Robert Morris category, Page 15
Experience buoys RMU goalie Zolnierczyk in return from injury
Mike Zolnierczyk’s leadership skills on and off the field were on display throughout his high school career at Springdale, where he was a three-time All-WPIAL performer and the Class A Player of the Year as a senior in 2018. Upon his arrival the next year at Division I Robert Morris...
Robert Morris football picked to finish 6th in Big South
Robert Morris is entering its second football season in the Big South and was picked to finish in last place by the league’s head coaches and media panel Tuesday at Big South media day in Charlotte. The Colonials finished third last season with a 3-4 record (4-6 overall). North Carolina...
Robert Morris’ men’s basketball roster includes 11 new faces, 4 starters
Keeping up with a growing trend in college basketball, Robert Morris will have 11 newcomers on its 16-man roster at the start of the 2022-23 season. Nonetheless, coach Andy Toole will lean heavily on four returning starters. One of them, graduate student Kahliel Spear, started all 32 games last season....
Robert Morris considering whether to ditch Colonials team name
Robert Morris University officials said they are considering whether to keep the name Colonials after another university recently announced its decision to nix the same moniker. George Washington University recently announced it is looking to change the name Colonials, which has been used since 1926. Opponents of the name said...
Playing D-I softball at Robert Morris ‘a dream come true’ for Burrell grad Alaina York
Robert Morris’ Alaina York has some serious range in center field. How serious? “It’s kind of a running joke that any time a ball gets hit in the air, it automatically seems like Alaina is calling for it,” Colonials coach Jexx Varner said of York, a Burrell graduate. “It could...
Robert Morris men’s basketball working to bolster roster
Robert Morris men’s basketball coach Andy Toole isn’t leaving any stone unturned as he tries to build his program back to where it once was in the Northeast Conference. Toole and his staff are scouring the country looking to replenish a roster that saw seven players either graduate or transfer...
Monessen grad Dana Vatakis leads way as ace of Robert Morris softball pitching staffVideo
Robert Morris fourth-year softball coach Jexx Varner doesn’t believe in the time-honored tradition of having one starting pitcher carry the load for an entire season. He prefers to use an MLB-style staff of multiple pitchers. To wit: The Colonials (16-6 in the Horizon League, 27-16 overall) have five pitchers who...
First Call: Cowboys owner swats former Steeler; Alex Ovechkin gives injury update; former RMU president up for NCAA gig?
In Thursday’s “First Call,” Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones jabs an ex-player who also was a Pittsburgh Steeler. The Penguins’ playoff picture is crystalizing. Alexander Ovechkin provides a health update. And a surprising new job could be in the works for former Robert Morris University president Chris Howard. I’m sure...
Atlantic Hockey Association welcomes back Robert Morris’ men’s program
Robert Morris men’s hockey reached a major milestone Friday in its return to competition when it was welcomed back into the Atlantic Hockey Association by a vote of the AHA Board of Directors. Robert Morris will put a team back on the ice in time for the 2023-24 season. The...
Robert Morris volleyball player Emily Devlin becomes 2nd local athlete to get extended look from WWE
Another local college athlete is getting a shot to make it big in pro wrestling. Robert Morris volleyball player and Seneca Valley High School graduate Emily Devlin is heading to Orlando in June for a 60-day extended tryout at the WWE performance training center. Devlin is set to graduate from...
First Call: Ravens lose out on free-agent target; ex-Pitt star may grab St. Peter’s job; RMU coach tired of ‘Coach K’ coverage
In Friday’s “First Call,” the Baltimore Ravens miss out on a star free agent signing. A Pitt basketball legend may be getting his first head coaching gig. Robert Morris’ head coach is no fan of the hype surrounding Mike Krzyzewski’s last trip to the Final Four. And we recap another...
Tim Benz: Robert Morris trio goes from losing their hockey home to a national championship
For former Robert Morris women’s hockey coach Paul Colontino, the emotions were easy to sort out. It was natural for him to back Ohio State in their 3-2 NCAA championship game win over Minnesota-Duluth on Mar. 20. “You couldn’t be cheering harder. You’re excited and elated for them to have...
Robert Morris loses 3 basketball players to transfer portal
Robert Morris coach Andy Toole is in the process of looking for replacements for three players who have entered the NCAA transfer portal. Sophomore guard Kam Farris and junior forwards Brandon Stone and Justin Winston have announced plans to transfer. ⚜️ Available Transfer ⚜️ Kam Farris ????Versatile Wing???? Robert Morris**3...
