NORTHFORD, Conn. — 
It seems like something always happens when Robert Morris plays Sacred Heart to tip the scales in the favor of the Colonials. The teams had played 15 games coming into this weekend’s opener in Connecticut, and Robert Morris had won 14 of them, with the other ending in a draw.
It isn’t as if the Pioneers have been truly dreadful or Robert Morris has run away with huge victories. A year ago, three of the four RMU victories were of the one-goal variety — they just found ways to beat Sacred Heart. Saturday afternoon, it was junior forward Brady Ferguson that was the biggest reason for RMU’s victory as he had two goals and an assist in the Colonials’ 4-1 win over Sacred Heart.
The game was close until the final minutes, as Ferguson’s second-period power play goal and Jordan Minello’s early third-period equalizer kept things even until the latter half of the final frame.
That’s when the Ferguson line took over again, as his unit with Daniel Leavens and Alex Tonge cashed in for two goals in the final four minutes and Timmy Moore added an empty netter to push the margin of victory.
“I thought [Ferguson] could have had five goals himself,” head coach Derek Schooley said. “His compete level in the offense zone is tremendous. He’s got a tremendous will between him and Daniel Leavens and Alex Tonge right now to hunt pucks. I think they could be a little bit better in their own end at times, but they have a hunt pucks mentality of putting pucks in, stripping pucks and making plays.”
With the three-point night, Ferguson now has 16 points on the season in nine games and is in the top 10 in scoring nationally. He’s been absolutely dynamic at times, with a seven-point weekend in the opener against RIT and a big three points against Ohio State last weekend. But his line came up small in the team’s split with Army late in October. The difference has been a focus on making the right play in the offensive zone, according to Ferguson.
“What we didn’t do against Army was get the puck deep and get behind their defensemen,” he said. “I think when we played Ohio State, we were moving our feet, getting on their defensemen, sealing the puck and creating offensive chances. I think that’s what we did today, as well.”
While Ferguson is unquestionably the team’s most talented forward, he’s also one of the biggest. At 6-foot, 195, he’s the second-biggest forward on the team. The biggest? His right-winger Leavens. The duo has tried to find a balance between taking advantage of their physical size, while also playing to the requisite skill set of top-line forwards.
“I think me and Leavo, we’re a little bit bigger — even Tonge, he’s a smaller player but he gets into the corners and gets to pucks as well — if we just get it behind their defense and use our bodies and then obviously we still have some skill, so we’re trying to do that,” Ferguson said.
OFFENSE FROM DEFENSE
While Ferguson as the team’s leading scorer isn’t exactly a surprise, defenseman Eric Israel stepping up as the second man on that chart is something of an unexpected development. The sophomore blueliner had just 11 points in all of his freshman season. His assist on Ferguson’s first-period goal was his 12th point of the season already through nine games.
“My responsibilities last year were different,” Israel said. “I was more of a stay-at-home guy and I let Tyson [Wilson] go up. Learning from the older guys, I mean, with nine seniors, you learn a lot from them. They definitely helped all of us. All four of us sophomore have been contributing big time.”
Israel has been partnered with junior Elias Ghantous, and Israel credits his partner’s solid defensive play for giving him the ability to showcase his offensive talent.
“‘G’ supports me big-time,” Israel said. “He’s a rock-solid, stay-at-home defenseman. Knowing that he’s back there and knowing that he’s got my back all the time. He gives me a little bit of an ability to jump up, create opportunities and then we have some great forwards. We out a lot last year, but we replaced all of it and have more. We have great skill up front. It’s easy when you dish you puck off to Fergie, Leavens, [Daniel Mantenuto], [Luke Lynch] — guys that bury the puck and go hard to the net. It’s just been paying off lately.”
But the contributions of the team’s offensive defenseman can be a double-edged sword. John Rey was stripped of the puck attempting to carry it up the ice, which led to Sacred Heart’s only goal.
“I think that’s them trying to do a little too much at times,” Schooley said. “I think they have to be smart with their decisions at times and I think they have to be smart with when to join and when to move the puck. They just have to make sure they make good decisions with the puck. They want to produce and you have to get some scoring from your defense. You need all five men to score.”
FIESTY FRESHMEN
The game was a physical battle throughout, especially in the third period, when the referee’s whistles seemed to have been put away. With nine seniors in the starting lineup, Sacred Heart certainly can bring a battle.
The Colonials responded with four freshmen forwards — Mantenuto, Lynch, Matthew Graham and Kevin Lavoie. They were counted on for tough minutes against a big, strong team.
“It’s a veteran team,” Schooley said. “They’re going to be physical, it’s going to be nasty, it’s going to be dirty. [Our freshmen] have to figure out how they have to play on a night-in and night-out basis and for the most part, they’re doing a pretty good job. When they’re not contributing offensively,what are they going to do to help this team win? I think they’re figuring out that they’re getting some chances and creating some chances. I kinda liked how they played.”
Lynch was a physical force, Mantenuto won 8 of 14 faceoffs and the all-freshman second line came up with many big plays that didn’t necessarily show up on the scoresheet.
“I think our freshmen have been unbelievable,” Isreal said. “Ever since day one, the older guys said, ‘We lost in the [Atlantic Hockey] championship last year, and we’re going back. Our plan is to go back and win it this year.’ They’ve gotten it. They’ve pushed us. We kind of just flow off each other. We work hard, they work hard. In practice, everybody’s battling.”
