Robert Morris’ Tanner Klimpe heads up the ice against Michigan earlier this season. (Photo courtesy of RMU Athletics)
Robert Morris’ 20th season as an NCAA Division I men’s hockey program got underway last weekend with back-to-back losses to highly ranked Michigan, but the Colonials won’t need to wait long to get back in action.
The team, which dropped its first game to the third-ranked Wolverines 4-2 and then lost the second game 10-2, will take on Notre Dame Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24-25, in South Bend, Ind.
RMU’s home opener is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 31 against Niagara at the Clearview Arena in the RMU Island Sports Center on Neville Island. The Colonials will then travel to Niagara Falls, N.Y., to face the Purple Eagles in a rematch Saturday.
Against Michigan, Robert Morris held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the first game before Michigan scored the final three goals for the 4-2 victory.
The Colonials had goals from Michael Felsing and Luca Primerano.
Robert Morris jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in Game 2 and was as close as 3-2 before third-ranked Wolverines took control of the game and coasted to a 10-2 victory. Jackson Reineke and Ryan Taylor scored goals for RMU.
The Colonials are led by head coach Derek Schooley, who has been at the helm since program’s inception. RMU is a member of the Atlantic Hockey America Conference, which was formed after the merger of College Hockey America and the Atlantic Hockey Conferences two years ago. Other members of Atlantic Hockey America include Air Force, Army, Holy Cross, Niagara, RIT, Sacred Heart, Bentley and Mercyhurst.
 The Colonials finished the 2024-25 season with an overall record of 10-20-5 and were 7-15-4 in conference play, which was good for a 10th-place finish. The Colonials return top scorer, forward Tanner Klimpke, a junior from Calgary, Alberta. Klimpke has 25 goals and 24 assists over the past two seasons.
Defensively, the Colonials return six players and added two transfers from Sweden –- Rassmus Larsson (Northern Michigan) and Max Wattvil (Merrimack College). In goal, RMU will count on Croix Kochendorfer, who appeared in 23 games last season, as well as Lucas Massie, a transfer from Union College.Â
Robert Morris Women’s Hockey Kicks-Off Season
Looking to rebound from a 3-5 start, Robert Morris’ women’s hockey team will travel to take on Delaware this weekend in a pair of Atlantic Hockey America Conference games.
The Colonials, coached by Logan Bittle, have posted two wins over Assumption and a conference victory over RIT while losing twice each to Yale and Bemidji State and once to RIT to give them a 1-1 conference mark.
Robert Morris’ leading scorers so far on the season are Morgan Giannone (3 goals, 2 assists), Jessica Mackinnon (2 goals, 5 assists), Shayne Desjardins (2 goals, 3 assists) and Linnea Misner (1 goal, 4 assists).
Giannone, a senior, totaled nine goals last season, when the Colonials went 8-24-3 overall and 2-16-2 in conference play. Maggie Hatch is expected to hold down the goaltender spot after appearing in 26 games last season.
RMU’s conference competition includes Penn State, Syracuse, Delaware, RIT, Mercyhurst and Lindenwood.
RMU’s next home game will be against Penn State at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31, at the Clearview Arena at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center on Neville Island.
Rock DiLisio is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in magazines, newspapers and periodicals, as well as being the author of several books. The Moon Township resident is a graduate of Robert Morris University and also holds an MBA.
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