Pitt, Duquesne, RMU among local basketball teams stuck in a rut
At a watering hole in Pittsburgh’s Greenfield section over the weekend, Guy Fieri’s “Tournament of Champions” was showing on two TVs. At the head of the room on a main screen, The Players Championship PGA Tour event was in plain view until someone changed the channel to ION, which was...
Robert Morris big man Brandon Stone to transfer
Another new stop awaits Brandon Stone. The 6-foot-11 forward is departing the Robert Morris basketball team, confirming Monday he will enter the NCAA transfer portal for the second time in his career. He did not want to elaborate on the details of his move at this time. Stone, a junior...
Tim Benz: Feeling nostalgic about college basketball after a rough year for the sport in Western Pa.
Nostalgia can be a wonderful thing in sports. Just look at the way Pittsburgh recently basked in the memories of Ben Roethlisberger’s career as he faded into retirement in January. We are also just getting back from our extended trip in the “way back machine” to relive Sidney Crosby’s journey...
Robert Morris sees season end with loss to Cleveland State in Horizon quarterfinals
Defending champion Cleveland State followed the script against Robert Morris in the Horizon League Tournament men’s basketball quarterfinals Thursday, capping a night of victories for the higher-seeded teams. Torrey Patton scored 25 points to lead the top-seeded Vikings into the semifinals with an 83-67 victory over the Colonials at Wolstein...
Robert Morris men knock off Youngstown State in Horizon League Tournament openerVideo
Before entering their second Horizon League men’s basketball tournament, the Robert Morris Colonials were issued a challenge by coach Andy Toole: Don’t quit. They heard him loud and clear and went on to provide Toole with his 200th career victory Monday night by claiming an opening-round 77-73 decision against Youngstown...
Robert Morris men look to secure 1st victory in Horizon League Tournament
As Robert Morris approaches its second appearance in the Horizon League men’s basketball tournament, securing its first postseason victory in the league could depend on several points. When the 10th-seeded Colonials (7-23) meet No. 7 Youngstown State (18-13) in a first-round game Tuesday night at Beeghley Center in Youngstown, Ohio,...
NCAA Tournament returns to PPG Paints Arena carrying history of upsets
Dave Saba was there the first time the NCAA Tournament came to Pittsburgh. It was 1997, and the Civic Arena (where it all happened) was still standing. Today, that site features a big pile of dirt in an empty lot. Then, Saba was seen as an outsider from Texas whose...
Robert Morris men lose on road to Wright State
For a while, Robert Morris had its mojo going. Then, Wright State responded. In a big way. Grant Basile scored 20 points to go with eight rebounds, and Wright State rallied from an eight-point, second-half deficit to defeat Robert Morris, 71-61, on Saturday night at Nutter Center in Fairborn, Ohio....
Ex-Robert Morris star Lucky Jones back home after 90-hour journey from Ukraine
Lucky Jones kept looking into the Ukrainian sky, praying mostly, but also squinting, hoping not to see airplanes emerge from behind the clouds. “I didn’t know what to expect,” said Jones, the former Robert Morris basketball star who was playing professionally in Ternopil, Ukraine, until Russia invaded the country Thursday....
Robert Morris men drop 3rd straight with loss to Northern Kentucky
In the Northeast Conference, the Robert Morris brand emanated with other marquee programs in the loop. Now that the Colonials have jumped to the higher-profile Horizon League, coach Andy Toole has a message, yet again, to anyone who is up for listening. Can you hear him, players (wink-wink)? With Toole...
Robert Morris football hopes to receive boost after Big South/Ohio Valley merger
Robert Morris football hopes to take a step forward in prestige, recruiting and championship possibilities after the Big South Conference, where it has been a member for nearly two years, announced an alliance with the Ohio Valley Conference. The merger of the FCS conferences will begin with the 2023 NCAA...
Alverton native Brandon Stone finds familiarity at Robert Morris
Andy Toole turned and pointed to his bench. Brandon Stone immediately popped up and headed to the scorer’s table. It was hard to miss the slender, 6-foot-11, 200-pound Stone, who grew up in the southwestern Westmoreland County village of Alverton, as he was buzzed into the game during a stoppage...
