Robert Morris upset Miami of Ohio in Pittsburgh for the third straight time, Saturday night. This time it was for the first Three Rivers Classic Championship.
Brandon Denham broke a scoreless tie in the third period with his first career goal and Eric Levine stopped all 51 shots as the Colonials knocked off the no. 5 Redhawks.
Levine stopped all 99 shots he faced during the two-day tournament, earning him tournament MVP honors. After his 48 save performance against Penn State on Friday, Levine credited the defense for giving him easier saves. Against the Redhawks, Levine was simply spectacular. Whether it was stopping Steven Spinell on a breakaway late in the second period, denying Blake Coleman’s shorthanded breakaway, or stonewalling John Doherty three straight times in front of the net, Levine earned every save of every shot Miami threw at him.
And just when it looked like the Redhawks were going to crack the code, Levine was there again, robbing Curtis McKenzie at point blank range with a herculean glove save.
“Happy the puck found my glove,” Levine said, “I was actually caught looking the wrong way.”
Eric and his teammates dedicated the win, along with this season, to former teammate Chris Kushneriuk who is battling cancer.
“His jersey hangs in our locker room every game,” Levine said, “everything we do is for him and guys like that, who build the program…speechless right now. Good for him and good for our team.”
The Miami Redhawks seemed to control the game, at times, outshooting the Colonials 51-16 despite surrendering two 5 on 3 opportunities for RMU. But the Colonials kept clawing and took advantage of a rare Miami University mistake with twelve minutes remaining in the game.
Tyler Hinds took the puck into the corner and threw the it in front. Brandon Denham and Greg Gibson both whacked at the puck which skipped off a Redhawk defenseman and up in the air. Denham knocked the puck out of mid-air and it barely crossed the goal line. It was Denham’s first goal as a Colonial and it came at the perfect time for RMU.
The Redhawks peppered Eric Levine in the third period and received a power play with 1:40 left in the game. With the goalie pulled, the Redhawks had a few opportunities to tie the game but Levine was there every step of the way.
“You got to take your hat off to that goaltender,” Miami coach Enrico Blasi said, “we broke down for one second and they were able to score a goal and that can’t happen against a hot goaltender.”
The tournament, as a whole, was a major success for Pittsburgh hockey. Over 22,000 fans attended the tournament, previewing what should be an energetic atmosphere and high class production for the Frozen Four in April. RMU coach Derek Schooley was encouraged by the fan support and hopes it translates into more interest in college hockey.
“Hopefully of the 22,000 people here this weekend they’ll want to come back and watch us play UCONN in a couple of weeks, he said, “hopefully they’ll watch us play Army on national television next week.”
The Colonials received 15 votes for a ranking last week. After this weekend’s tournament win, combined with six ranked schools being upset Saturday, they’ll likely have a national ranking.
Photo courtesy of Post Gazette
