Colonials Corner

A while back, Robert Morris teamed up with VisitPittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Penguins to submit a bid to host the 2013 or 2014 NCAA Frozen Four at the new Consol Energy Center in downtown Pittsburgh.

Tuesday, that bid became reality. The group was announced as the host for the 2013 semifinals and finals to the Division I college hockey tournament.

It’s become a popular tournament, broadcast on the ESPN family of networks, and in a hockey crazed market like Pittsburgh, it’s bound to attract large crowds and plenty of media attention.

The 2014 event was awarded to Philadelphia.

Some relevant links:

• Coverage from the Post-Gazette’s Michael Sanserino.
• Official release from the school

Since the new Consol Energy Center was announced, the Pittsburgh region has been gunning for major sporting events to bring to the new downtown arena. From NCAA Tournament regionals to major concerts to even quiet rumors about an NBA franchise (or at the least, an arena football franchise) to join the Penguins in the arena.

One event that Robert Morris has been working on is cohosting the NCAA Division I ice hockey Frozen Four along with the Penguins and VisitPittsburgh.

Friday, the university announced that Pittsburgh is one of four finalists to host either the 2013 or 2014 tournament finals. If the RMU/Penguins venture is named the site, it would be the first time that the city would have a major national collegiate championship decided in its city.

“Being named a finalist means we’re one step closer to achieving our goal of hosting the premier college hockey event in the nation,” Colonial Head Men’s Ice Hockey Coach Derek Schooley said in a press release. “This is very exciting for the Robert Morris hockey program and the local hockey community.”

Robert Morris joins the Atlantic Hockey Conference this season after starting in College Hockey America. The team, just six years old, has never appeared in the NCAA Tournament, but former conference foe Bemidji State made it to the Frozen Four last year. Boston College, Wisconsin, RIT, and Miami (OH) were in the Frozen Four hosted at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan this year. Boston College beat Wisconsin 5-0 for the national title.

“This exciting event will bring over 17,000 players and spectators and an estimated economic impact of over $10 million to Pittsburgh,” Vice President for Sales and Marketing of VisitPittsburgh Craig Davis said in a release. “Our stellar facilities, including the soon to be completed CONSOL Energy Center, and our attractive amenities will help create a wonderful experience for the student-athletes, their familes and fans.”

Other finalists include St. Louis (hosted in 2007), Boston (2004), and Philadelphia (has submitted bids before).

The NCAA will announce the winner of the bids for both 2013 and 2014 next month.

The Colonials celebrate their win Sunday in Miami. Photo courtesy of RMU Athletics.

The first helping was so delicious, Robert Morris went back for seconds.

Less than 48 hours after knocking off #1 Miami (OH) in the Pittsburgh College Hockey Showcase, Robert Morris spoiled the Redhawk’s first home game of 2010 with a 2-1 upset win in Oxford, Ohio. Sophomore goalie Brooks Ostergard stopped 38 shots – bringing his weekend save total to 77 – to cap off a weekend sweep that has stunned the college hockey world.

Nathan Longpre scored a power play goal to give Robert Morris an early lead in the second period. After Miami tied it up midway through the middle frame, Denny Urban scored on another power play for the game winner. Robert Morris held off a frantic Miami comeback in the third period, as Ostergard whethered 14 shots in the final frame.

Miami fell to 13-4-5 and faces rival Ferris State on the road next weekend in a battle for the CCHA conference leader. Robert Morris, meanwhile, might have more of an argument that their 5-12-3 record is due to an extraordinarily strong schedule and that they are better than that mark would suggest. They can improve their standing in the CHA with home games against conference rival Alabama-Huntsville this weekend.

We normally leave the hockey stuff to Centre Ice and Faceoff Factor, but this needs mentioned. In what will likely go down as the biggest win in Robert Morris sports history, the Colonials men’s ice hockey team shocked the hockey world Friday night with a 3-1 win over #1 Miami (OH). The game was part of the Pittsburgh College Hockey Showcase, the last college hockey event to take place inside storied Mellon Arena.

Miami (13-3-5) had lost just twice this season, both times to ranked teams (3-2 to #9 Michigan State in overtime and 3-2 to #10 Bemidji State). Robert Morris (4-12-3), meanwhile, had won just three times entering the game, but had played a brutal schedule that included playing opponents that were nationally ranked at the time of competition or became nationally ranked afterward in ten of their 19 games.

Miami has eight NHL draft picks on their roster. Robert Morris has none. It was the epitome of a David v. Goliath matchup.

The Colonials opened the scoring when Chris Kushneriuk scored a short-handed goal late in the first period. Miami tied it up in the second with a 5-on-3 power play goal from Carter Camper. Still tied at 1 entering the third period, the Colonials struck twice in a span of one minute and 11 seconds.

J.C. Velasquez scored first and then freshman Stefan Salituro put in his own rebound to seal the win. Sophomore goalie Brooks Ostergard had 39 saves for the victory. Robert Morris will travel to Miami to complete the series on Sunday.

The Robert Morris men’s ice hockey team is featured on the main website of NHL.com

The Colonials are highlighted in the “On Campus” section of the website.

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