SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts The American International College ice hockey team was stifled by the play of Francis Marotte as Robert Morris University earned a 3-1 win to split an Atlantic Hockey Conference series that concluded on Sunday, December 30.

FAST FACTS:
SCORE:Robert Morris 3, AIC 1
RECORDS:AIC falls to 8-8-1 overall, with an 8-5-1 record in league play; Robert Morris rises to 8-9-1 overall and 7-6-1 in the AHC.
LOCATION:MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts

STATS:
AIC:
Janis Jaks: One goal
Chris Theodore: One assist
Jeff Baum: One assist
Zackarias Skog: Loss (5-5-0), eight saves in 58:13

Robert Morris:
Alex Tonge: Two goals
Luke Lynch: One goal
Francis Marotte: Win (8-8-1), 29 saves

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• AIC opened the scoring on a first-period power play; sophomore defenseman Jeff Baum crossed a pass through the slot to freshman left wing Chris Theodore. He shot the puck low, and the rebound ended up on the tape of the stick of junior defenseman Janis Jaks, who fired into an open net at 8:51 for his first of the season.
• The Yellow Jackets killed off a five-on-three to end the first period and a double minor early in the second. However, shortly after the penalty expired, Alex Tonge jammed in a rebound to tie the game 1-1 at 9:32 of the second.
• The Colonials scored what proved to be the deciding goal just eight seconds into the third; after winning the draw, Tonge cut down the middle and took a pass to go in on a breakaway and score. Neither team netted another goal until the final minute, when Luke Lynch scored into the empty net at 19:22 for the 3-1 final.

COACH'S CORNER:

• "We did a lot of things exceptionally well tonight. Our special teams, 5-v-5 play, and o-zone were as good as they've been all year. Marotte showed why he is a top goalie in the league. He made some tough saves look easy. Credit RMU, a team that has won a lot of games in this league for finding a way. Our focus and attention to detail in areas outside of the game were not quite what they need to be if you are going to get four points on a weekend. We made it extremely tough on ourselves with undisciplined penalties, unfocused penalties, and some terrible line changes. One thing I know about our group is they will make the corrective measures and turn the page. We learned a lesson the hard way tonight. It's a shame because our game was certainly good enough to get the win," head coach Eric Lang said after the game.

NEXT UP:

• AIC closes out the three-game homestand and rings in 2019 with a visit from the No. 2 University of Massachusetts Minutemen.
  

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• For more updates about the AIC ice hockey team, follow@AIC_HockeyonTwitterandInstagram, and likeAmerican International College Ice HockeyonFacebook. For updates on all AIC Yellow Jackets teams, follow@AICAthleticsonTwitterandInstagram, and likeAIC Yellow JacketsonFacebook.