal.

Following a sluggish beginning to the second period, the ‘laser pointer’… I mean ‘flashlight incident’ may have lit the way for the Colonials. Following the controversial pause in the game, RMU quickly scored 2 goals before the end of the period. Bakke scored his second of the game and 5th of the season following Bill Garman’s initial shot on goal. Brian Kleynjans later added a power play goal following a centering pass from Alex Kumnik. RMU then proceeded to shut down the SRU offense on way to a Marshall Scott shutout. Defensemen Chad Bugala, Joe Stark, Bill Garman, Tim Linden, Mike Mitchko, and Rob Plocki helped clear the zone and limit second scoring chances from the SRU offense. Scott made 24 saves in the shutout victory. Chris Cummings tallied RMU’s final goal following a great effort and pass from C.J. King.

RMU’s overall record now stands at 5-1 and will travel to Towson University in Maryland to play two games (Friday, October 17th and Saturday, October 18th.

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10.11.03 - The new article will be posted following the conclusion of the game at Slippery Rock. Good Luck to the Colonials!

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10.6.03 - The RMU Division I Ice Hockey team played its first home game of the season this past Friday night at the RMU Island Sports Center versus Washington and Jefferson and traveled to Morgantown on Saturday to play the Mountaineers of West Virginia. The Colonials fell by the score of 4-2 in a penalty filled game versus W&J but rebounded with a huge win against WVU.

W&J tallied the first goal of the game during the first minute of play when Jerry Liberatore took a shot from the side of the RMU net. The puck deflected off an RMU defender’s skate and in for a 1-0 W&J lead. A scrappy and a penalty-delayed first period haunted the Colonials, following another W&J goal, RMU trailed 2-0 at the end of one.

RMU came out stronger in the second and third periods and outplayed W&J. W&J’s Tom Mittlemeir scored early in the second period on a shorthanded breakaway to make the score 3-0. However, the scrappy play of W&J continued and RMU finally capitalized. As W&J got caught deep in the RMU zone, RMU defenseman Joe Stark stole the puck and fed it up the boards to Joey Olson. Olson took the puck, out skated the W&J defenseman with ease, and scored low glove side on W&J goalie Yan Claremont. RMU got another quick goal early in the third period to pull the Colonials within one. RMU was adding offensive pressure in the W&J zone, when Brian Gubish took a shot and followed up on the rebound for the goal.

Meanwhile, Marshall Scott made several stops to keep the game close. Scott caught everyone’s attention with a spectacular sprawling save midway through the third period on a breakaway. Scott also made several close stops from directly in front of the RMU net. However, despite RMU’s great effort at a comeback W&J later added an empty net goal for the 4-2 victory. Despite the loss, RMU showed heart and a no quit attitude that was possessed by RMU teams in the past.

Their no quit attitude showed the next day as they traveled to Morgantown to face West Virginia. RMU pounded the Mountaineers by the convincing score of 4-1. Goalie Marshall Scott, who made 30 saves, played another great game in net as the RMU defense shut down the WVU offense. C.J. King, Shawn Bakke, Brian Gubish, and Dayne Habbib all scored goals for the Colonials in a solid team effort.

RMU’s next game is on Friday October 10th @ 9:30pm versus the University of Pittsburgh at the RMU Island Sports Center.

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10.2.03 - This year the RMU Ice Hockey program has taken a great stride and has elevated its level of competition by becoming a DI program. RMU will take on the likes of Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Slippery Rock, & West Virginia this upcoming season.

RMU is looking forward to continuing its success this year. Returning players Chad Bugala (C), Chris Cummings (A), Brian Gubish (A), and Brian Panucci (A) have been named the captains of this year's squad while junior goalie Marshall Scott, last year’s ACHA save % leader, will make several stops. Sophomores Aaron Lapresti and Brian Kleynjans will add a great scoring touch once again. Newcomers Shawn Bakke, Joe Olson, Dayne Habbib, C.J. King, Colin Ludwig, Mike Mitchko, Matt Schwartz, and Bill German join the Colonials this season and will make a positive impact for the team.

The Colonials are already off to a fast start with two convincing wins at Buffalo this past weekend. In the first game, RMU found itself trailing 3-2 when Mike Mitchko scored to tie the game at three apiece heading into the first intermission. Chris Cummings (1 goal and 2 assists in the game) and Brian Gubish added second period goals, while goalie Marshall Scott turned away 32 of 35 shots for the 5-3 Colonial victory. Aaron Lapresti started off where he finished last season, notching 2 first period goals. C.J. King finished the game with 2 assists in his first game with RMU.

In the second game versus Buffalo, Shawn Bakke had 2 goals and 2 assists and goalie Matt Schwartz stopped 29 of 31 shots for his first victory as a Colonial. This weekend RMU hosts its first game of the season this Friday night versus W & J at the RMU Island Sports Center @ 6:15pm and then will travel to play the Mountaineers of West Virginia on Saturday @ 4:15pm.

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9.26.03 - Congratulations to Chad Bugala (C), Chris Cummings (A), Brian Gubish (A), and Brian "Not So Distant Relative" Panucci (A) for being named the captains of this year's squad.

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