ERIE, Pa. — 
The first period between Robert Morris and Mercyhurst at Mercyhurst Ice Center Friday night was a pretty normal period between to closely matched teams.
The second period was a totally different story as the Lakers outshot Robert Morris, 21-8, in the middle frame and scored four goals to turn a one-goal deficit into a three-goal lead and an eventual 7-4 victory over the Colonials.
There wasn’t a specific moment when the game started slipping away from the Colonials, according to captain Rob Mann. Instead, it was just a sloppy second period marred by missed opportunities on one end and mistakes that were taken advantage of on the other.
“It just seemed like the whole second period, we were chasing,” Mann said. “It was kind of a lull, and not that we gave them a lot, but they seemed to capitalize on their chances. We had some good looks, we just couldn’t seem to find the back of the net at times.”
Mann said that the opportunistic Lakers seemed to waiting for a mistake or a bad bounce and then were able to pounce on those chances because of a late box-out or a slow stick by a Colonials defender.
“There were a few-net front ones there,” he said. “They seemed to get behind our guys or get under our sticks. Those are just little battles that we have to make sure win tomorrow and especially down the stretch.”
PLUGGING LEAKS
The sheer number of goals given up by Robert Morris as a whole was dissatisfying, but the nature of each individual play made it hard for head coach Derek Schooley to single out his goaltenders.
Freshman Francis Marotte started and was replaced in the second period by senior Dalton Izyk, who “did well in a tough situation,” according to Schooley.
The bottom line, he added, comes down to a team effort. While none of the players could be singled out for and individually poor performance, goaltender or defenseman, in order to for the team to win, someone needed to step up.
“I don’t think you can fault the goaltender on any of the goals, but the fact is that we did give up six goals,” he said. “You get four goals [at this time of year], you should be winning games.”
For Schooley, it’s a tough pill to swallow considering the fact that he spent the week figuring out how to improve scoring after a one-goal weekend against Bentley the week before.
“You plug one hole, a leak springs somewhere else,” he said. “This is a tough time this team is going to have to go through.”
TOUGH CUSTOMER
Freshman forward Luke Lynch has had some solid games this season, including a special two-goal night against Ohio State back in October.
But this may have been his best performance yet. Lynch scored two goals, but maybe even more importantly, was a physical presence up and down the ice, causing havoc everywhere he went.
“I thought Luke Lynch played very well,” Schooley said. “He plays hard. He went to the net. He had tremendous patience.”
POWER OUTAGE
The Colonials scored one power play goal — Daniel Leavens had the tally to restore a two-goal lead late in the first — but had eight opportunities. On a night where the game turned on a few close plays, the power play had a chance to be a difference-maker, but came up just short.
“Especially when we were trailing, we needed to get one,” Schooley said. “It’s close. We hit two goal posts and then next thing you know, we’re chasing the game. You get one of those earlier and maybe, it’s different.”
COLONIALS NOTES
Defenseman Elias Ghantous scored his first career goal in the first period. … The two teams will play at 84 Lumber Arena Saturday at 7:05 p.m.
