ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT women's hockey team (3-7-0, 0-4-0 CHA) could not find the back of the net despite outshooting Robert Morris (6-4-1, 2-1-0 CHA), falling by a score of 4-0, in a College Hockey America battle on Friday night at the Gene Polisseni Center.
 
The Tigers outshot the Colonials, 29-23, but were unable to get a goal for the second time in three games during the current three-game losing streak. Kendall Cornine (Kinnelon, NJ/Morristown Beard) took five shots the lead the team. Brooke Stoddart (Elmvale, Ontario/Elmvale) stopped 19 shots in the loss.
 
Maggie Lague, Mikaela Lowater, and Brittany Howard tallied a goal and an assist apiece, and Rikki Meilleur scored a third period for the Colonals, who have won back-to-back CHA games. Jessica Dodds stopped all 29 shots for the shutout and her sixth victory on the season.
 
Tonight was the first of four meetings between the two schools this season. The two teams play tomorrow and head to Robert Morris for a two-game series to conclude the regular season on Feb. 19-20, 2016.
 
With the loss, RIT still leads the all-time series between the two schools, 9-7-3. 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.

The Tigers came out of the gates strong, willed by a great crowd of 1,895 raucous fans. RIT nearly opened the scoring midway through the first period, when Caitlin Wallace (Brantford, Ontario/Assumption Collegiate)'s shot on the left side was stopped by Dodds. On the rebound, Brooke Baker (Saline, MI/Saline) found the puck to the left of the goal and took a shot, with seemingly an open goal, but Dodds swung her stick out, making an incredible save with the paddle to keep it scoreless.
 
With 18:46 into the first period, Robert Morris scored just 10 seconds into a power-play attempt, as Maeve Garvey fed Lague between the blue line and the right faceoff circle, with Lague's shot between the arm and body of Stoddart, who was screened on the play.
 
Robert Morris doubled its lead 12:47 into the second period, when Howard fed Lowater on the power play. Lowater, who was just to the left of goal, fired a shot past Stoddart. Robert Morris struck again late in the period, taking a 3-0 lead with 20 seconds left, when Kristen Welsh had a shot blocked right to Howard, who was just in front of goal. Howard made a move and fired the shot, the puck sliding under the legs of Stoddart. The Colonials were able to get three goals despite only taking 11 shots to RIT's 23 through the first two periods.
 
Robert Morris closed the scoring 5:39 into the third period when Meilleur took a shot outside of the right faceoff circle in front of the net, which was blocked by Reagan Rust (McKinney, TX/Moon Area). Getting the rebound next to the net, Meilleur composed herself, flicking a shot that fired past Stoddart for the goal.
 
"We played well in the first and part of the second period," said Bruce B. Bates Head Women's Hockey Coach Scott McDonald. "In the third period we were very flat, and that's when the wheels fell off for us."
 
Including tonight, 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.
 
The two teams wrap up the weekend series from the Gene Polisseni Center on Saturday at 3 p.m. RIT will hold its annual "Skate With the Tigers" event right after the contest.