College Hockey is back at Robert Morris University

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For anyone that has been involved with the sport, you know that hockey can be an expensive game to play. It really does not matter what level you want to talk about, the cost is undeniable. So you can imagine what the dollar figure must be if you are trying to put a team back on the ice. That has begun at Robert Morris University when on Friday, they announced that it was bringing back college hockey at the division one level for both the men and women for the 2023-24 year. Fundraising was the key to returning the sport to the school.

That fundraising was put forth by the greater Pittsburgh area as well as students, families, and alumni of the school. It was their hard work and dedication to the project that spearheaded the return of hockey to the school and the NCAA. The Colonials will seek to reinstate the men’s program to the Atlantic Hockey League, where RMU was a part of until last May when the announcement was made that the sport was discontinued. A plan was hatched by the Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation in August to try and raise the money that would be needed to bring hockey back. The plan was called “Hockey is the goal campaign in August” and it was promoted to alumni and donors throughout the fall months.

Several fundraising events were also planned for the fall, including a celebrity hockey faceoff at the UMPC Lemieux center in Cranberry, PA. The event was put on by the PCHA and the RMU Athletics. The campaign will continue throughout the rest of this year and next so that fans will have the chance to support both the men’s and women’s programs to allow for the long-term growth of both. Beginning next month, reps of the school’s ticket office will start to process requested season ticket order forms. These forms will be for fans of both the men’s and women’s teams that have not already secured seats. This will be done on a first come first serve basis. Prices are $125 dollars for men’s season tickets and $75 dollars for women’s season tickets. Clearview Arena, where both teams will play their home games, is nearly sold out already. Which is good news for the school and for NCAA hockey.

The school has tabbed Derek Schooley as the head coach and director of hockey operations for both programs. He has been running the men’s team since August 21, 2003. He is the only coach the men have ever had. He has guided the Colonials to six conference tournament championship games. In 2014 he helped them to get their first-ever NCAA tournament berth. When both programs are back up and running, a national search for a women’s head coach will be conducted. In addition, Brianne McLaughlin-Bittle will serve as a special assistant to both RMU and Pittsburgh College Hockey Foundation. She will continue to help with raising funds to help with keeping these programs alive for the long term. She played hockey for the women’s team from 2005 to 2009, as a goalie, and established an NCAA record for career saves with 3,809 as the starting netminder. She also represented Team USA in both the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics earning Silver Medals both times. McLaughlin-Bittle is currently the goaltending coach for the U.S. National team.

The school is hoping to raise a total of $1.4 million dollars in immediate contributions and another $1.4 million to put both programs back on the ice for the 2022-23 season. That amount had to be collected by December 15, 2021. That would represent enough money to cover the cost of operating expenses for two seasons. Time will tell if all the hard work and planning will pay off.