MOON TOWNSHIP– Despite Thanksgiving break beginning this weekend, the Robert Morris sports teams are not slowing down. This weekend features volleyball’s run at the NEC Championships, the final game of the season for the football team, as well as action from both the men’s and women’s hockey and basketball teams.

Volleyball

The Colonials (25-4, 15-1 NEC) will be the host of the NEC Tournament this year as they enter as the no. 1 seed. Hosted at the UPMC Events Center, they will first face off against the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils (14-14, 10-6 NEC) at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. If the Colonials win their match, they will play the winner of the other match at the tournament on Saturday; the LIU Sharks (12-16, 11-5 NEC) or the Sacred Heart Pioneers (18-11, 13-3 NEC).

At the forefront for the Colonials is Emma Granger, whose junior season has been outstanding in nearly every facet. Her 366 kills this season are a career-high and she has been named the NEC Player of the Week seven times this season alone.

Football

RMU football looks to finish their 2019 season on a high note after their loss last week to Central Connecticut State (10-1, 6-0 NEC); their first loss since late September. This Saturday at Noon, the Colonials (6-5, 5-1 NEC) will take on the Sacred Heart Pioneers (7-4, 4-2 NEC) at Joe Walton Stadium.

Though the loss against Central Connecticut will put them behind them for the NEC’s FCS playoff bid, the Colonials should be proud of their strong season after finishing last in the NEC the past three years. If the Blue Devils lose to the Duquesne Dukes (6-4, 4-2 NEC) and the Colonials beat the Pioneers, Robert Morris will hold a share of the NEC title.

Men’s hockey

Two hot teams will collide this weekend as the Colonials (7-4, 7-1 AHA) host the Air Force Falcons (3-7, 3-3 AHA) at 7:05 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday. The Colonials enter this match-up having won their last four games, while the Falcons, having gone 0-7 to start their season, have rattled off three straight wins as they try to turn their season around.

Captain Nick Prkusic is riding a six-game point streak coming into the game and has 12 points on the season so far, while Justin Kapelmaster will likely get the start in net as the senior looks to keep his solid play up as well.

Women’s hockey

The women’s hockey team (6-5-1, 4-0 CHA) much like their male counterparts are also riding a four-game win streak as they travel to New York to take on the lowly RPI Engineers (0-12-1, 0-6 ECAC). Their last contest featured an impressive three-goal comeback against Lindenwood (2-9-3, 0-4 CHA), largely thanks to Emilie Harley’s two goals and a solid performance from Arielle DeSmet.

Also scoring last game were Emily Curlett and Captain Jaycee Gebhard, whose 16 and 25 points respectively pace the Colonials in terms of points by a defenseman and forward.

Men’s basketball

The Colonials (1-5) have another huge road test when they face the Marquette Golden Eagles (2-1) on Saturday. Having played all but one of their games on the road so far, the Colonials will have it tough against a highly regarded Marquette squad. Having beaten a ranked (at the time) Purdue Boilermakers team (2-2), but falling to Wisconsin (3-1), the Golden Eagles will look at RMU as a fairly easy opponent.

Redshirt senior Josh Williams leads the Colonials so far with 12.6 PPG, and 3.2 assists per game as he will look to lead the Colonials to an upset win.

Women’s basketball

Finally, following a tough loss against Columbia (2-3) at home last week, the Colonials (2-2) travel to Kent State to take on the Golden Flashes (3-1) on Sunday. Kent State will be coming off a tough game against the Ohio State Buckeyes (2-1), while this will be the lone road game for the Colonials before an upcoming three-game homestand.

Leading the way once again is center Nneka Ezeigbo for the Colonials with a team-leading 61 points on the season, while sophomore Esther Castedo has been hot the past two matches with 12 and 15 points respectively.

Stay tuned to RMU Sentry Media for updates all weekend long.